Types of Societies

Guns, Germs, and Steel—The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond

Types of Societies

Society = a group of people living together in a particular place or at a particular time and having many things in common

BandTribeChiefdomState

Different types of societies

Element = a point of comparison which is contained in the different types of societies

MembershipGovernmentEconomySociety

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Membership

Number of People

dozens hundreds

thousands over 50,000

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Membership

Settlement Pattern

nomadic fixed: 1 village

fixed: 1 or more villages

fixed: many villages and

cities

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Membership

Basis of Relationship

kin kin-based clans

class and residence

class and residence

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Membership

Ethnicities and

Languages

1 1

1 1 or more

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Government

Decision Making(Leadership)

“egalitarian” “egalitarian” or big-man

centralized, hereditary

centralized

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Government

Bureaucracy none none

none, or 1 or 2 levels

many levels

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Government

Monopoly of Force and Information

nono

yes yes

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Government

Conflict Resolution

informal informal

centralized laws, judges

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Government

Hierarchy of Settlement

no no

no >> paramount

village

capital

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Economy

Food Production

no no >>> yes

yes >>> intensive

intensive

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Economy

Division of Labor

no no

no >>> yes yes

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Economy

Exchanges reciprocal (given by both

sides)

reciprocal (given by both

sides)

redistributive (“tribute”)

redistributive (“taxes”)

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Economy

Control of Land

band clan

chief various

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Society

Stratified no no

yes, by kin yes, not by kin

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Society

Slavery no no

small-scale large-scale

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Society

Luxury Goods for Elite

no no

yes yes

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Society

Public Architecture

no no

no >>> yes yes

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Society

Indigenous Literacy

no no

no often

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Types of Societies

Band Tribe

Chiefdom State

Types of Societies

Types of Societies

Types of Societies