ABSTRACT
A STUDY of the village community cannot ignore an analysis of the process of social change and its by-products. Unlike a primitive tribe, the village community is an integral part of a larger whole—the nation. One of the contributions of modern sociology is the distinction between community and state or society as constituting ‘distinct categories of integrative forces’. The integrative forces of the community are based on more spontaneous, natural, and direct relations binding people who are of the same kin; whereas society is more artificial, more indirect, and more deliberate in its relations, maintaining its unity and cohesion with more conscious effort. The social heritage of the community is mainly local, tied up with its habitat; thus, usually, community and locality are almost synonymous. 1
