what is society meaning and characteristics etymologically speaking the term society is derived from the latin word socious which means a companion association or fellowship this is because humans always live in the company of their fellow human beings as a matter of fact this led george simmel to remark that sociability is the essence of society but viewed from a broader perspective the term society is understood in different senses in our day-to-day discussion society is used to refer to the members of specific groups for example the diac society in borneo at some other time it refers to some institutions like the society of jesus it could also refer to an association like consumer society cooperative society or cultural society the term society is also used in the sense of a group such as rural society or urban society but in sociology the term society refers not to a group of people but to the complex pattern of the norms or interaction or relationships that arise among them here people exist only as an agent of social relationships hence mere congregation of individuals do not constitute society rather society refers to the complicated network of social relationships by which every individual is interrelated with her fellow human beings hence the term society is abstract not concrete in nature it is also important to note that in sociology society is viewed as a process of living not a thing emotion rather than structure for this reason a system of social relationships is the most important aspect of society to understand the meaning of the term society more clearly and exactly we must look towards the definitions given by sociologists but it must be noted that sociologists are not unanimous in their opinion about society as a result we come across two types of definitions namely structural and functional definitions but it must be noted that these two views are not contradictory but complementary to each other structural views of society according to this view society is nothing but a structure hence for the structuralist view society refers to the social heritage of folkways mores ideals institutions and habits adherents of these views include morris ginsburg f h gadings g d h cole and j f cuber for ginsburg a society is a collection of individuals united by certain relations or modes of behaviors which mark them off from others who do not enter into these relations or who differ from them in behavior giddings defines society as the union itself the organization the sum of formal relations in which associated individuals are bound together for coal society is the complex of organized associations and institutions within the community and for cuba a society may be defined as a group of people who have lived long enough to become organized and to consider themselves and be considered as a unit more or less distinct from other human units functional views of society according to the functional views society is a process of social relationships hence this view considers society as a complex of groups in reciprocal relationship interacting among themselves and carrying on an independent life and helping each other in fulfilling their wishes adherents of this view include robert morrison mciver and charles h page talcott parsons charles h cooley and eleanor burke licock form archivo and page society is a system of usages and procedures authority and mutual aid of many groupings and divisions of controls of human behavior and of liberties parsons defines society as the total complex of human relationship in so far as they grow out of action in terms of means and relationship intrinsic or symbolic for cooley society is a complex of forms or processes each of which is living and growing by interaction with the others the whole being so unified that what takes place in one part affects all the rest while for likok society includes not only the political relations by which men are bound together but the whole range of human relations and collective activities from the above analysis we can conclude that we cannot have an absolute one-size-fits-all definition of society the least that we have is the idea that from a wider angle society is considered as both a structural as well as functional unit it is an organization a system and a pattern it is a system of rules and regulations which changes in course of time also society is a larger group of which individuals are members elements or characteristics of society it is important to note that a comprehensive understanding of society requires a thorough understanding of its basic elements or characteristics which includes one population two likeness three differences four interdependence five cooperation and conflict society as a network or web of relationships 7. permanent nature 8 society is abstract 9. society as dynamic and 10 comprehensive culture population a society must have population without a group of people no society could be formed of course society refers not to a group of people but to system of social relationships but for the establishment of social relationships a group of people is necessary likeness scholars argue that likeness is the most important characteristic of society famous sociologist mikaiva opines that society means likeness without a sense of likeness there could be no mutual recognition of belonging together and therefore no society this sense of likeness was found in early society on kinship and in modern societies the conditions of social likeness have broadened out into the principles of nationality society consists of like-bodied and like-minded individuals friendship intimacy and association of any kind would be impossible without likeness differences along with likeness differences is another important characteristic of society because society involves differences and it depends on it as much as on likeness that is why mackyver opines that primary likeness and secondary differences create the greatest of all institutions the division of labor this is because differences is complementary to social relationship if people will be alike in all respect society could not be formed and there would be little reciprocity and relationship became limited interdependence interdependence is another important characteristic of society this fact of interdependence is visible in every aspect of present-day society famous greek philosopher aristoll remarked that man is a social animal as a social animal he is dependent on others the survival and well-being of each member is very much dependent on this interdependence indeed no individual is self-sufficient individuals have to depend on others for shelter and security and for the fulfillment of many of his needs and necessities cooperation and conflict both cooperation and conflict are two another important characteristic of society in fact famous sociologist mciver once remarked that society is cooperation crossed by conflict cooperation is essential for the formation of society without cooperation there can be no society people can't maintain a happy life without cooperation cooperation also avoids mutual destructiveness like cooperation conflict is also necessary for society acts as a cementing factor for strengthening social relations in a healthy and well-developed society both cooperation and conflict co-exist this is because with the help of these two universal processes society is formed hence conflict can make cooperation meaningful as a network or web of social relationships society is a network or web of social relationship in fact social relationships is one of the foundations of society that is why makiva remarked that society is a network of social relationship permanent nature permanency is another important characteristic of society it is not a temporary organization of individuals society continues to exist even after the death of individual members society is abstract society is an abstract concept as right has rightly remarked society in essence means a state or condition a relationship and is therefore necessarily an abstraction besides society consists of customs traditions folkways moors and culture which are also abstract society is dynamic the very nature of society is dynamic and changeable indeed no society is static every society changes and changes continuously old customs traditions folkways mores values and institutions got changed and new customs and values take place comprehensive culture culture is another important characteristic of society each society has its own culture which distinguishes it from others culture is the way of life of the members of the society which includes the values beliefs art morals and like culture is comprehensive because it fulfills the necessities of social life and is culturally self-sufficient besides each society transmits its cultural pattern to the succeeding generations you