Culture is one of the most important concepts of social science. It is a unique possession of man. Only man in born and brought up in a cultural environment. It is a very broad term that includes in itself all our works of life,our modes of behavior,our philosophies and ethics, our morals, manners, our customs and traditions.
Definitions:-
1.B.Malinowski defined culture “cumulative creation of man.”
2.Graham Wallas, culture as an accumulation of thoughts values and objects, it is the social heritage acquired by us from preceding generation through learning.
3.Robert Bierstadt, culture is that complex whole that consists of all the ways we think and do and everything we have as members of society.
4. Edward B.Tylor, a famous English anthropologist defined as that complex whole which includes knowledge ,belief, art, morals, law, custom and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.
Characteristics :-
Culture is learnt: It is learnt socially by man & not an in born tendency. Culture is often called learned ways of behavior. Culture is social:-It doesn’t exist in isolation, and product of society, shared by member of society. It helps to develop human qualities in a human environment. Culture is shared, it is not something that an individual alone can possess. For eg,customs, traditions, beliefs, idea, values, morals all are shared. It is from one generation to another. Culture is transmitted not through genes but by means of language. Language is an achievement of culture. It exists in continuous process and conceived as a kind of stream flowing down through centuries from generation to another. It is relatively stable and not altogether static. Change and growth are latent N in culture. Every society has a culture of its own, differs from society to society. Social Structure:-
It is one of the basic