What is Culture?

Culture is the beliefs, behaviors, practices, norms, values, history, characteristics, knowledge, and
artifacts of a social group. Culture includes language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music, and
arts. These elements combine to create the culture of the social group and impact how members
of the group think, act, and acquire possessions as a shared way of living.

Culture is related to but different than society. A society is a group or population of people who
interact in a common territory and have shared culture and interests. Society includes the social
structure and organization of the people with that shared culture and territory.

An individual can be part of multiple cultures and subcultures. For example, one person may be
part of a national culture, a regional culture, a religious group with a distinctive culture, and one or
more professional, hobby, or sport-based subcultures.

Material and Non-Material Culture

Material culture is the totality of physical objects and belongings of members of a group of people.
Material culture includes objects made by the group and objects obtained by the group in other
ways, such as trading, stealing, or extracting something from the natural environment to serve as
an object for human use.

Non-material culture includes ideas, beliefs, social roles, rules, ethics, and attitudes of a society.
Non-material culture does not include any physical objects or artifacts. Nevertheless, non-material
culture plays a major role in shaping how members of a society behave, interact with each other,
and make sense of the world around them.

Material and Non-Material Culture Examples

Examples of material culture include money, tools, weapons, utensils, machines, clothing,
ornaments, art, buildings, and monuments. In other words, objects that one might see in a market,
a museum, a home, or a business, as well as the structure or building itself, are part of material
culture.

Examples of nonmaterial culture include languages and words, dress codes, etiquette, rituals,
business and social transactions, religion, laws, punishments, values, and ethics. Many of these
elements of culture are learned. Members of a group learn how close or far away to stand in
relation to people, how to give something to someone, how to sit, and how to perform various
greetings, including both words and gestures.