UNIT 2

LEVELS OF SOCIAL DIVERSITY

Diversity –meaning

• Diversity is the variety of backgrounds

and characteristics found among
humankind; thus it embraces all aspects
of human similarities and differences.
Social Diversity- Meaning

• Social Diversity is the differences seen in a

particular society in the case of religion,
culture, economic status etc.
• If the people of a particular society belong to
different religions, cultural backgrounds, social
status, economic status, linguistic
environment etc., this phenomena is called
social diversity.
Social Diversity- Definition

• A successful community in which individuals of

different race, ethnicity, religious beliefs , socio
economic status, language, geographical origin,
gender or sexual orientation bring their different
knowledge ,background , experience and interest
for the benefit of the whole community.
 DIFFERENT TYPES OF SOCIAL DIVERSITY  
or
LEVELS OF SOCIAL DIVERSITY

• Social diversity can be classified into different categories on

the basis of the criteria on which the difference in a

particular society is determined and defined.

• The following are the different types of diversity which are

commonly seen in our universe.

1. Individual
2. Regional
3. Linguistic
4. Religious
5. Caste
6. Tribes
1.Individual diversity
• Individuals inherit certain characteristics from their
parents
• Shares similarities with our parents
• Physical attributes like height, skin colour, hair and
more
• Cognitive , emotional characteristics
• But individual characteristics are developed based on the
support from the society we live
• Socio economic status
• Family environment
• School environment
• So that, every individual is not exactly like their parents
and so on.
2.Regional Diversity
• India has huge geographical variations , it has
• Snow clad Himalayas
• Fertile plains
• Arid Land
• Deccan Plateau
• Coastal Plains
• Some places can easily interact with outside world
• Some places like tribal areas not able to interact with outside world
• Regional characteristics identity is a combination of
 • Geographical
• Cultural identities
• Historical
• Regional Consciousness
• Regional consciousness brings contradiction between the
community because it is coupled with economic disparities , hence
community demands separate administrative setup to preserve
their socio cultural identity
• Kerala , Karnataka and Andra Pradesh separated from Madras
state (1956)
• Telengana state separated from Andra (2014)
• Regionalism in India has several factors
1. Geographical factors
• In India, people feel, region are symbolic
• Hence we have linguistic distribution boundaries
• Climatic variations also induce in people
2.Historical and Cultural factors
• It’s a prime component of regionalism
• Cultural heritage and historical traditions
• Folklore
• Myths
 3. Linguistic Diversity
• Around 1652 languages (1961 census)
• In Indian constitution 22 languages are scheduled languages
• Most of the languages are spoken by very few people
• Most spoken languages in North India belongs to Indo-Aryan family
• South Indian languages belongs to Dravidan family
• Hindi and English are official languages of India
• Almost all the states has its own official language
• 1956, Nov 1 most of the India is separated to new state based
language spoken in the region.
 4. Religious Diversity
• Now there are a number of religious
entities in this world. In some countries
people of different religions live together
at the same localities.
• These religions contribute more to the
social diversity with religious centres like
Mosques, Churches, Temples etc.
• They have also contributed with different sorts of
rituals, celebrations, prayers, philosophies and
scriptures.

• The major religions exist in this world are Islam,

Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, Jainism,
Sikhism, and thousands of other subdivisions of
different major religions.
 5.Caste Diversity
• India is a country of castes. The term caste is generally used in two
senses: sometimes in the sense of Varna and sometimes in the sense
of Jati.

 Varna refers to a segment of the four-fold division of

Hindu society based on functional criterion. The four
varnas are Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra
with their specialized functions as learning, defense,
trade and manual service. The Varna hierarchy is
accepted all over India.
• Jati refers to a hereditary endogamous status group
practicing a specific traditional occupation. There are
more than 3,000 jatis in India. These are hierarchically
graded in different ways in different religions.
• The practice of caste system is not confined to Hindus
alone.
• One can find castes among the Muslims, Christians,
Sikhs as well as other communities.
• There is the hierarchy of Shaik, Saiyed, Mughal and
Pathan among the Muslims.
• Furthermore, there are castes like teli (oil presser),
dhobi (washerman), etc among the Muslims.
• Similarly, caste consciousness among the Christians
in India is not unknown. Since a vast majority of
Christians in India were converted from Hindu fold,
the converts carried the caste system into
Christianity.
• In this view, one can imagine the extent of caste
diversity in India.
 6. Tribes Diversity
• Group of indigenous people with history

• Having own name ,language, territory, rituals and beliefs

, Common ownership of resources and technology.

• In India, Caste system also follow the same

characteristics, hence it creates a problem to distinguish
them from casts.

• They have egalitarian system, not inter-dependent as

caste system.
• Himalayan region (Gaddi, Jaunsari, Naga)

• Middle India (Munda, Santal)

• Western India (Bhil, Grasia)

• South India (Toda, Chenchu)

• Islands Region (Onge, Minicoyans)

 Racial Diversity

• There are plenty of races in this world.

• Some countries keep a variety of ethnic groups with
them.
• The factors such as migration, military invasion,
inter-racial marriages, etc. may be regarded as the
major cause behind the existence of different races in
some countries.
• And it is a commonly seen trend that some races are
approached in a gentle manner while some others are
always treated in a humiliating manner.
 Cultural Diversity

• Culture can be defined as the style or mode of life that a

particular society follows.

• In a detailed manner, culture can be explained as the sum

totality of the social existence of a particular society
which includes its rituals, customs, celebrations, dress
code, language, mode of relationship between and among
the people etc.
• Some countries are fortunate to have different
types and levels of culture. When there are
different cultural entities in a society, it gives
beauty and charm to that society.
 Sexual Diversity:
• Another type of diversity which is seen all over
the world almost among all the society is
sexual diversity.
• Men and women were the major groups in this
category.
• And now, with the advancement of modern
science and technology there are new varieties
such as people who were born men and later
transformed into women, and those who were
born women and later transformed  into men.
• This diversity has produced different topics for
discussion, too, such as gender, gender equality,
gender bias, gender dominance, sexual harassment,
etc.
• This diversity is significant in the case of education,
as creating a positive attitude towards the strengths
and limitations of each sexual group is important for
the balance of a society.
THANK YOU