What Is the Difference Between a Community and a Society?

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The primary difference between a community and a society is that a community is limited to a specific geographic location, but a society can be made up of people who live in different places. Another difference is that a society is made up of direct and indirect social connections between people, but a community is made up of individuals who are more closely connected. For example, people who live in a town represent a community, whereas everyone who lives in the state the town is located in makes up a society.

Another difference between societies and communities is that several communities can be located within a society, but each society is separate from another. Societies often include more diversity, with people from different backgrounds, social classes and races. On the other hand, people in communities most often share similar characteristics.

Members of communities typically make up their own unofficial rules and follow the same customs. Although members of a society follow the same general laws and rules, they typically create individual customs. Additionally, members of a community engage with one another on a regular basis, but members of the same society may never meet one another. Ultimately, it is easiest to distinguish a community from a society by looking at the size of a group of people.

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