What is Culture?

It was derive from a

French term which in
turn derives Latin word
“colere,” which means to
tend to the earth and
grow, or cultivation and
nurture.
Who coined
the term
culture?
 The term was coined
by the sociologist
William F. Ogburn in his
1922 work “Social
Change with Respect to
Culture and Original
Nature.
 What is Culture
in a sociological
perspective?
refers to the symbols,
language, beliefs, values,
and artifacts that are part
of any society. It is a key
concept to the
sociological perspective-
it influences people’s
beliefs.
 What is a
subculture?
 Is a group of people
within a larger culture,
such as a country, who
have something in
common. They might
share religious or
political beliefs.
 What is a
counterculture?
Is a term used to describe
a group whose values and
norms of behavior run
counter to those of the
social mainstream of the
day, the cultural
equivalent of political
opposition.
 Major Elements of
Culture are as follows:
• Symbols
• Language
• Norms
• Values
• Artifacts
 What are the 2
types of culture?
Material Culture
is defined as that segment
of humankind’s physical world
that has been purposely made
or modified, consciously or
unconsciously, by people
according to culturally
dictated plans.
Examples of Material
Culture
Non-Material Culture
refers to the nonphysical
ideas that people have
about their culture,
including beliefs, values,
rules, norms, morals,
language, organizations,
and institutions.
There are 7 components
of non-material culture:
• Gestures
• Language
• Values
• Norms
• Sanctions
• Folkways
• Mores
 The Most Important
Characteristics of Culture:
• Culture is acquired
• Culture is social
• Culture is transmissive
• Culture is fulfils some needs
• Culture is shared
• Culture is idealistic
• Culture is accumulative
• Culture is adaptive
• Culture is variable
• Culture is organized
• Culture is communicative
• Language is the chief vehicle of Culture
• Culture is the total social heritage
 What is
Cultural Lag?
 The strain that exists
between two correlated
parts of culture that
change at unequal rates of
speed maybe interpreted
as a lag in the part that is
changing at the lowest rate
for the one lags behind the
other.
 What is
Cultural
Relativism?
 refers to the idea that
the values, knowledge,
and behavior of people
must be understood
within their own cultural
context.
 Why Culture
is important
to Sociology?