Jamaica Essays (2148 words) - Parishes Of Jamaica, Jamaica

Jamaica The country of Jamaica has an ideal location. Located just south of Cuba, it is the third largest island in the Caribbean Sea with 10,990 km?. Although the capital is Kingston, there are many other important centers of trade and business. The official language is English and the major religion is Protestantism. Transportation in Jamaica connects the entire country and movement thought out the island is very easy. There is a coastal highway traveling the whole coast. Air Jamaica and cruise ships make traveling to and from the island very easy. But despite all of the joys, there are very serious human-environmental interactions present. Mining on the island causes serve pollution and soil erosion. Most of the natural rainforest is destroyed. But the many beautiful beaches seem to make all of the worries disappear. I. History The history of Jamaica starts at about 1000 AD when a Tiano tribe called the Arawaks crossed the Caribbean Sea in canoes to settle on the island. The Arawaks lived in simple villages, relying on fishing and hunting for substance. They lived there peacefully for 500 years until Columbus landed at Discovery Bay in 1494. The contact with the Spanish was very traumatic to the Arawaks. Within 70 to 100 years of first contact, the entire Arawaks population was eliminated, leaving only a few artifacts behind. With the natural inhabitants gone, the Spanish had unlimited control over the island. Since the island had no rich abundant gold sources, it meant little to the Spanish Crown. Instead, Jamaica was used as a base in which to launch attacks on the rest of the Americas. The population of Jamaica, even its capital Santiago de la Vega (now Spanish Town) never grew very large and was easy to capture. The British, after failed to capture Hispaniola, needed a solid base in the Caribbean. So in 1655, Admirals Penn and Venables attacked the sparsely defended island of Jamaica. Having little importance to the Spanish at this point, the British had no trouble seizing the island and establishing Port Royal (near modern day Kingston) as the capital. This would turn out to be a pivotal moment in Jamaica's history. The British brought in large numbers of slaves to the area, needing thousands of hands to work the newly developing sugar plantations. In a short time, Jamaica turned into the "?jewels of the English crown'" (Essix). Many port cities back in England that serviced trade to Jamaica, as well as the slave traders and plantation owners all prospered during this time. The capital city of Jamaica was moved to modern day Kingston in 1703 when Port Royal was burned down 1838 saw great changes in Jamaica. That year the slaves were emancipated and the whole structure of society began to crumble. The slaves soon left the plantations to do substance farming. The tension between the plantations owners and the representatives from England began to grow. Several riots broke out and many plantations struggled to pay the wages of the workers. The riots continued until 1962 when Jamaica was granted political independence. A socialist government was soon elected, which led to immediate U.S. blockades. However, the 1980's began a period of a more conservative government for Jamaica. II. Population Jamaica is a sparsely populated country of 2,600,000 people. These 2.6 million people live on 10,990 km?, for a population density of about 1 acre per person. This gives Jamaica the distinction of being a developed countries and being not being overpopulated. However, in some places of Jamaica, especially along the coast, the cities are overcrowded. The largest city is Kingston with a population of 600,000 followed by Spanish Town, Portmore, Montego Bay and others (see graph 6). Still the largest percentage of people live in rural areas. However, many rural farmers are moving to the cities in search of work. Jamaica has many ethnic groups living with its boundaries. The largest group, about 75% of the population, are descendants of the slaves brought to Jamaica in the 1800's. Another large percentage of the population is composed of descendants of the European settlers from around the same time period. Over time, small percentages of people from East India and China have settled in Jamaica. The 1940's to 1970's saw a large emigration pattern out of Jamaica to the United States. As many as 465,000 Jamaicans left to help in the reconstruction of the States' economy after World War II. Since that time, no large scale immigration or emigration has occurred within the Jamaican population. The average male in Jamaica has a life

s Republic - Gender Equality

Plato’s Republic was perhaps one of the more controversial pieces of writing from its time. In this book, Plato attempted to immortalize the ideals put forward by his teacher and mentor, Socrates the Sophist. Most of Socrates’ beliefs went against Athenian tradition and convention, and as such was subject to great disapproval from influential Athenian superiors. Essentially, Socrates disagreed with virtually every aspect of the way Athens was run. He had his own ideas about the way in which an ideal city should be run, and voiced his opinion on diverse topics of discussion including the role of Athenian women in society. On examination of Socrates’ discourse, as he put forward his viewpoint on a woman’s place in the ideal city in Plato’s Republic, it was glaringly obvious that his opinion would not be embraced open-heartedly by Athenian readers of that time. It was customary in ancient Greece that women’s activities were held completely separate from those of the men. In the time of Homer, women were seen as possessions, as was demonstrated throughout the Iliad, where they were awarded to men as prizes. Their status in society did not improve by very much in later years. In Thucydides’ account, one of the few mentions of women was made by Pericles, in his funeral oration, where he advocated that they should be â€Å"least talked of among the men, whether for good or for bad† (Thuc. 2.45). In essence, women lived in the shadows, unseen, and unheard, with their primary purpose being to bear heirs for their husbands. The proposition put forward in Plato’s Republic was in complete disagreement with this long-standing view of society’s females. The concept that women and men should be treated equally was totally foreign, and the presentation of this idea to any ancient Athenian male would have been immediately scorned. It would have been viewed as totally unacceptable, because this was simply not the way things were do... 's Republic - Gender Equality Free Essays on Plato\'s Republic - Gender Equality Plato’s Republic was perhaps one of the more controversial pieces of writing from its time. In this book, Plato attempted to immortalize the ideals put forward by his teacher and mentor, Socrates the Sophist. Most of Socrates’ beliefs went against Athenian tradition and convention, and as such was subject to great disapproval from influential Athenian superiors. Essentially, Socrates disagreed with virtually every aspect of the way Athens was run. He had his own ideas about the way in which an ideal city should be run, and voiced his opinion on diverse topics of discussion including the role of Athenian women in society. On examination of Socrates’ discourse, as he put forward his viewpoint on a woman’s place in the ideal city in Plato’s Republic, it was glaringly obvious that his opinion would not be embraced open-heartedly by Athenian readers of that time. It was customary in ancient Greece that women’s activities were held completely separate from those of the men. In the time of Homer, women were seen as possessions, as was demonstrated throughout the Iliad, where they were awarded to men as prizes. Their status in society did not improve by very much in later years. In Thucydides’ account, one of the few mentions of women was made by Pericles, in his funeral oration, where he advocated that they should be â€Å"least talked of among the men, whether for good or for bad† (Thuc. 2.45). In essence, women lived in the shadows, unseen, and unheard, with their primary purpose being to bear heirs for their husbands. The proposition put forward in Plato’s Republic was in complete disagreement with this long-standing view of society’s females. The concept that women and men should be treated equally was totally foreign, and the presentation of this idea to any ancient Athenian male would have been immediately scorned. It would have been viewed as totally unacceptable, because this was simply not the way things were do...

Social Work Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Social Work - Research Paper Example History and Milestones of Social Work Charitable Organizational Societies and Settlement Houses The profession and practice of social work in North America began before the turn of the century, with the Charitable Organizational Societies and Settlement Houses from the United Kingdom (Baylis, 2004). Both of them were based on the principle of voluntary philanthropy and of improving conditions for less fortunate members of society. At that time, the term â€Å"social work† was coined and applied to volunteers of these movements (Id.). This is an important milestone because it gave the foundation of social work’s motives and purpose. Social work had altruistic motives and a concern for misplaced values of individuals and societies, social justice and reform mostly focused on poverty and other societal problems and how they affected individuals. The purpose of social work was to help those who were in need in any way possible, mostly by providing tangible resources such as food, clothing, housing and money (Holosko, 2003). Volunteers’ method of intervention was to help socialize people so that they could function better in society (Id.). Individual vs. Societal Problems The next important milestone in the profession of social work came at the turn of the 20th century. At that time, voluntary philanthropy gave rise to scientific philanthropy as social reform changed from a religious to educational based auspice (Id.). This began the 14-year debate, from 1909-1923, between thinking of problems as societal problems to individual problems. At the same time, this milestone reaffirmed the social conscience value of social work; defined casework methods with individuals, small groups, or families; acknowledged the role of empirical research in intervention methods; and, created the split between the dependency problems of individuals and problems of societies (Ramsay, 2001). The Flexner Conference of 1915 At the National Conference on Charities and C orrection in 1915, Flexner presented his analysis of the profession of social work which was that it was an intellectual activity and not actually a profession because it did not have the core sociological traits of a profession (Holosko, 2003). Flexner believed that a profession had to have a communication technique through a highly specialized educational discipline; however, this was not possible given the diverse nature of social work (Id.). The Milford Conference of 1929 This was an important milestone in the social work profession for a number of reasons. One reason the Milford Conference was important is that it unified the social work profession through the casework approach (Howe, 1998). Some other important results of the Conference were that the future casework was contingent on using the community and its resources; more research helps to make better casework decisions; and, the role of the community agency itself as an influence on social work practice (Id.). The Hollis -Taylor Report (1951) This report defined both the professional and nonprofessional activities related to the social work profession. The report was also important because it made a significant impact on curriculum development in undergraduate and graduate social work programs in the United States (Baylis, 1998). Another result of the report was that it brought

Accounting Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Accounting Theory - Essay Example Researchers use various methods and techniques to collect data, which is then analysed to create knowledge (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2012). Knowledge in this research refers to accounting facts and skills that people acquire through experience or education (Easterby- Smith,Thorpe, Jackson & Lowe, 2008). The interest of researchers during study processes constitutes establishing whether beliefs are in agreement with the facts. This paper focuses on ascertaining that various phenomena in accounting are real and they have particular characteristics. We intend to help readers know that various accounting information presented to stakeholders by accountants is characterised by validity, relevance, and reliability. Knowledge acts as a tool through which researchers communicate accounting information to humans (Given, 2008); therefore, proper research is critical founded on effective research philosophy is critical in knowledge generation. We had two approaches from which we were to choose one approach for this study; these are positivism and phenomenology. The selected approach for this paper was phenomenology. Phenomenology is a style of thought or method of systematically reflecting on and studying the structures of consciousness and all phenomena appearing in acts of consciousness (Given, 2008). Phenomenology adopts an induction approach, which is critical in collecting qualitative data and some quantitative data for further supporting beliefs about the accounting profession. Using inductive reasoning, we moved from specific observations to broader generalisations and theories concerning business accounting. While using this approach, we made three assumptions; first, the world subjective and socially constructed. Therefore, it is through the existence of human beings that the world receives meaning. Through our research on petroleum companies, we gave meaning to the world concerning the performance of the selected companies during the period of

Report On The Airasia Tourism Essay

Report On The Airasia Tourism Essay 1.0 Executive summary The current situation of Air market is not steady and could satisfy needs of customers, more and more negative news appear to show depression of AirAsia. AirAsia is a Malaysian-based company which owns airlines in Asia with low cost and provide 400 flight lines over 25 countries, the AirAsia was first founded in 1993 and operated in 1998 (Sen Ng, 2008). With almost 20-year history, AirAsia could be regarded as the most successful company in Asia. Brief analysis of AirAsia will be given in the report and further information will be provided to further support assistance for readers to know about AirAsia. 2.0 Introduction The air market is struggling at present, more competitors are involved in the battle and the competence seems intense than ever before, higher price of energy and lower price of flights drive most of airplane companies loss profit and reduce revenue (Kernchen, 2007). Airline market in Europe, America especially in Asia is developing in opposite direction, with effects of financial crisis, less customers go out to travel by plane; economy is also influenced by crisis which drives less businessmen go aboard to invest by plane (Shaw, 2011). The airline companies around world are all affected by crisis, decrease the revenue. At the same time, the speed of development of technology is beyond imagination of people, most airline companies purchase new planes from countries expert in measuring planes such as America, China and Russia, which increase cost and make more difficult to balance finance. The objective of the report is to supply information of AirAsia for readers and assist them to better understand the factors affecting AirAsia in the future, potential threats AirAsia will face with. The report will state an analysis of AirAsia with PESTEL method, from various aspects to show the key external factors affect the development of AirAsia. Then the second part will discuss how the Market Liberalization in the Asia-Pacific assisted AirAsia growth in the region. The third part of report will implement data to show a SWOT analysis of AirAsia and Porters five forces to further supply information of AirAsia. With SWOT analysis and Porters five forces, potential challenges will be given which AirAsia will face in the future. Finally a conclusion will be referred to. 3.0 External factors affect AirAsia Many factors will affect the development of an industry, which could easily divided into external and internal factors. To drive organizations progress better in the changeable world, to analyze and know what potential factors will affect organizations is essential. Eternal factors are easy to handle and organizations could prepare in advance before problems appear, especially for countries in Asia, most countries are at developing groups, external factors such as politics, economy or climates will affect organizations development in long-term (Kohama, 2003). Airline industry is easy affected by those external factors, so the following content will give a PESTEL analysis to help readers know what will affect AirAsia. 3.1 PESTEL analysis PESTEL analysis is used by managers as one of the most essential frameworks to study the external factors that affect development of organizations, PESTEL stands for Political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal ( William Green, 1997). The following content will focus on situation in Asia in the view of PESTEL analysis. Political factors: Asia is a mixed region compared with other areas, there are various countries with different government systems, besides, Asia has a long history, however, most Asian seem to have the similar cultural backgrounds, the policies each country hold are totally different, and the independence movements are continues recently ( Zhang, 2003). AirAsia owns many subsidiaries in many Asian countries, since cold war, with intense relationship between China and Japan, Taiwan, continues conflict between South Korea and North Korea, the flights of AirAsia are affected by these political factors, the relationships among Asian countries are difficult to fortell and the politics in each country seem unsteady ( Yahuda,2005). Economic factors: The economic growth in Asia increased faster since 1945, especially China and Japan, with independent and away from wars, these two countries develop beyond imagination. However, influenced by financial crisis, most Asian countries are struggling economic depression, the inflation rate raise, exchange rates change daily (Adams, 2006). All these unsteady factors drive less export and less people spend money on tourism which directly affects the revenue of AirAsia. The profit decline with less customers and less export for AirAsia. Social factors: In Asia, tourism is not thought about as usual as Europeans, which means, under the effects of cultural background, Asians spend less money on tourism. However, Asians are sensitive to change of price, especially when they desire to go out by plane, lower price will attract them, AirAsia holds the advantages of lower price. With more branches set up in Asian countries, AirAsia will appeal more Asian customers. The population in Asia increase fast, changeable population in Asia drive more young people change locations to live, China and India, these two biggest countries in Asia means change of demand for AirAsia (Sanderson Tan, 1995) Technological factors: Technology plays important role in the airline industry especially for AirAsia which implement the low cost carriers. With more and more experts appearance in Asia, competitors in the field of airline are able to invent new things to reduce cost to win in the battle, if AirAsia wants win finally, the key is to invite more professional experts to join them. Innovation of competitors affects revenue of AirAsia, too. New airplanes with high technology would appeal to customers to change purchasing habits. Environmental factors: Climate is a key factor which influences the revenue of AirAsia, however, natural factors are not planned or changed by human beings. Most of Asia countries realize the importance of protection for environment, with globalization and development of technology, the pollution raise and the living surroundings are damaged. Now, the slogan of energy saving and emission reduction is popular in China, governments request most organizations use clear energy to produce, especially for airline companies, lower cost but less pollutions to environment, fuel or gas must conform to law of countries. Legal factors: Taxation requested for customers will be increase by most countries, which will affect the revenue of AirAsia. Facing more taxation for tickets, customers will feel uncomfortable and ask to reduce the price of tickets. Tariff will change according to current economic situation of the world, especially for Asian countries who export goods with lower cost to compete with domestic industry. Environmental protection regulations will change to request AirAsia to use clear fuel or gas which increase cost and reduce revenue. Laws of export and import will also affect AirAsia, all these depend on policies of Asian countries and economy of the world. 3.2 SWOT analysis After stating key external factors which will affect the revenue of AirAsia, the company also needs tools to analyze under these factors, what the development in the future, the SWOT analysis pursues an integrated strategic position by providing internal information to conclude the strengths, weakness and external information of opportunities and threats ( Bohm, 2009). The SWOT analysis of AirAsia can be seen below: Figure 1: Strengths: Low cost compared with other competitors, the core value of AirAsia is low cost in Asia. Effective management, correct strategic positions, target customers. Simple models implemented in AirAsia, exploring for long time to find out suitable developing models. Secure time and high quality of service attract more customers. Expansion with more than five countries in Asia, multi-skilled employees in company means efficient workforce. Continues innovation, experts teams to invent new type of airplanes. Various airlines for customers, proving more choices for customers. Weakness: Lower cost means lower salary for employees, could not appeal skilled employees. Government regulation and policies often change towards airports, higher taxation for customers and tariff for export and import. More needs of customers, higher compensation asked by passengers increase cost of the company. New entrants in this field, more intense competition in Asia. Increasing price of gas and fuel, less profit for AirAsia. Brand is vital for market, airplanes only with service worse than competitors who ask for higher price. Opportunities: Airlines from Asia to other countries should be provided. Different model but still keep the principle of lower cost carriers. Increase quality of customer service and try to set up a full-service with low fare. Aggressive competition will drive air market prospers for new routes. Higher price of fuel will push competitors out of air industry. Threats: Full service increase cost of AirAsia. Entrants of air industry with lower cost. Accident, change of climate and disaster will influence confidence of consumers. Close relationship among each system in AirAis will limit development of company. Higher salary asked by skilled employees, increasing cost of labor. Government regulations and intense relationship among specific countries, unsteady politics in Asia. (Lim, 2012) 3.3 Porters Five Forces Porters five forces are used by managers to predict potential threats from competitors which will provide a model for managers to better understand the industry (Roy, 2011). After stating PESTEL and SWOT analysis of AirAsia, further information related with competitors will be provided in the following part. The diagram of Porters five forces could better help readers to know more about potential threats for AirAsia. Figure 2 ¼Ã… ¡ Rivalry Strong competitors from China and Singapore with the similar motto everyone can afford the air ticket as AirAsia. Examples such as Spring Airlines in China and Value Air, Tiger Airways in Singapore are strong competitors for AirAsia. Substitutes In the field of air industry, the substitutes are not essential threats for AirAsia. Cars and trains are main substitutes, however, trains are chosen by passages only in China and India, with lower price and safe condition, not affected by change of climate, trains are influence air industry. Cars can be regarded as threats for AirAsia in limited conditions, only for customers who like driving and do not care time. Threats of new entrants Asian air market is a huge market with potential for most companies, not only for Asian air companies, new entrants from Europe and America also involve in intense competition with AirAsia. New entrants will change the supply and demand, affecting AirAsia market share. New airplanes and special service will attract loyal customers from AirAsia to new entrants. Bargaining power of buyers. Consumers have more choices facing large numbers of air companies; they will request higher quality of service and be strict with the take off time and arrival time. They will compare prices of competitors with AirAsia, complaining lower price of other airlines to reduce revenue of AirAsia. Bargaining power of suppliers Suppliers concentrated, fuel or gas suppliers are mainly in East Asia, and the price of fuel and gas are changing without any bargaining of air companies. Fewer suppliers for fuel and aircrafts mean higher price they could ask for. The growth of AirAsia depends on many factors; the report has stated key external factors which will influence revenue of AirAsia, internal factors of strengths and weakness of AirAsia. 4.0 Conclusion In conclusion, the report has stated three analysis of AirAsia in order to supply enough information for readers to understand the strategic positions and models the company implement. With PESTEL analysis, key external factors influencing AirAsia are mentioning and SWOT analysis to provide AirAsia strengths and weakness, AirAsia should keep the core value and supply better service with low cost carriers in long term. Porters five forces analysis also shows potential threats for AirAsia should notice in the future, with new entrants and existing competitors, AirAsia should change management strategy and appeal to more skilled staff.

Abortion and Ethics Essay -- Life Pregnancy Fetus Papers

Abortion and Ethics According to the Websterà ¢s New World Dictionary, the first definition of abortion is the spontaneous act in which the body expels an embryo or fetus before it is able to survive, miscarriage (Neufeldt & Guralnik, 4). Yet others define abortion as à £the termination of a pregnancy with resulting death of the human fetus,à ¤ relating more to the planned procedures to produce this specific response (Ashley & Oà ¢Rourke, 141). In our society we have taken on this second view of the meaning, rather than abortion being a spontaneous act, it is a deliberate procedure sought by the mother that removes an embryo or fetus. This deliberate act has arisen throughout a controversial history. Before the procedures were made legal, women used many primitive methods. Some of these methods include jumping from great heights, having others jump on the pregnant womanà ¢s abdomen, ingestion of toxic substances, and the use of invasive probes such as sticks, knitting needles, or wire hangers (Callahan, 252). Although these primitive procedures might result in an abortion, they were unsafe for the women who endured them. Abortion in the United States was illegal until the early 1970s. Once legalized, abortions were localized to the coastal densely populated cities, such as in the states California and New York. Abortion was legalized nation wide on January 22, 1973 due to the efforts the key court cases of Roe v. Wade, and Doe v. Botton. Roe was an unmarried woman from Texas that wanted to challenge the abortion laws because she herself wanted to have the procedure to relieve the unborn child she carried. The second case, Doe v. Botton had a different outlook on the justification for abortion. Doe, a married... ...cities.com/ourlady_dal/abortion2.htm Knight, James, Joan Callahan. Preventing Birth: Contemporary Methods and Related Moral Controversies. University of Utah Press: Salt Lake City, 1989. Kushner, Thomasine, David C. Thomasma. Birth to Death. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 1996. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke National Institutes of Health. 26 Nov. 2002. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/health_and_medical/disorders/taysachs_doc.htm Neufeldt, Victoria, David B. Guralnik. Webster's New World Dictionary 3rd ed. Prentice Hall/Macmillan Company: New York, 1994. Robinson. 26 Nov. 2002. http://www.religioustolerance.org/abortion.htm Shannon, Thomas. Bioethics, 3rd edition. Paulist Press: Mahwah, 1987. The Abortion Law Homepage. 26 Nov. 2002. http://members.aol.com/abtrbng/pbal.htm

Changing social structure and mobility Essay

Rural Society: The village is the oldest permanent community of man. All early communities were basically rural in character. Bogardus says, â€Å"Human society has been cradled in the rural group†. The rural community is simply means a community that consists of people living in a limited physical area and who have common interests and common ways of satisfying them. Each society consists of different parts, such as individuals, groups, institutions, associations, and communities. The simplest analogy one can think of at this point is that of an organism that has different components working together as a whole. Society is a system like any other system, such as the solar system. The major features of rural society are: 1. Small size of village community, 2. Intimate relations, 3. Jajmani System, 4. Isolation, 5. Social homogeneity, 6. Informal Social Control, 7. Dominance of Joint Family, 8. Status of Rural Women, 9. Occupation, 10. Role of neighborhood, 11. Faith in religion, 12. Self Sufficiency, 13. Widespread caste system, 14. Simplicity, 15. Feelings, 16. Fellow feelings, 17. Conservatism, 18. Observance of moral norms, 19. Poverty, 20. Illiteracy, 21. Desire for Independence, 22. Dominance of primary relations, 23. Social Homogeneity, 24. Occupations, 25. Preservers of the Ancient culture of the society, 26. Legal Self Government, 27. Change in the Villages. Urban Society: As a result of development in science and technology, there has been industrial development. Due to industrial development there is urbanization as a result of which urban societies created. Every country has its own urban society. Every village possesses some elements of the city while every city carries some feature of the villages. Different criteria are used to decide a community as urban. Some of them are, for example, population, legal limits, types of occupations, social organizations. The city in the words of Louis wirth refers to â€Å"a relatively large, dense and permanent settlement of socially heterogeneous individuals. † The Major Features of Urban Society are: 1. Social Heterogeneity, 2. Secondary Relations, 3. Anonymity, 4. Secondary Control, 5. Large-scale Division of Labour and Specialization, 6. Large-scale social mobility, 7. Individuation, 8. Voluntary Association, 9. Social Reference, 10. Unstable Family, 11. Special Segregation, 12. Lack of community feeling, 13. Lack of unity in family, 14. Moral Laxity, 15. Unbalanced personality, 16. High incidence of crime, 17. Social disorganization, 18. Peculiarities of marital life, 19. Dynamic life, 20. Voluntary associations are formed quickly, 21. Artificial life. Forms of diversity in India Unity implies oneness or a sense of we-ness; it holds tightly together the various relationships of ethnic groups or institutions in a dovetailed manner through the bonds of contrived structures, norms and values. The sources of diversity in India may be traced through a variety of ways, the most obvious being the ethnic origins, religions, castes, tribes, languages, social customs, cultural and sub cultural beliefs, political philosophies and ideologies, geographical variations etc. A. Linguistic diversity The high degree of large diversity found in India is due to the existence of diverse population groups. The greatest variety in languages can be found in the one of the biggest democracies in the world. Most of these languages are distinct and have their own distinct form of writing and speech. The dictionary defines ‘Diversity’, as variety or different. Languages are defined as a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication. In India, the tribal communities are smallest in geographical spread and in population strength. They cover only 8. 8% (1991census) of the Indian population. Not only we should consider linguistic diversity as a resource of human kind but also should conceive both the decline in the number of languages and the emerging trend in having mono linguistic dominance over small languages as a threat to our plural existence. It is to be accepted that even in the very ecological sense, like bio-diversity, linguistic diversity should also need to maintain. Post-Independence Period After India obtained its independence, policies had to be formulated for the administration of the newly born nation. While forming the constitution of India, the leaders of the nation had to come up with a national language. They decided on Hindi as the national language and the use of English for official purposes. The Present situation Though the situation has improved from the early fifties, there has not been a significant development. India still faces the problems due to the diversity in languages. One of the foremost problems is the lack of a unified language system. Though a national language was chosen among the 114 officially recognized languages and 216 (Census of 1991) mother tongues in India, only 28% of the populations speak this language. People in India have a sense of belonging to a particular language speaking community rather that the nation as a whole. B. Religious diversity Religion is a major concern of man. Religion is universal, permanent, pervasive and perennial interests of man. The institution of religion is universal. It is found in all the societies, past and present. Religious beliefs and practices are, however, far from being uniform. Religious dogmas have influenced and conditioned economic endeavors, political movements, properly dealings, and educational tasks. The major religions in India are following: Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism, Christianity, Islam, Parsi, The basic ideas and faith of the each religion differs. But they co existently stood in Indian society. The preamble of the Constitution of India proclaims India to be a secular republic where citizens may freely worship and propagate any religion of their choice. The right to freedom of religion is also declared as a fundamental right by the Constitution of India. Indian religions have exerted significant influence all over the world. PART II : FAMILY, MARRIAGE AND KINSHIP Family in Indian Society The family is the basic unit of society. It is the first and the most immediate social environment to which a child is exposed. It is in the family a child learns language, the behavioral Patterns and social norms in his childhood. In some way or the other the family is a universal group. It exists in tribal, rural and urban communities and among the followers of all religions and cultures. It provides the most enduring relationship in one form or other. From the moment of birth to the moment of death the family exerts a constant influence. In spite of the universal and permanent nature of the family one can also see vast difference in its structure in different societies. In tribal and agrarian societies people of several generations live together. These societies have large and ‘joint families’. In the industrial society the family is limited to husband, wife and their children. Sociologist calls it a ‘nuclear family’. The family is formed with number of members. These members live together. They have a home. They have definite purposes in living together. In this sense the family in a group. There is certain rules and procedures at the roots of the family. In this sense the family in an institution. Factors affected the family: A) The consanguine Family declines: The consanguineous or joint family tended to disappear especially in the western world and conjugal or nuclear family has become predominant with the increasing urbanization and industrialization people are less subject to Parental control which lessens social control. Women have attained a new legal status in which there is less discrimination between them and men. B). Increasing Rate of Divorce: Divorce is the most obvious symptom of family disintegration. Economic freedom, new life style, new idealities together creates an idea of free life. The traditional joint family system in India has under gone vast changes. They have definitely affected its structure and functions. Milton singer has identified most there are; Education, Industrialization, Urbanization, changes in the institution of marriage. C. Influence of education: Modern education affected joint family in several ways. It has brought about a change in the attitude, beliefs, values and ideologies of the people. Education which is spreading even amongst the females has created and aroused the individualistic feelings. The increasing education not only brings changes in the philosophy of life of men and women, but also provides new opportunities of employment to the women. After becoming economically independent, women demand more freedom in family affairs. They refuse to accept anybody’s domination over them. Education in this way brings changes in relations in the family.D. Impact of Industrialization: New system of production based on factory and new joint families have disintegrated considerably. 2. The impact of Economic and Technological changes: Industrial development and application of new advanced techniques reduced the economic functions of family. The technological changes took both the work and workers out of the home. E. Chang es in the position of women: The chief factor causing changes in the position of women in our society lie in her changing economic role. New economic rule provided a new position in society and especially in their relation to men.