Tribes have been a fixture of the human social structure since pretty much when we first
evolved.
Tribes are essentially a precursor to the modern-day nation state, even though the term
has a bit of a… primitive undertone.
So, in the days of hearing about tribes in Africa and the Middle East on the news, and
native tribes in history classes the New World over, what exactly is a tribe?
The term “tribe” has come under scrutiny recently, as it is often attached to negative
connotations of primitiveness.
However, at the very base of the term, a tribe refers to a small group or subdivision, with
a common culture and ancestry.
Tribes are often either detached from their country/ies, but sometimes they can actually
make up an entire nation state.
However, going the other way, tribes can also be described merely as clans (we’ll get
to this whole kizspazzle in a bit, though).
Tribes have been with humanity basically since the genus Homo (don’t even) first evolved.
As social creatures, humans naturally band themselves into distinct social groups.
After all, humans aren’t exactly the hardest creatures to take down in a fight, having
spent a vast amount of their evolution points into maxing their intelligence, leaving little
behind for speed, power, or defense.
Also, you of course can’t build a pyramid by yourself (I’ve tried).
Anthropologists speculate that tribes most likely first developed as hunter-gatherer
bands, with some eventually gradually making the shift to agrarian societies, and often
huge civilizations.
One proposed classification for tracking the development of human societies throughout
the ages (you know, aside from my Patreon tiers) was proposed by anthropologist Elman
Service, and states that there are four different categories, based on how the groups get their
food, and how it correlates to their leadership structure.
The first tier are small band societies, who are basically small groups of hunter-gatherers,
with a very egalitarian society.
The next tier are horticultural tribes, generally with some sort of rank and leadership.
Then come stratified tribal societies led by chieftains, often called Chiefdoms.
Then finally come fully-fledged agricultural civilizations, complete with cities, and ruling
classes, and railroads, and stupid YouTubers, and Communism, and the like.
In native America, there were numerous different tribes spreading all across the continent
(well, actually both continents).
While they might not have gotten the chance to have gotten as complex as Europe or Asia,
that doesn’t mean the whole continent was devoid of civilization.
I mean, there were numerous complex cities, and some parts of the US Constitution may
have even been based on the Constitution of the Iroquois Confederacy (which I personally
find super cool).
Tribes may often make up the states that they’re a part of, but that isn’t always the case,
most notably in post-colonial Africa.
In colonial Africa, borders were drawn almost seemingly randomly, and for the benefit of
keeping the European powers from fighting each-other, but as a result, this split up
numerous tribes; splitting one tribe among two different countries, and combining two
or more tribes into one country.
Of course, as a result of this, most of the countries of Africa today are Frankenstein-style
creations made from very different tribes, as evidenced in how South Africa has 11 official
languages and how South Sudan really didn’t want to be part of Sudan.
However, a tribe doesn’t have to be an ancient, isolated community in the middle of nowhere,
as many take part in modern societies today.
Some of the most notable examples can be seen in America’s native reservations, which
are kind of known for hosting huge casinos, even in states where gambling is illegal.
This is because, as the tribes kind of predate the concept of the United States, many are
allowed to run their own quasi-sovereign, domestic-dependent nations within the borders
of the states of the US.
The concept of a nation is an interesting one, as the modern nation state as we know
it is really more of a republic mostly populated by one people or group of people, who speak
mostly the same language, and who mostly share the same culture.
Think of countries like Poland or Vietnam, though not everyone in their territories may
identify as Polish or Vietnamese, it’s more likely than not.
This is in contrast to a federation or an empire, which spans multiple cultures across
vast distances, like the United States or Russia or the Roman Empire, or even the Iroquois
Confederacy.
However, the word nation has become more or less intertwined with the word country (at
least to most people who really don’t care about this sort of stuff), which is why it
can be confusing when mentioning something like the Navajo Nation, which is called a
nation, despite having no real desire to secede from the Union.
In colloquial terms, a tribe doesn’t always necessarily have to refer to a formally recognized
group, as you’ve probably heard many people referencing their “tribes”.
One of Merriam Webster’s definitions for the word tribe, other than a “social group
comprising numerous families, clans, or generations together with slaves, dependents, or adopted
strangers”, also include “a group of persons having a common character, occupation, or
interest”, which I guess could mean anything from religious groups to political parties
to Trekkies.
Though, be careful using a word like this in this way.
Thank you, as always, for watching this video.
Now, if you’re curious as to what gave me the idea for this video, it’s because the
Discord server has just split up into a bunch of rivaling tribes, and everyone’s slowly
starting kill each-other, so be sure to go to the link in the description below to join
in on the fun!
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