All Social Groups

Specific named human groups documented by ethnography, sociology or history, distinguished by shared identity, descent, culture or social position, such as an ethnic group (the Maasai, the Yanomami), a caste (the Brahmin), a generational cohort (the Baby Boomers) or a socially recognized minority or subculture. This is distinct from the abstract kinship and marriage rules filed under Kinship and Family Systems, the structural concepts such as stratification or class filed under Institutions and Social Structures, and the customs and rites filed under Ethnography and Cultural Practices, none of which name a specific group. Belongs here: a specific, nameable population or community that can be identified and described in its own right. Does not belong here: a general kinship rule or descent system with no single named group attached, filed under Kinship and Family Systems; an abstract structural concept such as social stratification, filed under Institutions and Social Structures; and a documented custom or practice on its own, filed under Ethnography and Cultural Practices.