− | In biological terms, a '''community''' is a group of interacting [[organisms]] sharing an environment. In [[human]] communities, [[intention|intent]], [[belief]], resources, preferences, needs, risks, and a number of other conditions may be present and common, affecting the [[identity]] of the participants and their degree of cohesiveness. In [[sociology]], the concept of community has caused [[infinite]] debate, and sociologists are yet to reach agreement on a definition of the term. Indeed, one can find 94 discrete definitions of the term even as early as mid-1950s. Traditionally a "community" has been defined as a group of people living in a common location or with a common purpose regardless of their location. The word is often used to refer to a [[group]] that is organised around common values and social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household. Wider meanings of the word can refer to the national or global community. ''Communis'' comes from a combination of the Latin prefix ''com-'' (which means "together") and the word ''munis'' probably originally derived from the [[Etruscan]] word ''munis-'' (meaning "to have the charge of"). [http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Crete/4060/dictionnaire_etrusque.htm Etruscan Etymological Glossary] | + | In biological terminology, a '''community''' is a group of interacting [[organisms]] sharing an environment, but in [[human]] communities, [[intention|intent]], [[belief]], resources, preferences, needs, risks, and a number of other conditions may be present and common, affecting the [[identity]] of the participants and their degree of cohesiveness. Traditionally a "community" has been defined as a group of people living in a common location or with a common purpose regardless of their location. The word is often used to refer to a [[group]] that is organised around common values and social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household. |