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  • Essay / How has the political system evolved over time

    Political system is a system of politics and government or a set of formal legal institutions that make up a government or state. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Before political systems evolved over the years, we had societies that resembled what we think of as politics today. A state can be defined as “an organization that successfully claims a monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force within a given territory.” (Weber, in Gerth and Mills 1948, p. 78). Tribal groups that still exist in countries like Papua New Guinea and Brazil still live undisturbed by the government and the aim is to represent them at the United Nations. In some ways, we all evolved from these “tribal groups”. One of the specific differences between these tribal groups and the state model of government is territory. Although many of these tribal groups have their own territories, some are nomadic like the Fulani of northern Nigeria; they gather their livestock on land cultivated by others; although efforts are being made today by the Nigerian government to control the herdsmen. Another notable group is the Kalahari Bushmen and what they all have in common is the belief that government is property. Tiv, a tribal group in Nigeria, is an example of a group that has existed without centralized government institutions. Disputes and quarrels are settled among themselves and if a solution cannot be found, the two groups will remain at odds until a solution is found. Other societies practiced a division of functions based on an "age level" in which older men managed relationships with the gods, another group of men were responsible for hunting, and older women were responsible for hunting. old people practiced medicine, etc. In these tribal societies, the characters translated into English as Chiefs. have the most authority. The feudal system was particularly practiced in Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries. Feudal Europe was made up of states and mini-states rather than being stateless. An example would be the Holy Roman Empire ruled by the emperor, the supreme ruler of the whole or mixture of kingdoms, duchies, sovereign bishoprics, federated cities, etc. One of the problems with this system was overlapping jurisdictions. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Later in European history some feudal territories evolved into something akin to a modern state and also in many parts of the world like in Nigeria where we have the kingdoms of Benin, Yorubaland and Hausa. A kingdom can be considered an example of dynastic politics, meaning that it is not so much about individual governments as it is about family governments. We also have empires, a form of government that has dominated large parts of the globe for millennia. Examples are the ancient empires of China and Rome, the Mughal Empire of India, etc. Even with today's modern political systems, it is difficult to find states with unambiguous nationality or ethnicity..