Paul F. Kisak The History of Democracy

A democracy is a type of political system, or a system of decision-making within an institution, or organization, in which all members have the equal share to power. Systems of democracy stand in contrast to other forms of government, including monarchy and oligarchy. Democracy can be traced back from the present day to classical Athens and Greeks in the 6th century B.C.E. In a modern representative democracy, this formal equality is embodied primarily in the right to vote. Although it is generally believed that the concepts of democracy and constitution originated in one particular place and time - identified as Ancient Athens circa 508 B.C. - there is evidence to suggest that democratic forms of government, in a broad sense, may have existed in several areas of the world well before the turn of the 5th century B.C. Within that broad sense it is plausible to assume that democracy in one form or another arises naturally in any well-bonded group, such as a tribe. Scholars identify this form of democracy as tribalism, or primitive democracy. In this sense, a primitive democracy takes shape in small communities or villages, usually when there is face-to-face discussion in the village council or a leader with the backing of village elders or other cooperative forms of government. This becomes more complex on a larger scale, such as when the village and city are examined more broadly as political communities. All other forms of rule - including monarchy, tyranny, aristocracy, and oligarchy - have flourished in more urban centers, often those with concentrated populations. This book is designed to be a state of the art, superb academic reference work and provide an overview of the topic and give the reader a structured knowledge to familiarize yourself with the topic at the most affordable price possible. The accuracy and knowledge is of an international viewpoint as the edited articles represent the inputs of many knowledgeable individuals and some of the most current knowledge on the topic, based on the date of publication.