Define a community?

Question

can anyone give me 2 definitons of the term community and be able to relate it to 2 socilogical theories preferably functionalists as 1 answer

Answer 1

1. Definition
a) All the inhabitants of a small, clearly-defined geographical area (e.g. village, town, city district).
b) A section of the general populace who possess a shared identity (e.g. a local BME group, a specialist car club, environmental activists).

2. Sociological theories
a) Functionalist
(i) The community pays local taxation to provide locally provided basic services which meet communal needs - refuse collection, subsidised bus services etc. This serves to fortify the community's identity through a shared collective experience.
(ii) The community meets to re-inforce identity; to engage in social interaction and community activities; to promote itself to the wider society; to demand resources for use by the community.
b) Evolutionary
(i) The identity of the community will change over time with an inflow of newcomers, an outflow of existing residents, or their eventual death. Only through concerted collective effort can the change be planned and managed.
(ii) The demise of the community may ultimately be inevitable, for reasons which include external opposition; changing interests; obsolescence and/or unavailability of essential items; assimilation into the larger society and resultant loss of identity.

Answer 2

A community is a group of like minded people who spend a great deal time together.
or
A community is a group of people who have come together to improve the area because they all have chosen to live there.

I hope this helps some.