Elite

For other uses, see Elite (disambiguation).

Elite (also spelled Élite) is taken originally from the Latin, eligere, "to elect". Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. In sociology as in general usage, the élite is a relatively small dominant group within a large society, which enjoys a privileged status envied by individuals of lower social status. Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" In Sociology, a group can be defined as two or more Humans that interact with one another accept expectations and obligations as members of the group and share a

1 Social elite
2 Religious elite
3 Linguistic elite
4 Business elite
5 Educational elite
6 Financial elite
7 Military
8 Elitism
9 References
10 Further reading
11 See also
12 External links

Social elite

In society, the elite are a small collection of people, such as the upper class. A society is a Population of Humans characterized by patterns of relationships between individuals that share a distinctive Culture and Institutions Is a concept in Sociology that refers to the group of people at the top of a Social hierarchy.

Religious elite

In religion the Latin form "elect" is preferred over the French form "elite" in discussing Cathar or Calvinist theology, for examples, and the social structure that is theologically driven. A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos Calvinism (sometimes called the Reformed tradition, the Reformed faith, or Reformed theology) is a theological system and an approach to the Other religious groups may use expressions like "the saints" to describe the elect. A saint (from the Latin sanctus) is a human being to whom has been attributed (and who has generally demonstrated a high level of Holiness and Sanctity

Perhaps the most globally recognized of all religious elite reside in Rome: the Pope and the Vatican Assembly. While it is true that the Pope is elected by the college of Cardinals, the cardinals who vote for him are appointed by prior papal decrees. The Pope is himself chosen from among the college of Cardinals. Once elected, the Pope is in "office" for the remainder of his life.

Linguistic elite

Some elite groups speak a language that is not shared by the commonality: in Tsarist Russia and in Vietnam the elite spoke French, in the Philippines the elite spoke, and in many cases still speak, Spanish. The Tsardom of Rus' (Царство Русское was the official name for the Russian state between Ivan IV 's assumption of the title of Tsar (Emperor in 1547 Vietnam (ˌviːɛtˈnɑːm Việt Nam) officially The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP In Plantagenet England the elite spoke Anglo-Norman, while Finland was ruled by a Swedish-speaking elite up to the beginning of the 20^th century and in Ptolemaic Egypt the elite spoke Koine Greek. The House of Plantagenet (planˈtadʒɪnɪt also called the House of Anjou, or the First Angevin dynasty, was originally a noble The Anglo-Norman language is a term traditionally used to refer to the variety of French used in England and to some extent elsewhere in the British Isles following the Ptolemaic Egypt began when Ptolemy I Soter declared himself Pharaoh of Egypt in 305 BC and ended with the death of queen Cleopatra Koine Greek (Κοινὴ Ἑλληνική, "common Greek" or, ciˈni ðiˈale̞kto̞s "the common dialect" is the popular form of Greek which emerged in In ancient India Sanskrit was spoken by elite class. (See linguistic imperialism. Linguistic Imperialism is a book by Robert Phillipson, published 1992 by Oxford University Press (ISBN 0 19 437146 8 ) Elites establish correct usage for the language when they share one with the commonality. Elite usage is reflected in "prescriptive" dictionaries; common usage is reflected in "descriptive" dictionaries. In Linguistics, prescription can refer both to the codification and the enforcement of rules governing how a language is to be used Elites establish cultural canons, which are more widely agreed-upon within the elite and more generally ignored or resented among the non-elite. In the 1950s, the British elite spoke what linguists of the time called U English.

Business elite

Elite advantages are the usual ones of a dominant social class: easier access to capital and political power, more rigorous education largely free of indoctrination, resulting in cultural influence, and leadership. Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures. Power is a measure of a person's ability to control the environment around them including the behavior of other people Education encompasses both the Teaching and Learning of Knowledge, proper conduct, and technical competency Indoctrination is the process of inculcating Ideas attitudes, cognitive strategies or a professional Methodology. Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic The word leadership can refer to Those entities that perform one or more acts of leading

Elites may justify their existence based on claims of inherited position; with the rise in authority of science, certain 19th and 20th century elites have embraced pseudoscientific justifications of genetic or racial superiority. Pseudoscience is defined as a body of knowledge methodology belief or practice that is claimed to be Scientific or made to appear scientific but does not adhere to the History See also History of genetics The existence of genes was first suggested by Gregor Mendel (1822-1884 who in the 1860s studied inheritance The term race or racial group usually refers to the concept of categorizing Humans into Populations or groups on the basis of various sets In Nazi Germany, genetic superiority was used as the basis of an imagined "Aryan" elite. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Aryan is an English word derived from the Sanskrit " Ārya " meaning "noble" or "honorable" Elite classes headed by monarchies have traditionally employed religious sanctions for their position. A monarchy is a Form of government in which supreme power is actually or nominally lodged in an individual who is the Head of state, often for life or

Meritocracy is a facet of society that tries to promote merit as a route to the elite. Meritocracy is a system of a government or another organization wherein Appointments are made and responsibilities are given based on demonstrated talent and Ability Societies such as that of the United States have it in their culture to promote such a facet [see Horatio Alger]. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Horatio Alger Jr ( January 13, 1832 &ndash July 18, 1899) was a 19th-century American Author who wrote approximately However, while it tends to be imperfect it sheds light as to what many believe to be the "ideal" elite: an elite that is porous and whose members have earned their position as society's top class.

Aristocracy and oligarchy are social systems which feature an elite as the ruling class. Aristocracy is a form of Government, where rule is established through an internal struggle over who has the most status and influence over society and internal relations Oligarchy' ( Greek, Oligarkhía) is a Form of government where Political power effectively rests with a small elite segment An elite group, ranged round the alpha male, is a distinct feature of other closely-related social primates. In Social animals the alpha male is the individual in the community to whom the others follow and defer A primate is a member of the biological order Primates ( Latin: "prime first rank" the group that contains Lemurs the Aye-aye

Educational elite

Students of the École Polytechnique an elite institution that has provided generals, scientists, engineers, civil servants, industrialists and politicians in the service of the French state. For other Écoles Polytechniques see École Polytechnique de Montréal and École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne.

Elites are educated to govern. While common public education is often designed to educate the general population to produce knowledgeable and skilled citizens, the elite approach to education is often presented at a more intellectual and demanding level, and is geared to produce leaders of a sort. It can be idealized as an education geared to producing an individual capable of thinking at an intellectual level more advanced than the general population, consisting of diverse philosophical ideals and theories in order to enable the elite to logically evaluate situations.

However in some systems, such as that of the Scholar-bureaucrats that administered China for 1300 years, elite education is used to select and skim off the most able students regardless of class or financial background. Scholar-bureaucrats or scholar-officials were civil servants appointed by the Emperor of China to perform day-to-day governance from the Sui Dynasty to In order to pass these Imperial examinations, students had to be versed in the Confucian classics and neo-Confucian commentaries, creating a cohesive and socially homogeneous scholar-gentry. The Imperial examinations ( in Imperial China determined who among the population would be permitted to enter the state's Bureaucracy. Homogenization (or homogenisation) is a term used in many fields such as Chemistry, Agricultural science, Food technology, Sociology This co-opted into its service those who would have potentially been the most dangerous to the state and left would be malcontents either leaderless or those it did have uneducated. As an avenue to political power, the examination system became increasingly corrupted, with political connections and loyalty to the regime becoming as important as outright ability. The cultural legacy of this policy can still be found in the selection for the elite Chinese Universities to this day. This article is about the education in the People's Republic of China. Elite universities, through a process of indoctrination of a common heritage, ethos and promise of preferred advancement, create a loyal administrative/ruling elite for the service of the state. Such a system of selection for elite education can be seen even in the Western tradition, for example in Napoleon's Grandes écoles. The Grandes écoles ("Graduate schools" literally in French "Grand Schools" or "Elite Schools" of France are higher

Financial elite

Financial elite refers to the wealthiest members of a society.

Military

A military elite is a unit of soldiers or recruits picked for their competence and put in a special elite unit. Elite units enjoy some benefits as compared to other units, at least in the form of higher status, but often also higher pay and better equipment. Napoléon's Imperial Guard would be a good example. Note that the word elite in the military sense is fundamentally different from most other uses of the term. A social or societal elite has usually not been picked by anyone except themselves and do not necessarily make part of the elite due to their competence. Military elite units do not exercise any special leadership over other units. In the societal and social sense of the word, the elite of the army is the officer corps, not the elite units.

Elite military

In the military community, it is not considered good resource management to create elite units that are expected to do the same things as a regular military unit only better, as opposed to special forces that are expected to do other things than regular soldiers. Critics argue that it creates a negative "second class soldier" feeling among the regular units; for example the grenadier and light infantry companies of the 18th and 19th century British Army. A grenadier (derived from the word Grenade) was originally a specialized soldier first established as a distinct role in the mid to late 17th century for the throwing of grenades Traditionally light infantry (or skirmishers) were soldiers whose job was to provide a Skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of Infantry, harassing The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. Such companies had both a weakening and demoralising effect on the other soldiers of their parent battalions, especially when these companies were detached from a number of battalions and grouped together to form ad hoc grenadier and light infantry battalions. A battalion is a Military unit of around 500-1500 men usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel Ad hoc is a Latin phrase which means "for this [ Purpose ]" The Light Infantry was an Infantry Regiment of the British Army, part of the Light Division. It is also argued that an especially competent soldier does more good as an NCO (non-commissioned officer) or as just the man who sets a good inspiring example for his comrades ^[1] . Conversely, some theorists point out that a more powerful unit has a disciplinary effect on the general military core.

However, most nations will maintain elite military forces for the purposes of Power projection and for the purposes of expeditionary warfare. The limiting factor in such operations is usually the availability of airlift and sealift assets, rather than manpower, first to get forces in theatre and then to sustain these forces with stores and supplies e. An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies primarily via Aircraft. Sealift is a term used predominantly in Military logistics and refers to the use of Cargo ships for the deployment of military assets such as g. Britain in the Falklands War. The Falklands War (Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del Atlántico Sur also called the Falklands Conflict/Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the Such amphibious and airborne forces, usually operating with minimal armor, artillery and logistics support will normally face enemies with superior numbers, prepared positions and interior lines of communications. A tank is a tracked, Armoured fighting vehicle designed for Front-line combat which combines Operational mobility and tactical Artillery (from French artillerie) is a military Combat Arm which employs any apparātus machine Logistics is the management of the flow of Goods, Information and other resources including Energy and people between the point of origin and the point Under such circumstances the additional effort and cost needed for the selection, training, indoctrination and equipping of elite formations is not only worthwhile, but essential for success.

In the narrowest sense of the word, elite units refer only to units of soldiers picked from ordinary troops or recruits to form an elite unit. However, superior units can also be created by other means than picking the most promising soldiers and recruits from regular forces. Such forces can also be created by having a completely different, parallel recruitment process with higher standards than the normal troops. Sometimes a completely different recruitment pool is used such as recruiting internationally or recruiting from a people that is thought to have superiour soldier qualities. The French Foreign Legion recruits professionals internationally and British Gurkha troops are recruited from the Nepales -a people that impressed the British with their soldier qualities. In the very strictest sense of the word these are not elite units since the soldiers are not chosen from regular soldiers or recruits but they are usually called elite units nonetheless.

In Commonwealth Militaries, some regiments may be thought of as "elite" for a number of reasons; a particularly distinguished combat record (like the Rifles), great media exposure (the Highland Regiments and the Frontier Force in British India now Pakistan) or being an "old" regiment with a long history (and often thus greater support in Headquarters since these regiments have naturally a higher numbers of senior officers), examples would include the Coldstream Guards (UK), and the Punjab Regiment in India and Pakistan. While again not strictly speaking elites, they often become superior units, since due to their reputation they attract the best and brightest recruits and cadets (who in many armies have a choice of assignment)which results in a correspondingly better performance.

Historically at times of military and technological change it would have been impossible financially to re-equip the entire army with new weapons at the same time. To maximize the benefit of new weapons, elite units may be formed, who would be superior to the regular troops because of both the new weapons and additional training and expectations. For example, in the British Army the Rifle Regiments were armed with rifles when the rest of the army was equipped with muskets; before them the Fusiliers were the first to be armed with flintlocks when the line units had matchlocks. The Royal Green Jackets (RGJ was an Infantry Regiment of the British Army, one of two within the Light Division (the other being The The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (RRF is an Infantry Regiment of the British Army, part of the Queen's Division. Armies going through change may need formations familiar with new concepts and doctrines to act in the familiarization and adversary training roles. Such units will naturally perform better than their students; e. g. historically the Panzerlehrdivision and currently the U.S. 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. The Panzerlehrdivision (also called Panzer-Lehr-Division commonly known as Panzer Lehr, was a German armored division during World

Occasionally a military formation rises quite unplanned to become an especially competent military unit. While raised, organized, equipped and using the same operational procedures as its peers a confluence of events, personalities and circumstances create traditions, reputations and an esprit de corps that reinforce each other to lift such units above those peers. Morale, also known as esprit de corps when discussing the morale of a group is an intangible term used for the capacity of people to maintain Belief in Such formations include the original 51st Highland division and the original Desert rats and the Pakistani 25th Cavalry. The 51st (Highland Division was a British Territorial Force division that fought on the Western Front in France during the Desert Rats redirects here For other meanings see Desert rat.

Elites within an army can also arise unexpectedly, when only a few units and formations of a army are involved in combat operations while the rest of the army is on peacetime duties, the resulting combat skills make them stand out from their peers, examples would include the 25th Infantry Division and the 1st Cavalry Div in Vietnam, and the Indian Northern Command and Pakistani Force Command Northern Areas in Kashmir.

In these two cases it can be argued that units with more modern weapons or units that just happen to be better than others are strictly speaking not elite units since they do not consist of individuals picked for especially high competence but are recruited just like other units. However, sometimes the words "elite unit" are somewhat sloppily used to simply imply "unit that is better than other".

US military use "elite" forces for covert missions which require better trained soldiers who are more disciplined and mentally and emotionally stronger.

Politically elite military

Historically many elite forces have been created and maintained as much for political reasons as for military ones. The leaders feel they need something more politically reliable than ordinary units and create elite units, hoping that the privileges, the extra political indoctrination that such elite forces are typically given and the pride in belonging to an elite will make them more loyal. The German Waffen-SS is an atypical example of such a force evolving as it did into a war fighting force. The Waffen-SS ( German for "Armed SS" literally "Weapons SS" was the Combat arm of the Schutzstaffel ("Protective Squadron"

Typically since the days before the Roman Praetorian Guards such forces have been used as a loyal and militarily competent counterweight to the nations' other military forces, to protect the incumbent leadership from coups and putches. The Praetorian Guard ( Latin: PRÆTORIANI was a special force of Guards used by Roman Emperors Before being appropriated For example Saddam Hussein had the Iraqi Republican Guard to keep the normal military in check and the Iraqi Special Republican Guard to keep an eye on the Republican Guard. The Iraqi Republican Guard ( Arabic: الحرس العراقي الجمهوري/al-Haris Al-Jamhuri was a branch of the Iraqi military. The Iraqi Special Republican Guard ( SRG) ( Al-Haris al-Jamhuri al-Khas) also known as the Special Forces Brigade of the Presidential Palace, Republican In Moscow the old Soviet Union used a trinity of elite formations, each carefully balanced with strengths and weaknesses compared to the others, to keep each other in check and to prevent the others from seizing power, MVD Internal Troops (lightly equipped, but experienced from internal security missions, with a reputation of ruthlessness and brutality), KGB Kremlin Guard Force (well trained, led and disciplined but lacking in supporting arms), and elite Red Army Guards units (best equipped, but reliant on conscripts). Internal Troops, full name Internal Troops of the Ministry for Internal Affairs (MVD ( Russian: Внутренние войска Министерства KGB ( Transliteration of "КГБ" is the Russian abbreviation of Committee for State Security ( Komityet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosty The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya Such arrangements, though not to the same paranoid extremes shown by the Soviets, are common in non democratic regimes, especially those where the leadership's rise to power relied on military force.

The following description of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, or Pasdaran, can be seen as typical of the formation, evolution and continued raison d'Êtres of such organizations. The Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution ( Sepáh e Pásdárán e Enqeláb e Eslámi) is an ideologically motivated branch of the Islamic Republic of Iran's

. . . From the beginning of the new Islamic regime, the Pasdaran functioned as a corps of the faithful. Its role in national security evolved from securing the regime and eliminating opposition forces to becoming a branch of the military establishment. . . [and its] independent military power acted as a check on any possible coup attempts by the armed forces. . . .

. . . . the Pasdaran, under the guidance of such clerics as Lahuti and Hashemi-Rafsanjani, was also "to act as the eyes and ears of the Islamic Revolution" and "as a special task force of the Imam Khomeini to crush any counterrevolutionary activities within the government or any political usurper against the Islamic Government. Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani ( Persian:اکبر هاشمی رفسنجانی Akbar Hāshemī Rafsanjānī) Hashemi Bahramani The Iranian Revolution' (mostly known as the Islamic Revolution, Persian: انقلاب اسلامی Enghelābe Eslāmi was the Revolution that transformed Seyyed Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini ( Persian:, pronounced muːsæviː-je xomejniː}}( September 24, 1902 – June 3 1989 A counter-revolutionary is anyone who opposes a Revolution, particularly those who act after a revolution to try to overturn or reverse it in full or in part " Over the years the IRP's leadership used the Pasdaran to eliminate opposition figures and to enhance its own position. The Islamic Republican Party (حزب جمهوری اسلامی or IRP was a Political party in Iran, formed in mid- 1979 to assist the Iranian Revolution Using the Pasdaran as a springboard to more important positions, Pasdaran leaders could always obtain access to the Revolutionary Council and Khomeini. The Interim Government of Iran ( 1979 - 1980) was the first government established in Iran after the Islamic Revolution. For example, President Khamenehi and Majlis speaker Hashemi-Rafsanjani were both former commanders of the Pasdaran. (fa علی حسینی خامنه‌ای born 17 July 1939 also known as Ali Khamenei, is an Iranian Azeri politician and cleric The Majlis of Iran ( Persian: مجلس شورای اسلامی lit Library of Congress Country Studies, Iran, Special and Irregular Armed Forces.

At times such forces become so powerful that they are completely beyond control of the government, or can even become kingmakers who control the head of state. " Kingmaker " is a term originally applied to the activities of Richard Neville 16th Earl of Warwick during the Wars of the Roses in England. The Praetorians infamously auctioned off the Empire to the highest bidder; the Streltsy first supported and then tried to depose Peter the Great, and the Janissaries repeatedly deposed and installed Ottoman sultans in the 18th Century. Streltsy (Стрельцы were the units of Russian guardsmen ( sl The Janissaries (derived from Ottoman Turkish ينيچرى ( yeniçeri) meaning "new soldier" comprised Infantry units that formed The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish

In other instances, e. g. Iraq's Republican Guard, such forces have become little more than social clubs for the societal elites and those seeking advancement through the political system, capable only of bullying unarmed civilians and intimidating the regular military, often failing militarily when tested.

Elites in the military

Socially and miltarily elite HRH Prince Charles, Colonel-in-chief of the Parachute Regiment. In the British and other Commonwealth armies the Colonel-in-Chief of a Regiment is its (usually royal) Patron. The Parachute Regiment is the Airborne Infantry element of the British Army.

For many years the British Army, together with the Church, was seen as the ideal career for the younger sons of the aristocracy, those who would not inherit their fathers' titles or estates. Although now much diminished, the practice has not totally disappeared, the slang term 'Rupert' being used to describe such blue-blooded, usually British public school educated, officers. Such practices are not unique to the British either geographically or historically.

The military has always been seen as a means by societal elites to acquire wealth, prestige and power, for example Julius Caesar. Even in modern democracies there are those who aspire to political power who see a few years in military service, preferably away from any actual fighting, as being essential to a political resume.

As a very practical form of displaying patriotism it has been at times "fashionable" for "gentlemen" to participate in the military, usually the militia, to fulfill societal expectations. It has been said that the title "Colonel" was the ultimate fashion accessory for a Southern gentleman. The Culture of the Southern United States or Southern Culture is a Subculture of the United States that has resulted from the blending of a heavy amount

Elitism

Main article: Elitism

In elite theory as developed by Marxist political scientists like Michael Parenti, all sufficiently large social groups will have some kind of elite group within them that actively participates in the group's political dynamics. For the Warhammer 40000 army see Adeptus Astartes Space marines are Fictional Soldiers that operate in Outer space. Elitism is the belief or attitude that those individuals who are considered members of the Elite &mdash a select group of people with outstanding personal abilities intellect Elite theory is a theory of the State which seeks to describe and explain the power relationships in modern society Michael Parenti (born 1933) is an American Political scientist, Historian, and media critic. When a group is arbitrarily excluded from the larger society, such as in the case of the racism that was widespread in the United States prior to the success of the American Civil Rights Movement, then elite members of the excluded group may form a counter-elite to fight for their group's interests (although they may be fighting for those interests only to the extent they mesh with the counter-elite's interests). List of racism-related topics|Racism by country Racism, by its simplest definition is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The American Civil Rights Movement (1955–1968 refers to the reform movements in the United States aimed at abolishing racial discrimination against African Of course, the dominant elite can neutralize the counter-elite through the classic divide-and-conquer strategy of admitting key members of the counter-elite into the elite.

Elitism usually draws envy and resentment from the lower classes and the counter-elite. There are cases where elites arguably use this resentment of an elite to maintain their position. See Communism. Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based

References

^ "Militär ledning " ("military command" in Swedish) by Marco Smedberg ISBN 91-89442-07-5 Publisher: Wallin och Dalholm 2001 page 182.

External links

Videos and Info

A power elite, in political and sociological theory, is a small group of people who control a disproportionate amount of wealth privilege and access to decision-making The sociology of education is the study of how public Institutions and individual experiences affects education and its outcome Boston Brahmins, also called the First Families of Boston and cold roast Boston, are the class of New Englanders who claim hereditary and cultural descent Brahmin ( Brāhmaṇa, sa ब्राह्मणः is the class of educators scholars and preachers in Brahminical Hinduism. A Mandarin was a Bureaucrat in Imperial China, and also in the monarchist days of Vietnam where the system of Imperial examinations and The term " patrician " originally referred to a group of elite families in Ancient Rome, including both their natural and A snob, guilty of snobbery, is someone who adopts the Worldview that some people are inherently inferior to him/her for any one of a variety of reasons including

Dictionary

-adjective

Of high birth or social position; aristocratic or patrician.
Representing the choicest or most select of a group

-noun

(uncountable) A special group or social class of people which have a superior intellectual, social or economic status as, the elite of society.
(countable) Someone who is among the best at certain task.

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