Social classes are economic or cultural arrangements of groups in society. Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political scientists, economists, anthropologists and social historians. In the social sciences, social class is often discussed in terms of 'social stratification'. In the modern Western context, stratification typically comprises three layers: upper class, middle class, and lower class. Each class may be further subdivided into smaller classes (e.g. occupational).

The most basic class distinction is between the powerful and the powerless. Social classes with a great deal of power are usually viewed as "the elites" within their own societies. Various social and political theories propose that social classes with greater power attempt to cement their own ranking above the lower classes in the hierarchy to the detriment of the society overall. By contrast, conservatives and structural functionalists have presented class difference as intrinsic to the structure of any society and to that extent ineradicable.

In Marxist theory, these three classes are the upper class aristocracy, capitalists who own the means of production, the middle class bourgeoisie, conservatives who benefit from the social stratification, and the working class proletariat, who must work for whatever wages the upper class choose to pay, or starve. To a Marxist, this is the fundamental economic structure of work and property. (See also: wage labour). These inequalities are normalised and reproduced through cultural ideology.

Max Weber critiqued historical materialism (or economic determinism), positing that stratification is not based purely on economic inequalities, but on other status and power differentials. Social class pertaining broadly to material wealth may be distinguished from status class based on honour, prestige, religious affiliation, and so on.

Theorists such as Ralf Dahrendorf have noted the tendency toward an enlarged middle class in modern Western societies, particularly in relation to the necessity of an educated work force in technological economies. Perspectives concerning globalization and neocolonialism, such as dependency theory, suggest this owes to the shift of low-level labourers to developing nations and the Third World. Developed nations have thereby become less directly active in primary industry (e.g. basic manufacturing, agriculture, forestry, mining, etc.) and increasingly involved with "virtual" goods and services. The national concept of "social class" has therefore become increasingly complex and confused.

Causes and outcomes of social class

Determinants of class position

In so-called non-stratified societies or acephalous societies, there is no concept of social class, power, or hierarchy beyond temporary or limited social statuses. In such societies, every individual has a roughly equal social standing in most situations.

In class societies a person's class status is a type of group membership. Theorists disagree about the elements determining membership, but common features appear in many accounts. Among these are:

Relationships of production, ownership and consumption

A common legal status, including ceremonial, occupational and reproductive rights

Family, kinship or tribal group structures or membership

Acculturation, including education

Classes often have a distinct lifestyle that emphasizes their class. The most powerful class in a society often uses markers such as costume, grooming, manners and language codes that mark insiders and outsiders; unique political rights such as honorary titles; and, concepts of social honour or face that are claimed to only be applicable to the in group. But each class has distinctive features, often becoming defining elements of personal identity and uniting factors in group behaviour. French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu suggests a notion of high and low classes with a distinction between bourgeois tastes and sensitivities and the working class tastes and sensitivities.

Race and other large-scale groupings can also influence class standing. The association of particular ethnic groups with class statuses is common in many societies. As a result of conquest or internal ethnic differentiation, a ruling class is often ethnically homogenous and particular races or ethnic groups in some societies are legally or customarily restricted to occupying particular class positions. Which ethnicities are considered as belonging to high or low classes varies from society to society. In modern societies strict legal links between ethnicity and class have been drawn, such as in apartheid, the caste system in Africa, and in the position of the Burakumin in Japanese society.

A distinction often made is that of ascribed status versus achieved status. This deals with difference between obtained class identification, and whether social standing is determined at birth or earned over a lifetime. Achieved statuses are acquired based on merit, skills, abilities, and actions. Examples of achieved status include being a doctor or even being a criminal—the status then determines a set of behaviors and expectations for the individual.

Consequences of class position

Different consumption of social goods is the most visible consequence of class. In modern societies, it manifests as income inequality, though in subsistence societies it manifested as malnutrition and periodic starvation. Although class status is not a causal factor for income, there is consistent data that show those in higher classes have higher incomes than those in lower classes. This inequality still persists when controlling for occupation. The conditions at work vary greatly depending on class. Those in the upper-middle class and middle class enjoy greater freedoms in their occupations. They generally are more respected, enjoy more diversity, and are able to exhibit some authority. Those in lower classes tend to feel more alienated and have lower work satisfaction overall. The physical conditions of the workplace differ greatly between classes. While middle-class workers may "suffer alienating conditions" or "lack of job satisfaction", blue-collar workers suffer alienating, often routine, work with obvious physical health hazards, injury, and even death.

In the more social sphere, class has direct consequences on lifestyle. Lifestyle includes tastes, preferences, and a general style of living. These lifestyles could quite possibly affect educational attainment, and therefore status attainment. Class lifestyle also affects how children are raised. For example, a working-class person is more likely to raise their child to be working class and middle-class children are more likely to be raised to be middle-class. This perpetuates the idea of class for future generations.

Theoretical models

Theoretical models of class seek to explain how class relationships come into being, and why particular class relationships exist across broadly similar societies.

Marxist

The Marxist conception of class involves a collective group of individuals that share similar economic and social relations relative to each other in society. A class is a group with intrinsic tendencies and interests that are different from, and may be opposed to the interests of other groups in society. For example, it is in the laborer's best interest to maximize wages and benefits and in the capitalist's best interest to maximize profit at the expense of such, leading to a contradiction within the capitalist system, even if the laborers and capitalists themselves are unaware of these class dichotomies.

For Marx, class involves two factors: ;Objective factors: A class shares a common relationship to the means of production. That is, all people in one class make their living in a common way in terms of ownership of the things that produce social goods. A class may own things, own land, own people, be owned, own nothing but their labor. A class will extract tax, produce agriculture, enslave and work others, be enslaved and work, or work for a wage. ;Subjective factors: The members will necessarily have some perception of their similarity and common interest. Marx termed this Class consciousness. Class consciousness is not simply an awareness of one's own class interest (for instance, the maximisation of shareholder value; or, the maximization of the wage with the minimization of the working day), class consciousness also embodies deeply shared views of how society should be organized legally, culturally, socially and politically.

The first criterion divides a society into the owners and non-owners of means of production. In capitalism, these are capitalist (bourgeoisie) and proletariat. Finer divisions can be made, however: the most important subgroup in capitalism being petite bourgeoisie (small bourgeoisie), people who possess their own means of production but utilize it primarily by working on it themselves rather than hiring others to work on it. They include self-employed artisans, small shopkeepers, and many professionals. Jon Elster has found mention in Marx of 15 classes from various historical periods.

+Jon Elster's explanation of Marx's schema of classes.
!Social mode of production	!Ruling classes	!other classes	!example society
Primitive communism	No classes		Many pre-agricultural societies
Asiatic mode of production	Bureaucrats or theocrats	[unnamed class]	Archaic Egyptian society
Slave societies	Slave owners, Patricians	Plebeians, freemen, slaves	16th to 19th century America, Ancient Rome
Feudal societies	Landowners, clergy	guild masters, journeymen, serfs	12th century Western Europe
Capitalist societies	Industrial and financial capitalists	the petit bourgeoisie, the peasantry, wage labourers	19th century Europe until present

A prerequisite for classes is existence of sufficient surplus product. Marxists explain the history of "civilized" societies in terms of a war of classes between those who control production and those who produce the goods or services in society. In the Marxist view of capitalism, this is a conflict between capitalists (bourgeoisie) and wage-workers (the proletariat). For Marxists, class antagonism is rooted in the situation that control over social production necessarily entails control over the class which produces goods—in capitalism this is the exploitation of workers by the bourgeoisie.

Marx himself argued that it was the goal of the proletariat itself to displace the capitalist system with socialism, changing the social relationships underpinning the class system and then developing into a future communist society in which: "..the free development of each is the condition for the free development of all." (Communist Manifesto) This would mark the beginning of a classless society in which human needs rather than profit would be motive for production. In a society with democratic control and production for use, there would be no class, no state and no need for money.

Vladimir Lenin has defined classes as "large groups of people differing from each other by the place they occupy in a historically determined system of social production, by their relation (in most cases fixed and formulated in law) to the means of production, by their role in the social organization of labor, and, consequently, by the dimensions of the share of social wealth of which they dispose and the mode of acquiring it." Great Beginning''

Proletarianisation

The most important transformation of society for Marxists has been the massive and rapid growth of the proletariat the last two hundred and fifty years. Starting with agricultural and domestic textile laborers in England and Flanders, more and more occupations only provide a living through wages or salaries. Private manufacturing, leading to self-employment, is no longer as viable as it was before the industrial revolution, because automation made manufacturing very cheap. Many people who once controlled their own labor-time were converted into proletarians through industrialization. Today groups which in the past subsisted on stipends or private wealth—like doctors, academics or lawyers—are now increasingly working as wage laborers. Marxists call this process proletarianization, and point to it as the major factor in the proletariat being the largest class in current societies in the rich countries of the "first world."

The increasing dissolution of the peasant-lord relationship (see pre-capitalist societies), initially in the commercially active and industrializing countries, and then in the unindustrialized countries as well, has virtually eliminated the class of peasants. Poor rural laborers still exist, but their current relationship with production is predominantly as landless wage labourers or rural proletarians. The destruction of the peasantry, and its conversion into a rural proletariat, is largely a result of the general proletarianization of all work. This process is today largely complete, although it was arguably incomplete in the 1960s and 1970s.

Dialectics, or historical materialism, in Marxist class

Marx saw class categories as defined by continuing historical processes. Classes, in Marxism, are not static entities, but are regenerated daily through the productive process. Marxism views classes as human social relationships which change over time, with historical commonality created through shared productive processes. A 17th century farm labourer who worked for day wages shares a similar relationship to production as an average office worker of the 21st century. In this example, it is the shared structure of wage labour that makes both of these individuals "working class."

Objective and subjective factors in class in Marxism

Marxism has a rather heavily defined dialectic between objective factors (i.e., material conditions, the social structure) and subjective factors (i.e. the conscious organization of class members). While most Marxism analyses people's class based on objective factors (class structure), major Marxist trends have made greater use of subjective factors in understanding the history of the working class. E.P. Thompson's ''The Making of the English Working Class'' is a definitive example of this "subjective" Marxist trend. Thompson analyses the English working class as a group of people with shared material conditions coming to a positive self-consciousness of their social position. This feature of social class is commonly termed class consciousness in Marxism, a concept which became famous with Georg Lukács' ''History and Class Consciousness'' (1923). It is seen as the process of a "class in itself" moving in the direction of a "class for itself", a collective agent that changes history rather than simply being a victim of the historical process. In Lukács' words, the proletariat was the "subject–object of history", and the first class which could separate false consciousness (inherent to the bourgeois's consciousness), which reified economic laws as universal (whereas they are only a consequence of historic capitalism).

Max Weber

The seminal sociological interpretation of class was advanced by Max Weber. Weber formulated a three-component theory of stratification, with class, status and party (or politics) as subordinate to the ownership of the means of production, but for Weber how they interact is a contingent question and one that will vary from society to society. Weber is also known for his six "American Dream" Values which are: 1) Hard work, 2) Universalism, 3) Individualism, 4) Wealth, 5) Activism, and 6) Rationality.

Academic models

Schools of sociology differ in how they conceptualize class. A distinction can be drawn between ''analytical'' concepts of social class, such as the Marxian and Weberian traditions, and the more ''empirical'' traditions such as socio-economic status approach, which notes the correlation of income, education and wealth with social outcomes without necessarily implying a particular theory of social structure. The Warnerian approach can be considered ''empirical'' in the sense that it is more descriptive than analytical.

The traditional `pigeon-holing' mainstay of much of the advertising industry used to be that of social class. Recently, however, as affluence has become more widespread, the process has become much less clear. It is now argued that the new `opinion leaders' come from within the same social class. The class groupings that were traditionally used by advertising agencies (for example in the NRS social grade schema were: AB - Managerial and professional, C1 -Supervisory and clerical, C2- Skilled manual, DE-Unskilled manual and unemployed.) have been reported to be of decreasing value in recent decades, especially in the distinction between clerical workers and manual workers in education and disposable income.

Whereas some four decades ago, when these groupings were first widely used, the numbers in each of the main categories (C, D and E) were reasonably well balanced, today the C group in total (although now usually split to give C1 and C2) forms such a large sector that it dominates the whole classification system and offers less in terms of usable concentration of marketing effort.

US models

William Lloyd Warner

An early example of a stratum class model was developed by the sociologist William Lloyd Warner in his 1949 book, ''Social Class in America.'' For many decades, the Warnerian theory was dominant in U.S. sociological theory. Based on social anthropology, Warner divided Americans into three classes (upper, middle, and lower), then further subdivided each of these into an "upper" and "lower" segment, with the following postulates:

Upper upper class. "Old money." People who have been born into and raised with wealth; mostly consists of old "noble" or prestigious families (e.g., Earl of Shrewsbury, Vanderbilt, Rockefeller).

Lower upper class. "New money." Individuals who have become rich within their own lifetimes (e.g., entrepreneurs, movie stars, top athletes, as well as some prominent professionals).

Upper middle class. Professionals with a college education, and more often with professional or academic postgraduate degrees like MDs, Ph.D.s, JDs, MBAs, MSs, etc. (e.g., doctors, engineers, dentists, lawyers, bankers, corporate executives, school principals and superintendents, head teachers, university professors, scientists, pharmacists, airline pilots, ship captains, accountants, actuaries, high level civil servants, politicians, and military officers, architects, artists, writers, poets, and musicians).

Lower middle class. Lower-paid white collar workers, but not manual laborers. Often hold Associates or Bachelor degrees. (e.g., police officers, fire fighters, primary and high school teachers, nurses, municipal office workers and low to mid-level civil servants, sales representatives, non-management office workers, clergy, technicians, small business owners).

Upper lower class. Blue-collar workers and manual labourers. Also known as the "working class."

Lower lower class. The homeless and permanently unemployed, as well as the "working poor."

To Warner, American social class was based more on attitudes than on the actual amount of money an individual made. For example, the richest people in America would belong to the "lower upper class" since many of them created their own fortunes; one can only be born into the highest class. Nonetheless, members of the wealthy upper-upper class tend to be more powerful, as a simple survey of U.S. presidents may demonstrate (i.e., the Roosevelts; Kennedys; Bushes).

Another observation: members of the upper lower class might make more money than members of the lower middle class (i.e., a well-salaried factory worker vs. a secretarial worker), but the class difference is based on the type of work they perform.

In his research findings, Warner observed that American social class was largely based on these shared attitudes. For example, he noted that the lower middle class tended to be the most conservative group of all, since very little separated them from the working class. The upper-middle class, while a relatively small section of the population, usually "set the standard" for proper American behavior, as reflected in the mass media.

Professionals with salaries and educational attainment higher than those found near the middle of the income strata (e.g. bottom rung professors, managerial office workers, architects) may also be considered as being true middle class.

Coleman and Rainwater

In 1978 sociologists Coleman and Rainwater conceived the "Metropolitan Class Structure" consisting of three social classes, each with a number of sub-classes.

Upper Americans

*Upper-upper class; (ca. 1%) Old money stemming from inherited wealth. Persons in this class typically have an "Ivy league college degree." Their household income in 1978 was over $500,000 ($1,673,215 in 2005 dollars)

Lower-upper class; (ca. 1%) This is the "Success elite" consisting of "Top professionals [and] senior corporate executives." People in this class have degrees from "Good colleges." Their household income was also commonly in excess of $77,000 ($251,000 in 2005 dollars).''Nouveau riche'' (French for "new rich"), or new money, refers to a person who has acquired considerable wealth within his or her generation. This term is generally used to emphasize that the individual was previously part of a lower socioeconomic rank, and that such wealth has provided the means for the acquisition of goods or luxuries that were previously unobtainable.

*Upper-middle class; (ca. 19%) Also called the "Professional and Managerial" class, it consists of "Middle professionals and managers" with a college and often graduate degrees. Household incomes for this group lay between $35,000 ($114,000 in 2005 dollars) and $60,000 ($183,000 in 2005 dollars)

Middle Americans

*Middle class; (ca. 31%) This class consists of "Lower-level managers; small-business owners; lower-status professionals (accountants, teachers); sales and clerical" workers. Middle class persons had a high school and some college education. Their household incomes commonly ranged between $10,000 and $20,000 ($30,000 - $60,000 in 2005 dollars)

*Working class; (ca. 35%) This class consists of "Higher blue collar (craftsman, truck drivers); lowest-paid sales and clerical" workers. Younger individuals in 1978 who were members of this class had a high school education. Their household income lay in between $7,500 and $15,000 ($23,000 - $45,000 in 2005 dollars)

Lower Americans (ca. 13%)

*Semipoor; This class had high school education and consisted of "labor and service" workers with household incomes ranging from $4,500 to $6,000 ($14,000 - $18,000 in 2005 dollars)

*The bottom; Those who are "Often unemployed" or rely on welfare payments.Household incomes of less than $4,500 ($14,000 in 2005 dollars)

Thompson & Hickey

In their 2005 sociology textbook, ''Society in Focus'', sociologists William Thompson and Joseph Hickey present a five class model in which the middle class is divided into two sections and the term working class is applied to clerical and pink collar workers. Their class system goes as follows: Upper class, (ca. 1%-5%) individuals with considerable power over the nation's economic and political institutions. This group owns a disproportionate share of the nation's resources. The top 1% had incomes exceeding $250,000 with the top 5% having household incomes exceeding $140,000. This group features strong group solidarity and is largely constituted by the heirs to multi-generational fortunes. Prominent government officials, CEOs and successful entrepreneurs are among the upper class even if not of elite background. Upper middle class, (ca. 15%) white collar professionals with advanced post-secondary education such as physicians, professors, lawyers, corporate executives, and other management. While households commonly have six figure incomes in this group, the majority of income earners do not. Only 6% of persons had six figure incomes while 15% were upper middle class. While high educational attainment commonly serves as the staple mark of this group, entrepreneurs and business owners may also be upper middle class even if lacking advanced educational attainment. Lower middle class, (ca. 33%) individuals who worked their way through college and commonly have a Bachelor's degree or some college education. School teachers, sales-employees and lower to mid level supervisors rank among those in this particular group. Household income is generally in the range of $30,000 to $75,000. Workers in this group are mostly white collar but have less autonomy in their work than do upper middle class professionals. Members of this class often attempt to emulate those in the two higher classes and have recently become overly indebted by their desire to have a comfortable lifestyle. Working class, (ca. 30%) individuals who occupy both blue and white collar occupations. Pink collar workers in predominantly female clerical positions are common in this class. Job security tends to be low for this group and unemployment as well as losing health insurance remain potent economic threats. Household incomes typically range from $16,000 to $30,000. Lower class, repeated cycles of unemployment, working multiple low-level part-time jobs are common among this group. Many families fall below the poverty line from time to time when employment opportunities are scarce.

Gilbert & Kahl

In ''The American Class Structure, 6th edition'' (Wadsworth 2002) as well the preceding 5th edition, Dennis Gilbert lays out an even more precise breakdown of American social classes. Dennis Gilbert stresses that "there is really no way to establish that a particular model is 'true' and another 'false.'" He furthermore states that his "model emphasizes ''sources of income''" and that household income, being very dependent on the number of income earners, varies greatly within each social class. The class descriptions in quotes below are lifted from the 5th edition, pages 284 and 285. Capitalist class; (ca. 1%) ''"Subdivided into nationals and locals, whose income is derived largely from return on assets."'' However, the top 1.5% of households made $250,000 or more with only 146,000, 0.01% of households having incomes of $1,600,000 or more. Upper middle class; (ca. 14%) ''"...college trained professionals and managers (a few of whom ascend to such heights of bureaucratic dominance or accumulated wealth that they become part of the capitalist class)."'' Educational attainment is the main feature of this class. They enjoy great job autonomy and economic security. Household incomes vary greatly depending of the number of income earners." Considering US Census Bureau According to the 2005 Economic Survey, the top 15% of income earners made $62,500 or more with the top 15% of households having six figure incomes. In 2004 the bottom 12.2% of households made less than $12,500.

Underclass (ca. 12%) ''"...members have limited participation in the labor force and do not have wealth to fall back on. Many depend on government transfers."'' The average household income is $12,000 a year, and the class makes up 12% of the population.

Chinese model

Some sociologists lay out a detailed model of Chinese social stratification after 1949. In China today, there is a peasant class, a working class (urban state worker and urban collective worker, urban non-state worker, and peasant worker), a capitalist class (about 15 million), and a class of cadre (about 40 million) and quasi-cadre (about 27 million).

Iranian model

Farhad Nomani and Sohrab Behdad in their book ''Class and Labor in Iran; Did the Revolution Matter?'' (Syracuse University Press, 2006) define and quantify social classes in Iran and examine the changes in the configuration of social classes in the post-revolutionary Iran. Nomani and Behdad base their analysis (à la Erik Olin Wright ¹ ) on three dimensions of (1) property ownership, (2) possession of scarce skills/credentials, and (3) organizational assets/authority. They recognize four distinct class categories and the ambiguous category of political functionaries of the state:

# Capitalists: Owners of physical and financial means of economic activities, who employ workers. Capitalists are divided into modern and traditional occupational categories. # Petty bourgeoisie: Self-employed persons who do not hire any paid worker but may rely on unpaid family labor. They, too, consist of modern and traditional categories. # The middle class: Employees of the state or the private sector, in administrative-managerial and professional-technical positions. They exercise some authority and enjoy relative autonomy. In this category are those who are employed in economic activities and social services of the state. Those employed in the administrative or managerial position in the political apparatus of the state are not included here. # The working class: Workers who do not own the means of economic activity and do not benefit from the authority and autonomy of those in the middle class. They are employees of the state or the private sector, excluding those in the lower ranks of the political apparatus of the state.

Those employed in the political apparatus of the state, engaged in political administration, national defense and domestic surveillance, constitute the ambiguous class category of political functionaries. This category includes higher rank of state administrators, managers, and military and para-military officers, the rank file of the political apparatus, and the lower rank members of the coercive forces (including the military draftees).

The post 1979 revolutionary turmoil had notable impacts on the class reconfiguration of Iran (see table below). The disruption of the accumulation process in the first revolutionary decade (Khomeini period) retarded the capitalist relations of production (structural involution ). This condition gave rise to deproletarianization of labor and peasantization of agriculture, and a general expansion in petty-commodity activities and a rise of the petty bourgeoisie, alongside a huge expansion of state activities. In the post-Khomeini period, the effort toward reconstitution of capitalist relations of production via an economic liberalization policy (deinvolutionary process) reversed some of the previous trends. In the second post-revolutionary period an increase in proletarianization of labor and de-peasantization of agriculture is observed. The first (involutionary ²) period promoted traditional capitalists and the petty bourgeoisie, whereas in the second (deinvolutionary) period the number of modern capitalists, modern petty bourgeoisie, and the middle class (especially those employed by the private sector) increased significantly.

In a comparison of the class structure in 1996 with that in 1976 one can observe that in spite of some peculiar differences, there are striking similarities between the two periods. If the changes between 1986 and 1996 may be regarded as a trend, there is a pattern toward reconstruction of the 1976 class configuration of Iran in the years ahead.

1- Wright, Erik Olin (1997)'' Class Counts: Comparative Studies in Class Analysis''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

2- Nomani and Behdad (2006). ''Class and Labor in Iran; Did the Revolution Matter?'' Syracuse University Press, Chapter 3.

Middle class

In about the 1770s, when the term "social class" first entered the English lexicon, the concept of a "middle class" within that structure was also becoming important. The Industrial Revolution was allowing a much greater portion of the population to have time for the kind of education and cultural pursuits once restricted to the European feudal division of aristocracy, bourgeoisie, and peasantry which in that period would have included what later became the industrial proletarians of the towns and cities.

Today, concepts of social class assume three general categories: an upper class of proprietors and senior managers; a middle class of people who may not exert power over others, but may earn a significant proportion of their income through commerce, land ownership, or professional employment; and a lower class, who rely on wages for their livelihood.

It is important, however, to highlight the distinction of such a class model from that of the British concept of class in which the terms upper, middle and working-class have different definitions. The chief difference relates to the association of inherited wealth and landed property as a defining characteristic of the upper class. This distinguishes its members from those of the middle class whose membership is more fluid and more reliant upon employment status and its income. This is a broad generalization as there are classes within the middle class, such as the upper middle class whose interest in culture, and whose manners and mores distinguish them from other ranks in the middle strata, but is nonetheless a useful marker by which to distinguish the British concept of class from that of the new world.

In the United States, the term "middle class" is applied very broadly and includes people who would elsewhere be considered working class. As the vast majority of Americans identify themselves as being middle class, there are multiple theories as to what constitutes the American middle class. The term has been used to describe people from all walks of life, from janitors to attorneys. The definition of middle class is also relevant to the perspective of the individual. Due to the high standard of living in wealthy countries such as the U.S., the term middle class is also relevant to the standard of living of the majority of people in the world.

From this perspective, the term middle class becomes more inclusive. As a result, the US middle class is often sub-divided into two or three groups. While one set of theories claim that the middle class is composed of those in the middle of the social strata, other theories maintain that professionals and managers who have a college degree make up most of the middle class. In 2005 roughly 35% of Americans worked in the professional/professional support or managerial field and 27% had a college degree. The lower middle class (or middle-middle class for those who divide the middle class into three segments) consists of other mostly white collar employees with less autonomy in their work, lower educational attainment, lower personal income and less prestige than those of the upper middle class.

Sociologists such as Gilbert, Hickey, James Henslin, and William Thompson have brought forth class models in which the middle class is divided into two sections which combine to represent 47% to 49% of the population. Economist Michael Zweig defines class as power relationships among the members of a society, rather than as a lifestyle or by income. Zweig says that the middle class is only about 34% of the U.S. population, typically employed as managers, supervisors, small business owners and other professional people.

Class structure in various societies

Although class can be discerned in any society, some cultures have published specific guidelines to rank. In some cases, the ideologies presented in these rankings may not concur with the mainstream power dialectic of social class as it is understood in modern English use.

Pre-capitalist class structures

Ancient Rome

Social class in ancient Rome played a major role in the lives of Romans. Ancient Roman society was hierarchical. Free-born adult male Roman citizens were divided into several classes, both by ancestry and by property. There were also several classes of non-citizens with different legal rights, along with slaves, who had no rights, and could be ejected or sold by their master.

Renaissance Europe

The Mantegna Tarocchi, sets of cards made as an educational aid in Ferrara in the late 15th century, used the following hierarchy for the "Conditions of Man", largely ignoring the rural population:

::1 Beggar ::2 Servant (Famiglio) ::3 Craftsman (Artigiano) ::4 Merchant (Mercante) - presumably living mostly off income as a landlord ::5 Gentleman (gentiluomo) ::6 Knight (cavaliere) ::7 Doge (doge)- i.e. a local ruler ::8 King (Re) ::9 Emperor (Imperatore) ::10 Pope (Papa)

Aztec

Aztec society traditionally was divided into classes. The highest class were the ''pīpiltin'' or nobility. Originally this status was not hereditary, although the sons of ''pillis'' had access to better resources and education, so it was easier for them to become ''pillis''. Later the class system took on hereditary aspects.

The second class were the ''mācehualtin'' (people), originally peasants. Eduardo Noguera estimates that in later stages only 20% of the population was dedicated to agriculture and food production. The other 80% of society were warriors, artisans and traders.

Slaves or ''tlacotin'' also constituted an important class. Aztecs could become slaves because of debts, as a criminal punishment or as war captives. A slave could have possessions and even own other slaves.

Traveling merchants called ''pochtecah'' were a small, but important class as they not only facilitated commerce, but also communicated vital information across the empire and beyond its borders. They were often employed as spies.

Chinese

In pre-Confucian China, the feudal system divided the population into six classes. Four noble classes with the King (王, wáng) at the top, followed by the Dukes (诸侯, zhūhóu), then the Great Men (大夫, dàifu) and finally the Scholars (士, shì). Below the noble classes were the Commoners (庶民, shùmín) and Slaves (奴隶, núlì).

See main article of below description for Confucian classes: Four occupations

Confucian doctrine later minimized the importance of the nobles (except the emperor), abolished great men and scholars as noble classes, and further divided commoner workers based on the perceived usefulness of their work. Scholars (now not exclusively nobles) ranked the highest because the opportunity to conceive clear ideas in a state of leisure would lead them to wise laws (an idea that has much in common with Plato's ideal of a philosopher king). The scholars were mainly from the gentry, who owned land, and may be educated and wealthy but had no aristocratic titles. Under them were the farmers, who produced necessary food, and the artisans who produced useful objects. Merchants ranked at the bottom because they did not actually produce anything, while soldiers were sometimes ranked even lower because of their perceived expendability. The Confucian model is notably different from the modern European view of social class, since merchants could attain great wealth without reaching the social status accorded to a poor farmer. In practice, a rich merchant might purchase land to reach farmer status, or even buy a good education for his heirs in the hopes that they would attain scholar status and go into the imperial civil service. The Chinese model was widely disseminated throughout east Asia.

Pre-revolutionary French

France was an monarchy with a king and other princes at the top of the class structure. The French States-General, established in 1302 was an assembly whose members were ranked according to hereditary class. The First Estate was the clergy, all Roman Catholic, and by this time with the bishops and higher roles dominated by sons of the nobility. The Second Estate consisted of lay members of the nobility, who constituted approximately two percent of the total population. The Third Estate consisted, technically, of everyone else, but was represented by representatives elected by a complicated system, in practice dominated by the bourgeois lawyers who held offices in the various regional Parlements. The peasantry had no official status in this system. This may be contrasted with the ideologically high status of farmers in Confucian China. The rigidity of the French hereditary system has been suggested as a major cause of the French Revolution.

Inca

Indian

Traditionally, the Indian caste system was one of the oldest and most important systems of social class. It differs from varnashrama dharma found in Hinduism, which allowed people born into a certain varna to move upward or downwards depending on their qualification. It divided society based on skill and qualifications. Briefly, the Brahmin varna was idealized as a leisurely priest class devoted to religious ceremonies, while the Kshatriya defended them as military princes. The modern concept of the middle class was represented by the Vaishya varna: artisans, farmers, and merchants, and the lower varna were the Shudra: laborers. Within this basic framework were arranged a huge number of jatis, or subcastes. It should be recognised not as a religious system (as varnashrama dharma prescribed in Hinduism), but a social system, which evolved from varnashrama dharma. After, the end of British occupation in 1947, the Constitution of India introduced various affirmative action plans to abolish the caste system. The people outside of the main varnas were called Untouchables, because they were to not be touched by the "Twice Borns", or the higher three varnas.

Iranian

Under the Qajar dynasty of Iran, the class structure was set up as follows:

the permanent hereditary class of Qajar princes

an upper class of "nobles and notables"

religious leaders and students of theology

merchants (note the difference from east Asian models)

agricultural landowners

master artisans and shopkeepers

As in many official class structures, the laborers who made up the majority of the population but owned no land and relied on wages were not even considered part of the structure at all.

Japanese

The Japanese class structure, while influenced by the Chinese, was based on a much more feudal environment. The Emperor was not claimed to be a deity until pre–World War II military government did so but still was unquestionably at the pinnacle of the Japanese class structure (and still is, although no longer officially considered a god). However, for much of Japanese history the emperor was not allowed outside the palace grounds and his will was "interpreted" by a shogun, or military dictator. Beneath the shogun, daimyos or regional lords, administered the provinces through their samurai lieutenants. Perhaps through Chinese influence, and perhaps springing from a lack of arable land, the Japanese class structure also ranked farmers above merchants and other bourgeois. Classes changed after the Golden Age.

Korean

The Korean ruling class, or Korean power elite, is the relatively small number of Korean people who through similar schools, education, family clans, upbringing, or corporate chaebol wealth and urban power control decision making and policy within either of the partitioned Koreas.

This group is placed within the historical tradition of Confucianism and yangban scholars whose creation can be dated towards the end of the Goryeo dynasty; and that continues through the republican post-1945 and contemporary period; and which is represented by a controlling benevolent stewardship of the politics and economy of Korea by seniors or the older urban-dwelling elements of the population which crosses class, religious, party, and political lines.

Malay

Pre-colonial Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippine social classes includes the Nobility (Maharlika), Freemen (Timawa) and Serf (Alipin).

From the nobility comes the highest "Rajah" (Indianized), "Sultan" (Islamic) or "Hari" (Malay) as the King and highest of the ruling class, "Datu" as chieftains either independent or under the authority of the King and the "Maginoo" or nobles.

Freemen are called "Timawa", which includes "Mandirigma" (Soldiers), "Mangangalakal" (Merchants), and Priests/Priestesses (Babaylan, Umalohokan, Apo or Mumbaki).

Serf or Slaves are called "Alipin", are the bottom rung of the Malay society. They are subjects under either the Nobles or Freemen. Serfs can't pick their own wives or have children under their master's consent.

Capitalist class structures

United Kingdom

The Parliament of the United Kingdom still contains a vestige of the pre-capitalist European class structure. The Queen maintains her status at the top of the social class structure, with the House of Lords up until very recently still representing the hereditary upper class, however due to the Life Peerage the vast majority of Lords in the House of Lords are of common birth and are not classified as Upper Class as they were not born into it, and the House of Commons technically representing everyone else. The House of Commons until the early 20th century represented the industrialist and landed classes. In the Victorian era of the United Kingdom, social class became a national obsession, with nouveau riche industrialists in the House of Commons trying to attain the status of House of Lords landowners through culture, marriage, title, and the construction of follies.

From a sociological point of view the class system in Britain changed substantially during the 'Thatcher Era'. Home ownership (on mortgage) was extended throughout the middle classes and below. With the loss of the majority of traditional working class industrial jobs from the market, a new 'underclass', below working class emerged. The 'underclass', defined as unemployed relying on state benefits, is the new bottom of the British class system.

In Britain people considered of lower social standing can earn high incomes, but an individual's social class is still largely assessed by their parent's mannerisms, education and the status.

Italy

Latin American

In colonial Latin America access to positions of power and wealth were delineated by race. Accordingly, Peninsulars (Spaniards born in Spain and Portuguese born in Portugal) held the top ranks- including titles such as Viceroy, Captain General, etc. They were followed by Criollos (Those directly descended from Spaniards but born in America), who held considerable power and class but were barred from the highest decision-making posts. After these there was a system of around a hundred castes. Listed in order of rank, some of these were:

Mestizo (Mixed Amerindian and Spaniard);

Mulatto (Mixed Spaniard and African)

Amerindian

Zambo (Mixed Amerindian and African)

Negro

It is to be noted that even today there is a strong correlation between class and ethnicity.

New Zealand

United States

thumb|300px|Class in the US, featuring occupational descriptions by Thompson & Hickey as well as US Census Bureau data pertaining to [[Personal income in the United States|personal income and educational attainment for those age 25 or older.]] The social structure of the United States is a vaguely defined concept which includes several commonly used terms that use educational attainment, income, wealth, and occupational prestige as the main determinants of class. While it is possible to create dozens of social classes within the confines of American society, most Americans employ a six or five class system. The most commonly applied class concepts used in regards to contemporary American society are: Upper class: Those with great influence, wealth and prestige. Members of this group tend to act as the grand-conceptualizers and have tremendous influence of the nation's institutions. This class makes up about 1% of the population and owns about a third of private wealth. Upper middle class: The upper middle class consists of white collar professionals with advanced post-secondary educational degrees and comfortable personal incomes. Upper middle class professionals have large amounts of autonomy in the workplace and therefore enjoy high job satisfaction. In terms of income and considering the 15% figure used by Thompson, Hickey and Gilber, upper middle class professionals earn roughly $62,500 (€41,000 or £31,500) or more and tend to reside in households with six figure incomes. (Lower) middle class: Semi-professionals, non-retail salespeople, and craftsmen who may have some college education. Out-sourcing tends to be a prominent problem among those in this class who often suffer from a lack of job security. Working class: According to some experts such as Michael Zweig, this class may constitute the majority of Americans and include those otherwise referred to as lower middle. It includes blue as well as white collar workers who have relatively low personal incomes and lack college degrees with many being among the 45% of Americans who have never attended college. Lower class: This class includes the poor, alienated and marginalized members of society. While most individuals in this class work, it is common for them to drift in and out of poverty.

Current issues

There have been fierce debates in the area of sociology about whether or not social class has become relevant in terms of shaping identity. The arguments suggesting that it is no longer relevant are brought forward by supporters of postmodernism. One argument for class being unimportant follows:

Arguments against relevance of class

French sociologist Mattei Dogan has argued in his "From Social Class and Religious Identity to Status Incongruence in Post-Industrial Societies" (''Comparative Sociology'', 2004) that the relevance of social class has declined, giving way to a different form of social identification that is largely cultural and religious, and which raises identity conflicts called status incongruence. This can be observed, in particular, in the developing countries, but even in many post-industrial societies.

Arguments for relevance of class

Major areas of social science still rely on class based explanations of personal identity, for instance, the history from below school of Marxist history. Outside of Marxist influenced thought, there is still much evidence suggesting that class affects everyone. Some ideas from different sociologists follow:

Jordan suggested that those in poverty had the same attitudes on work and family as those in other classes, this being backed up with surveys expressing that the poor/working class/lower class feel almost shame about their position in society.

MacIntosh and Mooney noted that there was still an upper-class which seems to isolate itself from other classes. It is almost impossible to get into the upper-class. They (upper-class) kept their activities (marriage, education, peer groups) as a closed system.

Marshall et al. noted that many manual class workers are still aware of many class issues. They believed in a possible conflict of interest, and saw themselves as working class. This counters the postmodern claims that it is consumption which defines an individual.

Andrew Adonis and Stephen Pollard (1998) discovered a new super class, which consisted of elite professionals and managers, which held high salaries and share ownership.

Chapman noted there was still an existence of a self-recruiting upper-class identity.

Dennis Gilbert argues that class is bound to exist in any complex society as not all occupations are equal and that households do form pattern of interaction that give rise to social classes.

See also

Agorist class theory

Bohemianism

Caste

Chattering classes

Class conflict

Class consciousness

Class in the contemporary United States

Classless society

Drift Hypothesis

Elite theory

Elitism

Gilbert Model

Health and Social Class

Mass society

Marriage gap

National Statistics Socio-economic Classification (NS-SEC)

Passing

Poverty in the United States

Ranked society

Raznochinets

Reverse snobbery

Second-class citizen

Snob

Social class in American history

Social exclusion

Social mobility

Social structure of the United States

Subculture

Social status

Social stratification

Social position

U and non-U English

''Unequal Childhoods: Class, Race, and Family Life'' (book)

Further reading

Archer, Louise et al. ''Higher Education and Social Class: Issues of Exclusion and Inclusion'' (RoutledgeFalmer, 2003) (ISBN 0-4152-7644-6)

Aronowitz, Stanley, ''How Class Works: Power and Social Movement'', Yale University Press, 2003. ISBN 0300105045

Beckert, Sven, and Julia B. Rosenbaum, eds. ''The American Bourgeoisie: Distinction and Identity in the Nineteenth Century'' (Palgrave Macmillan; 2011) 284 pages; Scholarly studies on the habits, manners, networks, institutions, and public roles of the American middle class with a focus on cities in the North.

Bertaux, Daniel & Thomson, Paul; ''Pathways to Social Class: A Qualitative Approach to Social Mobility'' (Clarendon Press, 1997)

Bisson, Thomas N.; ''Cultures of Power: Lordship, Status, and Process in Twelfth-Century Europe'' (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1995)

Blau, Peter & Duncan Otis D.; ''The American Occupational Structure'' (1967) classic study of structure and mobility

Brady, David "Rethinking the Sociological Measurement of Poverty" ''Social Forces'' Vol. 81 No.3, (March 2003), pp. 715–751 (abstract online in Project Muse).

Broom, Leonard & Jones, F. Lancaster; ''Opportunity and Attainment in Australia'' (1977)

Cohen, Lizabeth; ''Consumer's Republic'', (Knopf, 2003) (ISBN 0-375-40750-2). (Historical analysis of the working out of class in the United States).

Croix, Geoffrey de Ste.; "Class in Marx's Conception of History, Ancient and Modern", New Left Review, No. 146, (1984), pp. 94–111 (good study of Marx's concept).

Dargin, Justin ''The Birth of Russia's Energy Class'', Asia Times (2007) (good study of contemporary class formation in Russia, post communism)

Day, Gary; ''Class'', (Routledge, 2001) (ISBN 0-415-18222-0)

Domhoff, G. William, ''Who Rules America? Power, Politics, and Social Change'', Englewood Cliffs, N.J. : Prentice-Hall, 1967. (Prof. Domhoff's companion site to the book at the University of California, Santa Cruz)

Eichar, Douglas M.; ''Occupation and Class Consciousness in America'' (Greenwood Press, 1989)

Fantasia, Rick; Levine, Rhonda F.; McNall, Scott G., eds.; ''Bringing Class Back in Contemporary and Historical Perspectives'' (Westview Press, 1991)

Featherman, David L. & Hauser Robert M.; ''Opportunity and Change'' (1978).

Fotopoulos, Takis, Class Divisions Today: The Inclusive Democracy approach, ''Democracy & Nature'', Vol. 6, No. 2, (July 2000)

Fussell, Paul; ''Class (a painfully accurate guide through the American status system)'', (1983) (ISBN 0-345-31816-1)

Giddens, Anthony; ''The Class Structure of the Advanced Societies'', (London: Hutchinson, 1981).

Giddens, Anthony & Mackenzie, Gavin (Eds.), ''Social Class and the Division of Labour. Essays in Honour of Ilya Neustadt'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982).

Goldthorpe, John H. & Erikson Robert; ''The Constant Flux: A Study of Class Mobility in Industrial Society'' (1992)

Grusky, David B. ed.; ''Social Stratification: Class, Race, and Gender in Sociological Perspective'' (2001) scholarly articles

Hazelrigg, Lawrence E. & Lopreato, Joseph; ''Class, Conflict, and Mobility: Theories and Studies of Class Structure'' (1972).

Hymowitz, Kay; ''Marriage and Caste in America: Separate and Unequal Families in a Post-Marital Age'' (2006) ISBN 1566637090

Kaeble, Helmut; ''Social Mobility in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries: Europe and America in Comparative Perspective'' (1985)

Jens Hoff, "The Concept of Class and Public Employees". ''Acta Sociologica'', vol. 28, no. 3, July 1985, pp. 207–226.

Mahalingam, Ramaswami; "Essentialism, Culture, and Power: Representations of Social Class" ''Journal of Social Issues'', Vol. 59, (2003), pp. 733+ on India

Mahony, Pat & Zmroczek, Christine; ''Class Matters: 'Working-Class' Women's Perspectives on Social Class'' (Taylor & Francis, 1997)

Manza, Jeff & Brooks, Clem; ''Social Cleavages and Political Change: Voter Alignments and U.S. Party Coalitions'' (Oxford University Press, 1999).

Manza, Jeff; "Political Sociological Models of the U.S. New Deal" ''Annual Review of Sociology'', (2000) pp. 297+

Manza, Jeff; Hout, Michael & Brooks Clem; "Class Voting in Capitalist Democracies since World War II: Dealignment, Realignment, or Trendless Fluctuation?" ''Annual Review of Sociology'', Vol. 21, (1995)

Marmot, Michael; ''The Status Syndrome: How Social Standing Affects Our Health and Longevity'' (2004)

Marx, Karl & Engels, Frederick; ''The Communist Manifesto'', (1848). (The key statement of class conflict as the driver of historical change).

Merriman, John M.; ''Consciousness and Class Experience in Nineteenth-Century Europe'' (Holmes & Meier Publishers, 1979)

Ostrander, Susan A.; ''Women of the Upper Class'' (Temple University Press, 1984).

Owensby, Brian P.; ''Intimate Ironies: Modernity and the Making of Middle-Class Lives in Brazil'' (Stanford University, 1999).

Pakulski, Jan & Waters, Malcolm; ''The Death of Class'' (Sage, 1996). (rejection of the relevance of class for modern societies)

Payne, Geoff; ''The Social Mobility of Women: Beyond Male Mobility Models'' (1990)

Raico, Ralph; "Classical Liberal Exploitation Theory: A Comment on Professor Liggio's Paper", ''Journal of Libertarian Studies'', Vol.1, No.3, pp. 179–183, (1977).

Savage, Mike; ''Class Analysis and Social Transformation'' (London: Open University Press, 2000).

Sennett, Richard & Cobb, Jonathan; ''The Hidden Injuries of Class'', (Vintage, 1972) (classic study of the subjective experience of class).

Siegelbaum, Lewis H. & Suny, Ronald; eds.; ''Making Workers Soviet: Power, Class, and Identity.'' (Cornell University Press, 1994). Russia 1870-1940

Sorokin, Pitrim; ''Social Mobility'' (New York, 1927)

Warner, W. Lloyd et al. ''Social Class in America: A Manual of Procedure for the Measurement of Social Status'' (1949).

Wlkowitz, Daniel J.; ''Working with Class: Social Workers and the Politics of Middle-Class Identity'' (University of North Carolina Press, 1999).

Weber, Max. "Class, Status and Party", in e.g. Gerth, Hans and C. Wright Mills, ''From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology'', (Oxford University Press, 1958). (Weber's key statement of the multiple nature of stratification).

Weinburg, Mark; "The Social Analysis of Three Early 19th century French liberals: Say, Comte, and Dunoyer", ''Journal of Libertarian Studies'', Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 45–63, (1978).

Wood, Ellen Meiksins; ''The Retreat from Class: A New 'True' Socialism'', (Schocken Books, 1986) (ISBN 0-8052-7280-1) and (Verso Classics, January 1999) reprint with new introduction (ISBN 1-8598-4270-4).

Wood, Ellen Meiksins; "Labor, the State, and Class Struggle", ''Monthly Review'', Vol. 49, No. 3, (1997).

Wouters, Cas.; "The Integration of Social Classes." ''Journal of Social History''. Volume 29, Issue 1, (1995). pp 107+. (on social manners)

Wright, Erik Olin; ''The Debate on Classes'' (Verso, 1990). (neo-Marxist)

Wright, Erik Olin; ''Class Counts: Comparative Studies in Class Analysis'' (Cambridge University Press, 1997)

Wright, Erik Olin ed. ''Approaches to Class Analysis'' (2005). (scholarly articles)

Zmroczek, Christine & Mahony, Pat (Eds.), ''Women and Social Class: International Feminist Perspectives.'' (London: UCL Press 1999)

External links

''Class Action'':

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/IL06Ag01.html Dargin, Justin, The Birth of Russia's New Energy Class. The Asia Times (Dec. 6, 2007)

''Dictionary of the history of ideas'': Class

''Charles Dunoyer And The Theory Of Industrialism'' and ''Comte And Dunoyer After The 1830 Revolution: The Impact Of Their Ideas'' in ''The Radical Liberalism Of Charles Comte And Charles Dunoyer'' by David M. Hart.

''Marxist and Austrian Class Analysis'' (PDF) by Hans-Hermann Hoppe

''Classical Liberal Roots of the Marxist Doctrine of Classes'' (PDF document), ''Classical Liberal Roots of Marxist Class Analysis'' (MP3 audio file), lecture by Ralph Raico.

Rethinking Cultural and Economic Capital - Jan Rupp

BBC Archive Collection of TV & Radio programmes about Working Class Life

Sources

Jon Elster, ''An Introduction to Karl Marx''. Cambridge, England, 1986.

Michael Evans, ''Karl Marx''. London, 1975.

References

Category:Anthropology Category:Sociology Category:Social divisions Category:Social groups Category:Socialism

ar:طبقية bg:Социална класа ca:Societat de classes cs:Sociální třída de:Klasse (Soziologie) et:Sotsiaalne klass es:Clase social eo:Socia klaso fa:طبقه اجتماعی fr:Classe sociale gl:Clase social ko:사회 계급 id:Kelas sosial is:Stétt it:Classe sociale he:מעמד חברתי la:Classis lt:Klasė (sociologija) mk:Општествена класа nl:Sociale klasse ja:社会階級 no:Klasse (sosiologi) pl:Klasa społeczna pt:Classe social ro:Clasă socială ru:Социальный класс simple:Social class sk:Spoločenská trieda sl:Družbeni razred sr:Друштвена класа fi:Yhteiskuntaluokka sv:Samhällsklass vi:Giai cấp zh:社會階級

name	Miriam
gender	female
birth name	Unconfirmed
birth date	ca. 1981
birth place	Hermosillo, Mexico
height
weight
eye color	Brown
hair color	Brown
ethnicity	Hispanic/Mexican
alias	Victoria, Miriam Rivera, Miriam Xtravaganza, Miriam, Miriam D'Abo
number of films	5 (per IAFD)
spelling	}}

Miriam Rivera (born circa 1981) is a Mexican transsexual woman who appeared on the reality television shows ''There's Something About Miriam'' and ''Big Brother Australia 2004''. Miriam has also worked as an adult model under the name Victoria and as a non-adult model. Miriam says strangers assumed she was a girl:

They used to come to my mother and say, "Oh you have a beautiful daughter," and my mother used to say "That's my son," and I used to get angry. And I have always been attracted to men. When I was 11 I met someone who's gay and start talking to me about hormones, which I got very interested in.

Miriam said she soon started taking hormones. She told reporters she came out after being suspended from school at age 12, and her family was supportive. After not fitting in at a new school, Miriam says she ran away at age 14 and spent six months working at a strip club. She says that when her mother found her, she suggested Miriam live with a relative in America, where she says she attended Hollywood High School from the age of 15. She told reporters that after she was outed there, she moved to New York to live with her uncle and started work in her uncle's real estate agency.

In 1999 Miriam posed for a transsexual photography website and performed under the name Victoria in several pornographic videos produced by Androgeny Productions and released starting in 2000.

She was filmed in Ibiza for ''There's Something About Miriam'' in 2003, but the show's airdate was delayed until 2004, following out-of-court settlement of litigation by the contestants. Miriam enjoyed the attention she got following the show. After the good ratings for ''There's Something About Miriam'', she was cast as a guest visitor on ''Big Brother Australia 2004'', also produced by Endemol. A documentary about her life was commissioned but not aired.

She has stated she does not plan to have sex reassignment surgery, citing concerns about complications or loss of sensation. "My mother always says to me, 'Why would you want to be half-and-half? Why don't you want to be a complete woman?' But I just love myself and I'm really enjoying my life."

The ''New York Post'' reported that Miriam was seriously injured in spring 2007 when she was thrown out of a third-story window at her home. Miriam later told reporters she fell out of a fourth-story window while trying to escape a burglar.

In 2008 she was a special guest Ewa Drzyzga's TVN show ''Rozmowy w toku'' in Poland. In a 2010 interview, Miriam told a British tabloid she was working as an escort in the London area. Miriam is now living and working in Valencia, Spain.

Filmography

''Transsexual Beauty Queens 9'' (2000, Androgeny Productions)

''Transsexual Beauty Queens 10'' (2002, Androgeny Productions)

''There's Something About Miriam'' (2003, Brighter Pictures)

''Big Brother Australia 2004'' (2004, Endemol)

''Transsexual Celebrity Look-A-Likes 2'' (2005, Androgeny Productions)

''Transsexual Beauty Queens Unleashed'' (2005, Androgeny Productions)

''Transsexual Beauty Queens Superstars Volume 1'' (2005, Androgeny, Productions)

''There's Something Extra Special About Miriam'' (2008, Avalon)

Notes and references

External links

Miriam's old official site via Internet Archive (online April - September 2004)

Category:Living people Category:Adult models Category:Australian television personalities Category:Big Brother Australia Category:Mexican television actors Category:Transgender and transsexual models Category:Transgender and transsexual entertainers Category:LGBT people from Mexico Category:Transgender and transsexual actors Category:Transsexual female pornographic film actors Category:1980s births

This is a list of people whose names in English are commonly appended with the phrase "''the Great''", or who were called that or an equivalent phrase in their own language. Other languages have their own suffixes such as ''e Bozorg'' and ''e azam'' in Persian and Urdu respectively.

In Persia, the title "the Great" at first seems to be a colloquial version of the Old Persian title "Great King". This title was first used by the conqueror Cyrus II of Persia.

The Persian title was inherited by Alexander III of Macedon (336–323 BC) when he conquered the Persian Empire, and the epithet "Great" eventually became personally associated with him. The first reference (in a comedy by Plautus) assumes that everyone knew who "Alexander the Great" was; however, there is no earlier evidence that Alexander III of Macedon was called "''the Great''".

The early Seleucid kings, who succeeded Alexander in Persia, used "Great King" in local documents, but the title was most notably used for Antiochus the Great (223–187 BC).

Later rulers and commanders began to use the epithet "the Great" as a personal name, like the Roman general Pompey. Others received the surname retrospectively, like the Carthaginian Hanno and the Indian emperor Ashoka the Great. Once the surname gained currency, it was also used as an honorific surname for people without political careers, like the philosopher Albert the Great.

As there are no objective criteria for "greatness", the persistence of later generations in using the designation greatly varies. For example, Louis XIV of France was often referred to as "The Great" in his lifetime but is rarely called such nowadays, while Frederick II of Prussia is still called "The Great". A later Hohenzollern - Wilhelm I - was often called "The Great" in the time of his grandson Wilhelm II, but rarely later.

Rulers

Abbas I of Persia (1571-1629), Shah of Iran

Akbar (1542-1605), ruler of the Mughal Empire of South Asia, mainly India

Alain I of Albret (1440-1522), French aristocrat

Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), King of Macedonia, Persia, Greece, Egypt, and all of Mesopotamia

Alexander I of Georgia (1386–1446), King of Georgia

Alfonso III of León (c. 848-910), King of León, Galicia and Asturias

Alfred the Great (848/849-899), King of Wessex

Antiochus III the Great (c. 241–187 BC), ruler of the Seleucid Empire

Ashoka the Great (c. 304–232 BC), Indian emperor of the Maurya dynasty

Ashot I of Iberia “the Great”(died 826/830), presiding prince of Iberia (modern Georgia),

Askia Mohammad I (c. 1442–1538), ruler of the Songhai Empire

Bhumibol Adulyadej (born 1927), King of Thailand

Bolesław I Chrobry (967-1025), sometimes called "the Great", first King of Poland

Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologne and Duke of Lotharingia (also listed in the following section)

Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (1736-1809), founder and ruler of the Rattanakosin Kingdom (in what is now Thailand)

Cnut the Great (c. 985 or 995-1035), King of Denmark, England, Norway and parts of Sweden

Casimir III the Great (1310-1370), King of Poland

Catherine the Great (1729-1796), Empress of Russian

Chandragupta II (reigned 375-413/415), also known as Vikramaditya, ruler of the Gupta empire in India

Charlemagne (died 814), King of the Franks and Emperor of the Romans

Chulalongkorn (1853-1910), King of Siam (now Thailand)

Chlothar II (584-629), King of Neustria and King of the Franks

Conrad, Margrave of Meissen (c. 1097-1157), Margrave of Meissen

Constantine I (c. 272-337), Roman Emperor

Cyrus the Great (c. 600 BC or 576 BC–530 BC), founder and ruler of the Persian or Achaemenid Empire

Darius the Great (550 – 486 BC), third ruler of the Persian Empire

Devapala (died 850), ruler of the Pala Empire in the Indian subcontinent

Dionysius I, Greek tyrant of Syracuse

Ferdinand I of León and Castile (c. 1015–1065), King of León and Count of Castile

Frederick the Great (1712-1786), King of Prussia

Genghis Khan (1162?-1227), founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire

Gero (c. 900–965), ruler of Marca Geronis, a very large march in Europe

Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden (1594-1632), King of Sweden, founder of the Swedish Empire, and noted military leader

Gwanggaeto the Great, King of Goguryeo, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea

Hanno the Great, the name of three leaders of Carthage, in the 4th, 3rd, and 2nd centuries BC

Henry I, Duke of Burgundy (946–1002)

Henry IV of France (1553-1610), King of France and King of Navarre

Herod the Great (73/74 BC-4 BC), King of Judea

Hugh the Great (898-956), Duke of the Franks and Count of Paris

Hugh Magnus of France (1007-1025), co-King of France

Hugh I, Count of Vermandois (1057-1101)

Humphrey I de Bohun (died c. 1123), Anglo-Norman aristocrat

Ivan III of Russia (1440-1505), Tsar of Russia

John I of Portugal (1358-1433), King of Portugal and the Algarve

John II of Aragon (1398-1479), King of Aragon and, through his wife, King of Navarre

Justinian I (483-565), Byzantine Emperor

Kamehameha I (c. 1758-1819), first King of Hawai'i

Kanishka (died c. 127), ruler of the Kushan Empire in Central Asia and parts of India

Kvirike III of Kakheti (1010-1029), King of Kakheti in eastern Georgia

Kublai Khan (1215-1294), Mongol ruler in the 13th century and Emperor of China; founder of the Yuan Dynasty

Llywelyn the Great (c. 1172–1240), Prince of Gwynedd and de facto ruler of most of Wales

Louis I of Hungary (1326-1382), King of Hungary, Croatia and Poland

Mangrai the Great (1238-1317), Lanna, northern Thailand

Emperor Meiji (1852-1912), Emperor of Japan

Mircea I of Wallachia (1355–1418)

Mithridates II of Parthia (died 88 BC), ruler of the Parthian Empire (in present day Iran)

Mithridates VI of Pontus (134 BC–63 BC), ruler of Pontus and the Bosporan Kingdom

Mstislav I of Kiev (1076-1132), Grand Prince of Kievan Rus

Narai (1633-1688), King of Ayutthaya (in what is now modern Thailand)

Naresuan (1555-1605), King of Ayutthaya

Odo the Great (died c. 735), Duke of Aquitaine

Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (912-973)

K'inich Janaab' Pakal (603-683), ruler of the Mayan city-state of Palenque

Parakramabahu I of Polonnaruwa (1123–1186), King of Sri Lanka

Peter Krešimir IV of Croatia (died 1075), King of Croatia

Peter the Great (1672-1725), Tsar of Russia

Peter III of Aragon (1239-1285), King of Aragon and King of Sicily

Pompey (106 BC-48 BC), military and political leader of the late Roman Republic, rival of Julius Caesar

Radama I (1793–1828), first king of greater Madagascar

Raja Raja Chola I (c. 947-1014), Indian emperor of the Cholas.

Rajendra Chola I (reigned 1014-1044), Tamil King of India

Ramesses II (reigned 1279 BC – 1213 BC), considered the greatest pharaoh of Ancient Egypt

Ram Khamhaeng (around 1237 to 1247-1298), King of Sukhothai (in present day Thailand)

Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona (1082-1131), also Count of Provence and various other counties

Rhodri the Great (c. 820–878), King of Gwynedd (in present day Wales)

Roman the Great (after 1160-1205), Grand Prince of Kiev

Samudragupta (c. 335–375), ruler of the Gupta empire in the Indian subcontinent

Sancho III of Navarre (c. 992-1035), King of Kingdom of Navarre

Sargon of Akkad (died c. 2215 BC), ruler of the Akkadian Empire

Sejong the Great (1397-1450), Korean king

Shapur II (309-379), king of the Sassanid Empire, Persia

Simeon I of Bulgaria (864/865-927), ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire

Stephen III of Moldavia (1433-1504), Prince of Moldavia (Romania)

Stephen Uroš IV Dušan of Serbia (c. 1308-1355), King of Serbia and Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks

Taksin (1734-1782), King of the Thonburi Kingdom (Thailand)

Timur (1336-1405), better known as Tamerlane, founder of the Timurid Dynasty

Theobald II, Count of Champagne (1090–1151), Count of Blois and of Chartres as Theobald IV, Count of Champagne and of Brie

Theodoric the Great (454-526), King of the Ostrogoths, regent of the Visigoths and a viceroy of the Byzantine Empire

Theodosius I (347-395), Roman emperor

Tigranes the Great (140-55 BC), Emperor of Armenia

Tiridates III of Armenia (285-339), King of Armenia

Umar (c. 586 to 590–644), second caliph of the Muslim Empire

Valdemar I of Denmark (1131-1182), King of Denmark

Valentinian I (364-375), Roman Emperor

Vladimir I of Kiev (c. 958-1015), ruler of Kievan Rus

Vytautas (c. 1350-1430), archduke of the Lithuanian Grand Duchy

William I, Count of Burgundy (1020-1087), Count of Burgandy and Mâcon

William V, Duke of Aquitaine (969-1030), also Count of Poitou

Xerxes I (519-465 BC), King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire (Persia)

Yu the Great (c. 2200-2100 BC), legendary ruler in ancient China

Religious figures

Abraham the Great of Kashkar (ca. 492-586), monk and saint of the Assyrian Church of the East

Abraham Kidunaia (died c. 366, hermit, priest, and Christian saint of Mesopotamia

Albertus Magnus (1193/1206–1280), medieval German philosopher and theologian

Anthony the Great (c. 251–356), early Christian saint of Egypt

Babai the Great (c. 551–628), Assyrian church leader

Basil of Caesarea (330-379), Greek bishop and theologian

Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologne and Duke of Lotharingia (also listed in the previous section)

Euthymius the Great (377-473), abbot and Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox saint

Gertrude the Great (1256-c. 1302), German Benedictine, mystic, theologian and Roman Catholic saint

Pope Gregory I (c. 540-604)

Hiyya the Great, 3rd-century rabbi, Palestine

Pope John Paul II (1920-2005)

Pope Leo I (c. 391 or 400-461)

Macarius of Egypt (c. 300-391), Egyptian hermit

Pope Nicholas I (c. 800-867)

Photius I of Constantinople (c. 810–c. 893), Eastern Orthodox saint and Patriarch of Constantinople

William of Maleval (died 1157), founder of the Catholic congregation of Williamites

Other

Beli Mawr, a figure in medieval Welsh literature and genealogies

Emmy the Great, folk singer

Matteo Rosso the Great, Roman politician and father of Pope Nicholas III

Prokop the Great, Hussite general in Bohemia

See also

Epithet

List of monarchs by nickname

List of nicknames of European Royalty and Nobility: G-I

James, son of Zebedee, also known as James the Greater, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus

Ajax (mythology), called Ajax the Greater

Notes

Category:Monarchs Great, List of people known as The Category:Greatest Nationals Category:Epithets

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