Origin and Development of sociology

                     Origin and Development of Sociology

Sociology is the newest of the social sciences to establish itself in the western universities of the English-speaking world (in 1876 Yale University , US in 1889 France and England).In Asia the formal teaching of sociology began in 1893 in Tokyo University and in India in 1919 in Bombay University. Men have always reflected upon the societies in which they lived, yet sociology as a modern science developed only in 19th century.

Historically, the word sociology was invented by Auguste Comte, although a concern with the nature of society can be found throughout the western and eastern thoughts. However , it was not until the middle of the 19th century , in the aftermath of industrial revolution and the consequent upheavals , that we find a concern with society and thus the need for a "science of society" was recognized. These conditions gave impetus to French Philosopher Saint Simon and his secretary-colleague Comte to think about human society on scientific lines.They believed that positivism can provide a scientific basis for the study of society.
The structure of Social Action 1937,Talcott Parsons has written that in the 19th and early 20th centuries , sociology broke free of its earlier ideological shackles and established itself as a science proper ,especially in the works of Max Weber and Emile Durkheim . However , the subject was also deeply influenced by Karl Marx in his analysis of social structure , class and social change. Although these three thinkers have much influence over modern sociology, yet the philosophical and political  inheritance of sociology is complex and no single tradition can be regarded as entirely dominant for the development of the subject in its present form.