1.
a society structured around distinct layers or classes — with people divided by wealth, occupation, education, or social rank, and limited mobility between the layers
A sociological term for any society in which social classes (階層) are clearly differentiated. It can describe historical class-based societies (feudal Japan, Victorian Britain), contemporary societies with sharp inequalities, or ideal-type models in the social sciences.
日本も階層社会になりつつある。
Japan too is becoming a stratified society.
階層社会では、生まれた家が人生を大きく左右する。
In a class society, the family you are born into greatly shapes your life.
格差が拡大し、階層社会が固定化しているという指摘もある。
There are claims that inequality is widening and that the stratified society is becoming entrenched.
教育の機会均等が失われれば、やがて硬直した階層社会が生まれかねない。
If equal access to education is lost, a rigid class society could eventually emerge.
Composed of 階層 ("layer, stratum, social class") + 社会 ("society"). Used in sociology, journalism, and commentary on inequality.
USAGE:
- Frequently appears in discussions of 格差 ("inequality, gap") and 分断 ("social division").
- Often paired with 固定化 ("entrenchment") or 流動性の低い ("having low mobility") to describe how hard it is to move between classes.
- Has a somewhat critical or concerned tone — it is typically used when lamenting inequality rather than describing neutral social structure.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 階層社会の固定化: the entrenchment of a class society
- 階層社会に陥る: to fall into a stratified society
- 階層社会の弊害: the harmful effects of a class society
- 日本は階層社会だ: Japan is a class society
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 格差社会: an inequality society — emphasizes the gap itself rather than the layered structure.
- 階級社会: a class society — stronger, often Marxist connotation; 階層 is more neutral sociologically.
- 身分社会: a status-based society — implies formal, often hereditary, status distinctions (e.g., feudal society).
- 平等社会: an egalitarian society — the opposite concept.