Government

Government is the institutional system through which a political community makes and enforces collective decisions, sets and administers law, and exercises authority over a defined territory or population. Forms vary widely across history and world regions, from monarchies and republics to theocracies, oligarchies and federations, and government functions are typically organized into legislative, executive and judicial branches, though the degree of separation between them differs by system. Every organized society develops some form of government to allocate resources, resolve disputes, provide collective goods such as defense and infrastructure, and maintain order, making it one of the most universal social institutions studied in political sociology and anthropology.