A Concise Overview of the Problem of the Nature of Law in the Context of Legal Plurality

Abstract

It is stated that the main objective of legal anthropology is to study the concept of legal plurality, which deals with the coexistence of non-state law and state law. In other words, the main focus of legal anthropology is said to be the concept of legal plurality, which examines the interaction of various legal systems in a single social space and focuses on different conceptions of law. In this respect, the issue of legal plurality, which is at the center of legal anthropology as well as this article, necessarily raises the question what the nature of law is. Therefore, the fundamental question that comes to the fore when the subject of legal plurality is introduced is: ‘What is the difference between law and social normative orders?’ This problem essentially stems from the debate on whether law can exist in stateless societies. If the existence of law in stateless societies is accepted, it becomes necessary to elaborate on legal plurality. Because stateless societies, first under the influence of colonialists and now surrounded by the nation-state, will be subject to more than one law, in other words, legal plurality will have emerged. Within the framework of this theme, the article will discuss the central issue of legal anthropology, legal plurality, and the question of what law is in this context.