Communal land is a (mostly rural) territory in possession of a community, rather than an individual or company. This sort of arrangement existed in almost all Europe until the 18th century, by which the king or the church officially owned the land, but allowed the peasants to work in them in exchange for a levy. These institutions still survive today in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

and

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...

Existence

This system has also existed in Africa, Asia and America, and in some parts has persisted until today. A group or culture historically owns a piece of land and distributes it among its members, through the relevant authority. The good management of this land is veiled by the group itself, which can revoke the right of use to a farmer if this one is using it badly or for the wrong means. The concept of communal land does not meet well with modern-day law, which is based on

private property Private property is a legal designation for the ownership of property by non-governmental Capacity (law), legal entities. Private property is distinguishable from public property, which is owned by a state entity, and from Collective ownership ...

, so these territories more often than not are without a legal owner, which in law means it is property of the state. This has opened the door to cases of

land grabbing Land grabbing is the large-scale acquisition of land through buying or leasing of large pieces of land by domestic and Multinational corporation, transnational companies, governments, and individuals. While used broadly throughout history, land g ...

by corporations, which has been the source of many conflicts and strife.

Zimbabwe

The term communal land in

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

refers to certain rural areas within the country. Communal lands were formerly called Tribal Trust Lands (TTLs).

Subsistence farming Subsistence agriculture occurs when farmers grow crops on smallholdings to meet the needs of themselves and their families. Subsistence agriculturalists target farm output for survival and for mostly local requirements. Planting decisions occ ...

and small scale commercial farming are the principal economic activities in communal lands, there is usually limited additional employment apart from in a growth point and with jobs like

teaching Teaching is the practice implemented by a ''teacher'' aimed at transmitting skills (knowledge, know-how, and interpersonal skills) to a learner, a student, or any other audience in the of an educational institution. Teaching is closely related ...

. Some communal lands have high population densities, and as a consequence

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature ...

by cattle and goats and

soil erosion Soil erosion is the denudation or wearing away of the Topsoil, upper layer of soil. It is a form of soil degradation. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice (glaciers), snow, Atmosphere of Ea ...

can occur. The farms of communal lands are traditionally unfenced. Communal lands have resident traditional African Chiefs. Many communal lands are at a lower

elevation The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational equipotenti ...

than the richer commercial farms, and consequently experience higher average temperatures, and lower

rainfall Rain is a form of precipitation where water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. ...

levels.http://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/382881468179102471/pdf/multi-page.pdf Since independence, in communal lands, schools have been established and expanded, roads tarred, and

electrification Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. In the context of history of technology and economic development, electrification refe ...

has spread. In recent years though, this

development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development (music), the process by which thematic material is reshaped * Photographic development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting * Development hell, when a proje ...

has slowed.

Mexico

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

communal land is known as the

ejido An ''ejido'' (, from Latin ''exitum'') is an area of communal land used for agriculture in which community members have usufruct rights, which in Mexico is not held by the Mexican state. People awarded ejidos in the modern era farm them indiv ...

. (see also the

Chiapas conflict The Chiapas conflict (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Conflicto de Chiapas'') consisted of the Zapatista uprising, 1994 Zapatista uprising, the 1995 Zapatista Crisis, 1995 Zapatista crisis, and the subsequent tension between the Federal government o ...

)

References

External links

World Bank (1985) Zimbabwe: Land Subsector Study. World Bank: Washington D.C.
(p. 18) {{DEFAULTSORT:Communal Land Common land