Congratulation! Golden jubilee of the Japanese Association for Rural Studies which was established in 1953. In a sense, it inherited the Association of Rural Sociology (Sonraku Shakaigakkai) established in 1931, and dissolved in 1938. The person who has done distinguished service to establish this Association was Professor Kizaemon Aruga.
　　　I attended the First Congress of Rural Studies as a regular member held in Tohoku University at Sendai. Distinguishing features of this Association are that members are specialists of rural studies from various disciplines, such as sociology, economics, jurisprudence, ethnology, historical science, and geography, and then, the congress of this Association is usually sojourn together over two days and nights in the same hotel accommodations.

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　　　The purpose of this paper is to clarify the process of reorganization of iriai syudan, a group that manages communal forest in a mountain village.
　　　In the Taisyo era, iriai syudan managed the communal forest in cooperative labor (syutsubu) in Simojunenbata at Hakuta-cho, Shimane prefecture. In those days the membership of iriai syudan was limited to the inhabitants and common rights were being granted to each member. However, during the rapid economic growth period some of the inhabitants could not participate in syutsubu because of their age and the increase in part-time farmers. As a result, the traditional ways of communal management became untenable. Under such circumstances, in 1966, each member was permitted to have plural common rights, and those who left the village were also allowed to have common rights, depending on whether they could assume the respective responsibilities or not. Those who had plural common rights were required to take part in syutsubu quite often, and those who leave the village were required to take perform their duties by themselves or send another inhabitant in their place. These changes demonstrate how iriai syudan have been reorganized.
　　　The significance of the study on Simojunenbata is as follows: Firstly, the preceding researches on iriai syudan mainly dealt with the process of disorganization of the group. However, this case demonstrates the process of reorganization. Secondly, recent studies on mountain villages discuss the construction of “river basin systems” , a comprehensive method of forest management. This paper examines the possibilities of such communal management.

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　　　Coffee agriculture has occupied the most important place in the Guatemalan economy since it was introduced at the end of the nineteenth century. Guatemalan coffee has been dependent on the Mayan indigenous people as the source of the labor. The government has attempted to abolish the traditional society and encourage them into the capitalist market of coffee. The indigenous people became temporally labor only when they needed money, and therefore managed to conserve their traditional lifestyles. This is the History of Guatemalan coffee in preceded studies. This is why these studies presume that each Guatemalan indigenous society has essential body such as the concept “closed corporate peasant community” Eric Wolf conceived. This is discussed concerned with the Handy's comment on this concept. These are presented in section 1.
　　　One Mayan village in Sololá province, ‘San Pedro La Laguna’ is chosen as the case for this paper. Contrary to other indigenous communities, in the second half of the 20th century, San Pedro’s coffee cultivation was widely developed by the local habitants themselves. Now, about 90％ of households manage their own cultivation, if only on a small scale. The economic effect of coffee has caused dramatic changes in the lifestyle of the habitants and the traditional community has become very similar to a capitalist society. But can we think this change as such a simple change to capitalism? For this matter, in sections 2 and 3, the process in which the San Pedro’ inhabitants have introduced coffee cultivation is discussed in detail, with the focus on shifting labor to the southern lowlands where coffee capitalism in inherent.
　　　In the final section, I will conclude that the introduction of coffee in San Pedro caused not simple evolution into capitalist society but a unique change owing to various social, economic, cultural and political changes in Guatemala. Being based on this case of San Pedro, it is proposed that the Guatemalan indigenous community should not be understood referred to the substantial concept such as the preceded “closed community” , but be considered as the process itself of inhabitants of community who move due to various motivations.

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　　　The purpose of this paper is to consider the modern significance of yuimaru, that is, cooperative work system through labor exchange in Hateruma Island, Okinawa.
　　　In the past, yuimaru was a cooperative work system through labor exchange without payment. However, after the Second World War it was changed to a payment system for settlement of the imbalances in labor exchange, or as a system of casual labor in various parts of Okinawa. This can be said to be yuimaru with payment.
　　　Most farmers organized groups for yuimaru of three to eleven farm households that were called kumi, and they worked together cooperatively during sugarcane harvest in Hateruma Island. They were paid for this cooperative work. At the same time, each member of the kumi worked until all the members’harvests were completed, this work was recognized as mutual aid. Accordingly, this is a typical yuimaru with payment.
　　　Yuimaru in Hateruma Island is significant for the following three reasons: First, cooperative labor has maintained regional agriculture for a long time. Second, yuimaru has contributed to the vitalization of farm household economies and the regional economy through pay for labor exchange. Third, the idea of yuimaru and its system provides a model for other small islands.
　　　However, yuimaru Hateruma Island has faced the following problems: First, the number of persons engaged in farming is decreasing and aging. Second, payment by the hour is comparatively lower for young persons engaged in farming. Third, the tasks of the kumi leaders are a heavy burden for them. The measures devised to deal with these problems are as follows. First, it is necessary to encourage the young people who have returned to the Island for farming and to promote the acceptance of new-comers in farming from outside of the Island. Secondly, the amount of payment per hour should be reconsidered. And thirdly, the tasks of the kumi leaders should be rethought. In addition, as a larger consideration, in addition to sugarcane harvesting, yuimaru should be reorganized for the planning of new directions in regional agriculture under the island conditions.

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　　　This paper inquires into what has come in rural areas and what has changed rural societies in Hyogo Prefecture in recent years. We concentrate on the industrialization, decrease or increase in the number of inhabitants, and urban-rural migration which have had great effects on cities and villages.
　　　We analyze social changes and characters of three areas. At first, we focus on the effects of rapid decrease in the number of inhabitants in a village among the mountains, Muraoka-Town. The presence of a primary school and a junior high school had the key to social bonds of the inhabitants until they have been closed because of a lack of students. Nowadays some plans of infrastructure and social gatherings are realized. Next we illustrate some effects of industrialization in a case of rural society in Himeji-City. A gigantic ironworks has a great influence upon its neighboring areas. Increasing number of its employees settled themselves in these areas until it began to execute severe cutbacks in personnel. At last we make a report of effects of rapid increase in the number of inhabitants in Sanda-City. Neighborhood association changed its agreement in order to organize newcomers into its body without difficulty.
　　　Conclusively we suggest new directions of these areas and show how we can realize new relationship between rural and urban societies.

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[in Japanese]

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