"The Elementary Forms of Religious Life" ("Les formes elementaires de la vie religieuse") is a classic work on the sociology of religion, written by Emile Durkheim (1858–1917), one of the founders of modern sociology. In this book, first published in 1912, the author undertook a pioneering study of religion as a social phenomenon for its time. According to Durkheim, religion is produced by society in the process of its awareness of itself: religion is constituted by collective ideas that reflect collective reality, and collective practices that constantly create and recreate this reality. Durkheim believes that by turning to the simplest and most "primitive" religions (such as Australian totemism), it is possible to explicate the fundamental principles that underlie any religious system and constitute an essential and irreducible aspect of human nature.

Book intended for a wide range of readers interested in sociology, religious studies and anthropology.