Families
Nuclear family
parents and children
not universal
common among foragers and in industrialized countries
Extended family
3 or more generations
Bosnia: zadruga male houshold head and his wife, married sons with wifes and children, unmarried sons and daughters
Family of orientation
born into
interaction with parents and siblings
Family of procreation
formed when marries and have children
interaction with spouse and children
Changes in the United States
1970: 40% nuclear families; 1998: 25%
decrease in household size
Residence patterns
Patrilocal
pater (latin for father), local (locality, place)
living in or near husband’s father’s household
67% of cultures in cross cultural comparisons
most common in cultures with conflicts with neighboring communities, keeps sons close for defense
examples: zadruga in Bosnia, Konso
Matrilocal
mater (latin for mother)
living in or near wife’s mother’s household
15% of cultures in cross cultural comparisons
most common in cultures where men are away for extended periods or warfare is purely external
example: Nayar in India; headed by senior woman assisted by brother; tarawad inhabited by her children, siblings and sisters children
Residence patterns
Bilocal
bi as prefix means two
living with or near either wife’s or husband’s parents household
7% of cultures in cross cultural comparisons
common when population is low such as among foragers, or when population has been severely reduced
example: San in Kalahari
Neolocal
neo (latin) means new
married couples establish their own household away from parents
5% of cultures in cross cultural comparisons
common in societies with monetary exchange
example: United States and Europe
Avunculocal
avunculus (latin for uncle)
living with or near the husband’s mother’s brother’s household
4% of cultures in cross cultural comparisons
Descent groups
A permanent social unit whose members claim common ancestry
Descent groups are often corporate, sharing resources and property
An individual is born into a unilineal descent group (ascribed status) and can choose which ambilineal descent group to join (achieved status)
Individuals can also join a descent group by adoption
Lineage
a set of kin whose members trace descent from a common ancestor through known links
Clan
a descent group who claims common ancestry but cannot demonstrate the links
the apical ancestor may be non-human
clans are often designated by a plant or animal name
Lineages
Patrilineal organization
individuals join the father’s descent group at birth
most common type of lineage organization
large lineages may be divided into sublineages who trace their ancestry to a son of the lineage ancestor
generally patrilocal residence pattern
Matrilineal organization
individuals join the mother’s descent group at birth
positions of public power are typically held by men
mother’s brother an important authority figure
residence pattern is matrilocal or avuvunculocal
Ambilineal organization
individuals choose among their parents and grandparents descent groups
an individual can change affiliation
less common than unilineal descent
advantageous in societies with scant resources
Bilateral descent
relatives on mother’s and father’s side equal
includes consanguineal and affinal kin
Konso
Patrilineal with the lineage head descendant from the oldest son of the lineage ancestor
New lineages can be formed after 5 generations from the oldest son of the 2nd wife of the lineage ancestor
Lineage heads solve disputes and preside over rituals
Nine exogamous clans
Kinship calculation
Kin terms
the classificatory terms used in a particular culture for different types of relatives
Biological kin type
the degree of actual relatedness between kin
Consanguineal kin: related by blood
Affinal kin: related by marriage
Cousins
Parallel cousins
children of mother’s sister or father’s brother
Cross cousins
children of mother’s brother or father’s sister
In some societies cross cousins marry
helps to form alliances
In a few societies parallel cousins marry
consolidates property
Kinship symbols
Lineal kinship
Inuit (Eskimo) system
All cousins lumped together with the same term
Uncles and aunts are lumped under the same term
Mother, father, brother and sister separate terms
Common with nuclear families and bilateral descent
Bifurcate merging kinship
Omaha system
one term for father and father’s brother
one term for mother, her sister and her brother’s daughter
one for mother’s brother and his son
brother, sister and parallel cousins distinguished by sex
father’s sister and her children unique terms
common in societies with patrilineal descent
Bifurcate merging kinship
Crow system
one term for mother and her sister
one term for father, his brother and for his sister’s son
one for father’s sister and her daughter
brother, sister and parallel cousins distinguished by sex
mother’s brother and his children unique terms
common in societies with matrilineal descent
Bifurcate merging kinship
Iroquois system
one term for mother and her sister
one term for father and his brother
mother’s brother and father’s sister unique terms
brother, sister and parallel cousins distinguished by sex
cross cousins distinguished by sex
common with unilineal descent
Generational kinship
Hawaiian system
One term for father, father’s brother and mother’s brother
One term for mother, mother’s sister and father’s sister
Siblings and cousins distinguished by sex
Common with ambilineal descent and bilocal residence pattern
Bifurcate collateral kinship
Sudanese system
A different descriptive term is used for each relative
Uncommon
Likely to be patrilineal societies
Associated with class stratification and occupational specialization
Kinship terminology
Examples of kinship terminologies
Konso
One term for father and father’s brother
One term for mother and mother’s sister
Separate terms for mother’s brother and father’s sister
Separate terms for siblings and cousins
Separate terms for older and younger siblings
bifurcate merging kinship
Examples of kinship terminologies
Sweden
Separate terms for all individuals in parents generation
Separate terms for brother and sister
One term for cousins
bifurcate collateral kinship
Many societies have some modifications to the main ways of classifying kin
