Cultural Anthropology
Chapter Nine:
Kinship and Descent
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Chapter Preview
What Are Descent Groups?
What Functions Do Descent Groups Serve?
How Do Descent Groups Form?
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Kinship
 The people we are related to through blood
(consanguineal) and marriage (affinal)
 Kin divided into three groups: nominal,
effective, intimate or core kin
 Kinship involves how we classify our relatives,
organize family and residential patterns
 Kinship is culturally diverse
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Nuclear and Extended Families
 The nuclear family consists of a married couple and their
children.
 The nuclear family is ego-centered and impermanent,
while descent groups are permanent (lasting beyond the
life spans of individual constituents) and reckoned
according to a single ancestor.
 One’s family of orientation is the family in which one is
born and grows up, while one’s family of procreation is
formed when one marries and has children.
 Claims made for the universality of the nuclear family,
based upon the universality of marriage, do not hold up-the nuclear family is widespread, but not universal.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Nuclear and Extended Families (cont.)
 In societies where the nuclear family is important, this
structure acts as a primary arena for sexual,
reproductive, economic, and enculturative functions,
but it is not the only structure used by societies for
these (e.g., the Etoro, Nayar, Betsileo).
 In many societies, the extended families are the
primary unit of social organization
 Among the Muslims of western Bosnia, nuclear families are embedded
within large extended families called zadrugas headed by a male household
head and his wife.
 The Nayars are a matrilineal society from India and are the dominant caste,
originated in Kerala. Extended families live in compounds called tarawads
headed by a senior woman.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Industrialism and Family Organization
 The most prevalent residence pattern in the United
States is families of procreation living neolocally.
 In the U.S., as in other large, industrialized societies,
patterns of residence and family types may change
from class to class, in response to the conditions of
these different contexts (e.g., extended families as a
response to poverty).
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Changes in North American Kinship
 In 1995, 25 percent of American households were
inhabited by nuclear families.
 Increasing representation of women in the work force
is associated with a rise in marriage age.
 The divorce rate rose steeply between 1970 and 1994.
 The media is reflecting and intensifying these
changes.
 Comparatively, Americans (especially middle class)
identify a smaller range of kindred than members of
nonindustrial societies.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
The Family among Foragers…
 The two basic units of social organization among
foragers are the nuclear family and the band.
 Typically, the band exists only seasonally, breaking up
into nuclear families when subsistence means require.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Descent Groups
Membership in a group by lineal
descent from a real or mythical
ancestor
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Descent Groups
 A descent group is a permanent social unit whose members claim






common ancestry.
With matrilineal descent individuals automatically join the mother’s
descent group when they are born.
With patrilineal descent individuals automatically join the father’s
descent group when they are born.
Matrilineal and patrilineal descent are types of unilineal descent in
which individuals only recognize one line of descent.
A lineage is a descent group who can demonstrate their common
descent from an apical ancestor.
A clan is a descent group who claims common descent from an apical
ancestor but cannot demonstrate it (stipulated descent).
When a clan’s apical ancestor is nonhuman, it is called a totem.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Unilineal Descent
Patrilineal Descent and
Organization
Matrilineal Descent and
Organization
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Patrilineal: tracing descent through the
men only
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Matrilineal:tracing descent through women
only
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Bilateral: tracing descent through both men
and women
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Double Descent
System tracing descent
matrilineally for some
purposes and patrilineally
for others
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Ambilineal Descent
 People can choose the descent
group that they want to belong
to.
 Membership is fluid as people
can change their descent group
membership.
 With unilineal descent,
membership is ascribed, but for
ambilineal descent, membership
is achieved.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Forms and Functions of Descent Groups
- Provide warmth and sense of security
- Provide security and services in work
- Provide mutual aid to members
- Support the elderly and infirm
- Help with marriages and deaths
- Repository of religious traditions
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Lineages, Clans, and Residence
Rules
 In tribal societies, the descent group, not the nuclear
family, is the fundamental unit.
 In many societies, descent groups are corporate,
sharing resources and property.
 Unilocal Residence
 Patrilocality—married couple lives with husband's family; associated with
patrilineal descent and is more common than matrilocality.
 Matrilocality—married couple lives with wife's family; associated with
matrilineal descent and is less common than patrilocality.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Kinship Calculation…
 Kinship calculation is any systemic method for
reckoning kin relations.
 Genealogical Kin Types and Kin Terms
 Kin terms are the labels given in a particular culture to different kinds of
relatives.
 Biological kin type refers to the degree of actual genealogical relatedness.
 Bilateral Kinship
 Used by most Americans and Canadians.
 Kinship is traced through both male and female lines.
 Kin links through males and females are perceived as being similar or
equivalent.
 In North American bilateral kinship there is often matrilineal skewing, a
preference for relatives on the mother's side.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Lineage
Corporate descent group whose members trace
their genealogical links to a common ancestor
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Clan…
Noncorporate descent group
Members claim descent from a common
ancestor
Members do not know the genealogical
links to that ancestor
Totemism
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Phratries and Moieties
Tribe
Moities
Phratries
Clans
Lineages
Families
Individuals
Phratry
Unilineal descent group
composed of two or more
clans with common ancestry
Moiety
Descent group that makes up
half of a society
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Bilateral Descent and the Kindred
=
=
=
EGO
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
The Descent Group…
Descent groups not common among foragers
Descent groups structurally important for
horticultural, pastoral, and agricultural societies
Bilateral descent and kindreds result when small
domestic units are of primary importance
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Kinship Terminologies…
 All accomplish two important tasks…
 1. They classify similar kinds of individuals into single
specific categories,
 2. They separate different kinds of individuals into
distinct categories.
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Kinship Terminology and Kinship Groups
Eskimo
Hawaiian
Iroquois
Crow
Omaha
Sudanese
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Eskimo System
Au
Un
Fa
Mo
Au
Un
=
Co
Co Co
Co
Br
Z
Co
Co Co
Ego
System emphasizing nuclear family
Found in societies with bilateral kindreds
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Co
Hawaiian System
Mo
Fa
Fa
Mo
Mo
Fa
=
Br
Z Br
Z
Br
Z
Br
Z Br
Ego
Emphasizes relatives of the same sex and generation
Associated with ambilineal descent
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Z
Iroquois System
FaZ
Fa
Fa
Mo
Mo
MoBr
=
Co
Co Br
Z
Br
Z
Br
Z Co
Co
Ego
Parallel-cousins classified with siblings
Widespread and associated with unilineal descent groups
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Crow System
FaZ
Fa
Fa
Mo
Mo
MoBr
=
Fa
FaZ Br
Z
Br
Ego
Z
Br
Z So
Father’s sister and her daughter are given same term
Associated with matrilineal descent
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Da
Omaha System
FaZ
Fa
Fa
Mo
Mo
MoBr
=
Ne
Ni Br
Z
Br
Si
Br
Z MoBr
Ego
Mother’s brother and his son are given same term
Associated with patrilineal descent
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
Mo
Sudanese or Descriptive System
FaZ
FaBr
Fa
Mo
MoZ
=
Br
Ego
Z
All kintypes are distinguished
Rare, found mostly in the Sudan
Copyright © 2009 by Nelson Education Ltd.
MoBr