1. Kinship and Descent
Unit 4A

2. What is Kinship? Kinship – relationships based on blood or marriage
Every society defines the nature of kinship interaction by determining
which kin are more socially important than others,
terms to classify kin types,
expected forms of behavior between them
Fictive kinship – people who are not related by blood or marriage
Consanguineal kin – kinship based on bloodline
Affinal kin – kinship based on marriage

3. Cultural Rules Regarding Kinship
All kinship systems are founded on biological connections
Each society classifies its kin according to a set of cultural rules that may or may not account for biological factors
The ways in which societies sort and categorize kinship relationships is as much a matter of culture as it is a matter of biology

4. Functions of Kinship Systems
Vertical function – provides social continuity by binding together a number of successive generations
Horizontal function – tend to solidify or tie together a society across a single generation through the process of marriage

5. Descent Groups
Kinship systems encompass all the blood and marriage relationships that
Distinguish among different categories of kin
Create rights and obligations among kin
Serve as the basis for the formation of certain types of kin groups
The rules a culture uses to establish affiliations with one’s parents and ancestors
Often provide the basis for the formation of social groups

6. Descent Groups cont’d
In societies with descent groups (unilineal or cognatic), members:
Have a strong sense of identity
Often share communally held property
Provide economic assistance to one another
Engage in mutual civic and religious ceremonies
Serve as a social and political mechanism for
Inheriting property and political office
Controlling behavior
Regulating marriages
Structuring primary political units

7. Unilineal Descent Groups
Approximately 60% of all kinship systems
Trace descent through either mother’s or father’s line, but not both
Mother’s line = matrilineal descent
Father’s line = patrilineal descent

8. Patrilineal Descent
Found on all continents and a wide range of societies
Most common unilineal descent system
Females marry outside the patrilineage and their children belong to the father’s descent line
Example = traditional Chinese culture (patrilineal, patrilocal, obligations to elders)

9. Matrilineal Descent
Matrilineal descent group comprised of a woman, her siblings, her own children, her sisters’ children, and her daughters’ children
Make up about 15% of unilineal descent groups in contemporary societies
Different from matriarchy (mythological)
Men retain power and authority but inherit it through the women
Example = Zuni of New Mexico

10. Types of Unilineal Descent
Four major types in increasing levels of inclusiveness: lineages, clans, phratries, moieties

11. Unilineal Descent: Lineages
Unilineal descent groups of up to approximately 10 generations in depth
Members can trace their ancestry back (step by step) to a common founder (matrilineages or patrilineages)
Can undergo segmentation – subdivision into smaller units depending on social situation

12. Unilineal Descent: Clans
A group of kin usually comprising 10 or more generations whose members believe they are all related to a common ancestor but are unable to trace their connections
When clans and lineages are found together, the clan is usually made up of a number of different lineages
Tend to be larger and more loosely structured categories with which people identify
Often associated with animals or plants (totems) that provide a focal point for group identity

13. Unilineal Descent: Phratries
Unilineal descent groups composed of two or more clans
Actual connections between the two clans usually are not recognized
Generally rare and do not serve important social functions

14. Unilineal Descent: Moieties
Societies that are divided into two unilineal descent groups
Excellent example of social reciprocity
Can play important roles in society but are not a part of the political structure as are lineages or clans

15. Corporate Nature of Unilineal Descent Groups
Clearly define who is a member and who is not
Endure over time
Shape a person’s identity
Regulate marriage
Regulate property, rather than individual control
Strong corporate focus in social control

16. Cognatic (nonunilineal) Descent Groups
Approximately 40% of world’s population
3 basic types:
double descent,
ambilineal descent,
bilateral descent

17. Cognatic: Double Descent
Kinship is traced both matrilineally and patrilineally
Only about 5% of world’s cultures
Patrilineal groups and matrilineal groups are active in different spheres of the culture

18. Cognatic: Ambilineal Descent
Parents have a choice of affiliating their children with either kinship group
More flexible system – allows for individual choice concerning group affiliation
The greater the flexibility of choice concerning membership, the weaker thr group’s loyalties, cohesiveness, and impact on the lives of its members

19. Cognatic: Bilateral Descent
Person related equally to mother’s and father’s side of the family
Practiced in U.S.
Creates links from both sides of the family but usually include only close kin from a small number of generations
Kindred – closely related relatives connected through both parents to one living relative (or to EGO)
No two relatives (except siblings) have the same kindred
Loosely structured network of relatives works well in a society that highly values personal independence and geographic mobility