Different cultures have different means of expressing family trees and kinship. Bilateral, matrilineal, and patrilineal kinship are three examples of this, though not all cultures are exclusive and take aspects from each. The manner of expressing one’s kinship has great effect on family members’ roles, relations, and interactions within the family as well as in society. Bilateral kinship is when the ego is equally tied to both their maternal and paternal kin, not differentiating between the two sides. An example of this is that a bilateral culture like the traditional American family does not differentiate linguistically. One’s mother’s parents and father’s parents are both referred to as grandparents; one’s mother’s siblings and father’s …show more content…
My personal family tree (figure 1) follows this pattern of descent as I give equal emphasis to both sides of my family. My closest relatives are those in my nuclear family: my father, mother, and my brother. My extended family includes both my maternal and paternal relatives. Although I may not be equally close with every member of my extended family, I recognize that we are equally related; my relations with aunts, uncles, and cousins rely on other variables such as distance and communication, rather than how we are …show more content…
My paternal grandfather is deceased, and both my father and brother are only sons. I would be related to my Aunt Diana, but I am no longer related to my cousins through her. If my father was to have a brother, I would be related to his children. Since patrilineal emphasizes father and son relationships, my brother would have the responsibility of carrying on the family line. My parents may not even want to keep me as a daughter and arrange a marriage for me as an infant, depending on the culture. Furthermore, if I were to have a husband and children of my own, I would no longer be a part of my own family tree and become an insignificant part of my husband’s kinship. Alternatively, I might not join my husband’s and merely be a “child bearer” for his
Kinship is studied primarily in social and cultural anthropology. While there is no concise definition for what kinship means in the field of anthropology it can generally be thought of as the relationships within a society that are usually based off of blood or marriage. These two things in some way shape or form are recognized in nearly every society. Links of kinship form off the basis of property rights, division of labor, and political organization
The practice of matrilineality in the Americas did not imply matriarchy but served as a means of reckoning kinship. Matrilineal ties helped link extended families into clans and this ensured their
Kinship is understood as the relationships in a society through blood and marriage. It is considered a fundamental cultural basis. From kinship systems social norms develop in the communities, including rights and responsibilities, greatly impacting behavior. These systems are described as kinship terms, relationships and groups in a society. Kinship ultimately has two core functions through kinship systems that are crucial for the preservation of culture and societies. First, these ties provide continuation of generations and family formation. The lines of descent, the upbringing and education of children, the compromise to provide material possessions and inheriting social positions are all very important. Second, since kinship is based on interdependent relationships, there are established aid systems. These, however would be compromise by the cultural implications of the extended or nuclear kin groups. Additionally, marriage may or may not be founded by blood relationships. Both the consanguineal and the affinal relationship represents a strong bond. However, the cultural norms would dictate whether both have equal value or acceptance in each society. Anthropologists have studied the implications of kinship. One of the topics researched is between kinship and social relationships. The Awlad ‘Ali Bedouin society in the Western Desert, as studied by Abu-Lughod in 1978-1980, through her ethnography ‘Veiled Sentiments’ (1986), showed distinct evidences of the influence of consanguineal and affinal ties into their idiom of kinship and how it links to their social interactions and relationships. In this way defining the different kinds of social relationships.
Since the beginning of time, mankind began to expand on traditions of life out of which family and societal life surfaced. These traditions of life have been passed down over generations and centuries. Some of these kin and their interdependent ways of life have been upheld among particular people, and are known to contain key pieces of some civilizations.
My grandmother, Rokeya Sultana, grew up in the urban parts of Bangladesh, with 2 sisters and 3 brothers. Her father, my great grandfather, was the chief officer of the district. She would go to school or to places by a motorcycle, car, or helicopter. She was living the life of her dreams. But then, my great grandfather had diabetes, and it was discovered one month before he died. It was a great shock for my great grandmother’s family because they had to move from the urban city to a rural neighborhood. My grandmother went to elementary, middle, and high school as a child. She also received a Bachelor’s degree in teaching. She was a good student and a very honest and respectful person. Once she reached the age of 20 to 21, she married Jonab Ali, my grandfather, and moved to Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh.
Native Americans established primary relationships either through a clan system, descent from a common ancestor, or through a friendship system, much like tribal societies in other parts of the world. In the Choctaw nation, " Moieties were subdivided into several nontotemic, exogamous, matrilineal 'kindred' clans, called iksa." (Faiman-Silva, 1997, p.8) The Cheyenne tirbe also traced their ancestry through the woman's lineage. Moore (1996, p. 154) shows this when he says "Such marriages, where the groomcomes to live in the bride's band, are called 'matrilocal'." Leacock (1971, p. 21) reveals that "...prevailing opinion is that hunting societies would be patrilocal.... Matrilineality, it is assumed, followed the emergence of agriculture...." Leacock (p. 21) then stated that she had found the Montagnais-Naskapi, a hunting society, had been matrilocal until Europeans stepped in. "The Tanoan Pueblos kinship system is bilateral. The household either is of the nuclear type or is extended to include relatives of one or both parents...." (Dozier, 1971, p. 237)
In efforts to examine how genealogy evolved into its modern manifestation, Weil’s, Family Trees: A History of Genealogy in America is a “genealogy of genealogy.” Family Trees is a study of genealogy in America and its reciprocal effects on society. Weil divides his book into four chronological regimes of genealogy in America, each presented with their own set of problems. These problems did not just disappear after each
Family, defined by the Online Merriam Webster Dictionary is, “a group of related people including people who lived in the past.” I believed that the wording of this definition is important because of the word related. The Online Merriam Webster Dictionary defines related as “belonging to the same group because of shared characteristics, qualities, etc.” This goes to show that a family does not have to be lineage, heritage, or chromosomes. There are many different types of families, and though many people think of a nuclear family when they think of a family, there are so many more qualities to consider when deciding how to personally define family.
When Africans were brought to America during slavery they were forced to give up most of their heritage and were usually separated from their families. This common occurrence usually brought about tremendous pain and grief to the slaves. “West Africa family systems were severely repressed throughout the New World (Guttmann, 1976)”. Some slaves tried to continue practices, such as polygamy, that were a part of traditional African cultures but were unsuccessful. However, they were successful in continuing the traditional African emphasis on the extended family. In the extended family, aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents played important roles. Slaves weren’t allowed to marry, but they didn’t let that stop them, they created their own marriages. And through all the hardships they had placed on them, they developed strong emotional bonds and family ties. The slaves discouraged casual sexual relationships and placed a lot emphasis on marriage and stability. To maintain some family identity, parents named their children after themselves or other relatives or sometimes gave them African names.
The thought of completing a genogram on my family was interesting because the majority of my family lives in Liberia. I have an aunt that lives here but we have an estranged relationship and we don’t communicate. The person I could have told me everything about my paternal family was my grandmother. However, my grandmother passed away in 2000 from high blood pressure. My grandparents had six children and the youngest daughter became my source for the information I needed. Doing this genogram has been very difficult for me because I learned that maternal grandparents are deceased and my aunts and uncle are also deceased. My mother is the only living family member that I know of. I never got the opportunity to have a relationship with my mother’s side of the family.
Traditions are practices/beliefs that are passed down from generation to generation. In traditional African societies, a kinship ties people through birth or marriage. There are two kinds of relationships in customary African tradition; those bound by blood, which are called consanguine, and those constructed by marriage, called affilial. There are four key descents that determine inheritance and marriage. However, the most common descent is patrilineal, which traces ancestry through one's father. While in America, we are vary tolerant of tracing our descent from both parents.
Sister from another mister. Family does not have to be related. She stays the night once a week, he has a shelf here, and Dad calls him Son, all sentences that are about a friend that might as well be family. Although, they are already family. Family is not genetic. Family is not traced through bloodlines that simply pull out a code of just four different letters in an almost random order. A friend could be next door for years, in the cubical over, across the lab bench, or anywhere else with their comforting and welcoming smile. A friend may mean the world to someone, someone who would give their life for them. A friend that is such a great friend they are loved and trusted so much that someone just can not help but call them family. They come over for holidays, they are next to the hospital bed, and they are in a little black dress with the same tears as the genetic family. Friendship is stronger than the most durable steel that man will ever create and the bond between true friendship is just as unbreakable. A bond like that might as well be family. Family should not be limited to the same patterns in DNA but the love, trust, and care that goes into the
A family might include anyone related by blood or by adoption such as: step parents, grandparents acting as parents, and even brothers and sisters sharing the same household. However, worldwide “the family is regarded as the most ba...
Family history is very important to an individual. By knowing where you come from, you can have a better perspective of your life. Having a clear understanding of your family background allows you to better appreciate the things that you would normally take for granted. The house, the car, and the average clothing may look better when one sees the sacrifices their family has made. They will see that their family has worked very hard just so their family can experience the better things in life. A persons roots and origin is one of the most important things to explore. It alone can bring you closer to self-discovery.
Above is my immediate family, which is graphed by simple facts into this genogram. All of the information that was included into this genogram was known information. Since all of these family members are still alive, it made it easier to compile this information. Each specific family has its own dynamic. With my parents and brother, we are not that tight-knit; I don’t share every inch of my life and haven’t for many years, but equally they do not ask. Whereas, my mother and her brother along with her parents are very tight knit. They share everything and do a lot of things together, while being more conservative with their actions and behavior. They are always on their best behavior. On the flip side, my father and his parents and