Lineage (anthropology)

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In anthropology, a lineage is a unilineal descent group that traces its ancestry to a demonstrably shared ancestor, known as the apical ancestor. [1] [2] [3] Lineages are formed through relationships traced either exclusively through the maternal line (matrilineage), paternal line (patrilineage), or some combination of both (ambilineal). [4] The cultural significance of matrilineal or patrilineal descent varies greatly, shaping social structures, inheritance patterns, and even rituals across societies. [5]

Contents

Etymology

From Middle English linage, from Old French linage, from ligne, from Latin linea (“line”); equivalent to line + -age.

Characteristics

A lineage is a descent group characterized by unilineal descent. [1] This means that lineage membership is determined by tracing ancestry through either a single line (unilineal), either maternal or paternal, [3] or through a combination of both lines (ambilineal). [4] This differentiates lineages from other descent groups like clans, which may have a shared ancestor but lack the demonstrably documented or traditionally accepted apical ancestor from whom all members descend. [6] There are three forms of lineage, matrilineage, patrilineage, and ambilineal. [4]

An example of a Matrilineage over 4 generations Baby Mother Grandmother and Great Grandmother.jpg
An example of a Matrilineage over 4 generations

In matrilineage, descent is traced exclusively through the maternal line. [7] Children inherit lineage membership from their mother, and the lineage consists of a mother, her children, and her children's children who are all matrilineally related. The Minangkabau people of Indonesia, being a Jew in the Jewish religion, [8] and the Khasi people of India are well-known examples of societies with prominent matrilineal structures. [9]

In patrilineage, descent is traced exclusively through the paternal line. [10] Children inherit lineage membership from their father, and the lineage consists of a father, his children, and his children's children who are all patrilineally related. [11] Patrilineages are more common globally, with examples found in many cultures, such as much of South East Asia. [12] [13]

An example of an Ambilineal lineage Ambilineal Descent System.png
An example of an Ambilineal lineage

In ambilineal lineage, descent is traced through either the maternal and/or the paternal lines, usually meaning that the individuals choose whether to affiliate with their mother or their father's group, or both. [14] [15] Ambilineal lineage can be bilineal or bilateral. [16] [17] [18] Ambilineal lineages are relatively rare in more under-developed societies, such as South East Asia, [4] and very common in modernized societies, such as the United States and Western Europe. [19]

In Bilineal lineage (also known as double descent), children are part of both their mother and their father's groups. [20] [21] [17] This results in many more people in a lineage. [22] Examples of bilineal lineage include the Yako people of Nigeria. [23] [21]

Lineages play a large role in social organization across cultures. [24] They influence inheritance patterns, with property and titles often passed down within the lineage. [25] In addition, lineages often have religious significance, with one's ancestorial history often determining one's religion and position in that religion. [26] The structure of lineages also leads to stability, [3] social obligations, and reciprocity among members, providing support networks and a sense of shared identity. [27]

See also

Related Research Articles

Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritance of property, rights, names, or titles by persons related through male kin. This is sometimes distinguished from cognate kinship, through the mother's lineage, also called the spindle side or the distaff side.

Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline, their mother's lineage, and which can involve the inheritance of property and titles. A matriline is a line of descent from a female ancestor to a descendant of either gender in which the individuals in all intervening generations are mothers. In a matrilineal descent system, an individual is considered to belong to the same descent group as their mother. This ancient matrilineal descent pattern is in contrast to the currently more popular pattern of patrilineal descent from which a family name is usually derived. The matriline of historical nobility was also called their enatic or uterine ancestry, corresponding to the patrilineal or "agnatic" ancestry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Family tree</span> Chart representing family relationships in a conventional tree structure

A family tree, also called a genealogy or a pedigree chart, is a chart representing family relationships in a conventional tree structure. More detailed family trees, used in medicine and social work, are known as genograms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Y-chromosomal Adam</span> Patrilineal most recent common ancestor of all living humans

In human genetics, the Y-chromosomal most recent common ancestor is the patrilineal most recent common ancestor (MRCA) from whom all currently living humans are descended. He is the most recent male from whom all living humans are descended through an unbroken line of their male ancestors. The term Y-MRCA reflects the fact that the Y chromosomes of all currently living human males are directly derived from the Y chromosome of this remote ancestor. The analogous concept of the matrilineal most recent common ancestor is known as "Mitochondrial Eve", the most recent woman from whom all living humans are descended matrilineally. As with "Mitochondrial Eve", the title of "Y-chromosomal Adam" is not permanently fixed to a single individual, but can advance over the course of human history as paternal lineages become extinct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kinship</span> Web of human social relationships

In anthropology, kinship is the web of social relationships that form an important part of the lives of all humans in all societies, although its exact meanings even within this discipline are often debated. Anthropologist Robin Fox says that the study of kinship is the study of what humans do with these basic facts of life – mating, gestation, parenthood, socialization, siblingship etc. Human society is unique, he argues, in that we are "working with the same raw material as exists in the animal world, but [we] can conceptualize and categorize it to serve social ends." These social ends include the socialization of children and the formation of basic economic, political and religious groups.

Iroquois kinship is a kinship system named after the Haudenosaunee people, also known as the Iroquois, whose kinship system was the first one described to use this particular type of system. Identified by Lewis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Iroquois system is one of the six major kinship systems.

Eskimo kinship is a category of kinship used to define family organization in anthropology. Identified by Lewis H. Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Eskimo system was one of six major kinship systems. The system of English-language kinship terms falls into the Eskimo type.

Crow kinship is a kinship system used to define family. Identified by Lewis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Crow system is one of the six major kinship systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unilineality</span>

Unilineality is a system of determining descent groups in which one belongs to one's father's or mother's line, whereby one's descent is traced either exclusively through male ancestors (patriline), or exclusively through female ancestors (matriline). Both patrilineality and matrilineality are types of unilineal descent. The main types of the unilineal descent groups are lineages and clans.

Ambilineality is a form of kinship affiliation of cognatic descent that relies on self-defined affiliation within a given social system, meaning individuals have the choice to be affiliated with their mother's or father's group. Common features of societies that practice ambilineality are a shared set of land, communal responsibilities, and collective ownership of some segments of wealth and debt in their societies. This system of descent is distinct from more common genealogical structures in that rather than determining affiliation and descent using the standard determinants of biological and genealogical relation, it instead relies heavily on voluntary affiliation with one's group, oftentimes being determined by factors including residence.

Omaha kinship is the system of terms and relationships used to define family in Omaha tribal culture. Identified by Lewis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Omaha system is one of the six major kinship systems which he identified internationally.

In biology and genetic genealogy, the most recent common ancestor (MRCA), also known as the last common ancestor (LCA), of a set of organisms is the most recent individual from which all the organisms of the set are descended. The term is also used in reference to the ancestry of groups of genes (haplotypes) rather than organisms.

In discussing consanguineal kinship in anthropology, a parallel cousin or ortho-cousin is a cousin from a parent's same-sex sibling, while a cross-cousin is from a parent's opposite-sex sibling. Thus, a parallel cousin is the child of the father's brother or of the mother's sister, while a cross-cousin is the child of the mother's brother or of the father's sister. Where there are unilineal descent groups in a society, one's parallel cousins on one or both sides will belong to one's own descent group, while cross-cousins will not.

The avunculate, sometimes called avunculism or avuncularism, is any social institution where a special relationship exists between an uncle and his sisters' children. This relationship can be formal or informal, depending on the society. Early anthropological research focused on the association between the avunculate and matrilineal descent, while later research has expanded to consider the avunculate in general society.

Kinship terminology is the system used in languages to refer to the persons to whom an individual is related through kinship. Different societies classify kinship relations differently and therefore use different systems of kinship terminology; for example, some languages distinguish between consanguine and affinal uncles, whereas others have only one word to refer to both a father and his brothers. Kinship terminologies include the terms of address used in different languages or communities for different relatives and the terms of reference used to identify the relationship of these relatives to ego or to each other.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bilateral descent</span> Family lineage system

Bilateral descent is a system of family lineage in which the relatives on the mother's side and father's side are equally important for emotional ties or for transfer of property or wealth. It is a family arrangement where descent and inheritance are passed equally through both parents. Families who use this system trace descent through both parents simultaneously and recognize multiple ancestors, but unlike with cognatic descent it is not used to form descent groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Family</span> Group of related people

Family is a group of people related either by consanguinity or affinity. It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as members mature and learn to participate in the community. Historically, most human societies use family as the primary purpose of attachment, nurturance, and socialization.

In the anthropological study of kinship, a moiety is a descent group that coexists with only one other descent group within a society. In such cases, the community usually has unilineal descent so that any individual belongs to one of the two moiety groups by birth, and all marriages take place between members of opposite moieties. It is an exogamous clan system with only two clans.

Detailed anthropological and sociological studies have been made about customs of patrilineal inheritance, where only male children can inherit. Some cultures also employ matrilineal succession, where property can only pass along the female line, most commonly going to the sister's sons of the decedent; but also, in some societies, from the mother to her daughters. Some ancient societies and most modern states employ egalitarian inheritance, without discrimination based on gender and/or birth order.

References

  1. 1 2 "Definition of LINEAGE". Merriam-Webster Dictionary. 2024-04-16. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  2. ↑ "Yinhawangka People". Paraburdoo, Western Australia: Yinhawangka Aboriginal Corporation. 16 October 2020. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  3. 1 2 3 "Lineage | Family History, Kinship & Descent". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "The Nature of Kinship: Descent Principles (Part 1)". San Marcos, California: Palomar Community College. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  5. ↑ ""Maternal" vs. "Paternal" – What's The Difference?". Choice DNA. 2023-05-15. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  6. ↑ "Clans and Lineages". Between Two Worlds. St. Olaf College. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  7. ↑ "Definition of Matrilineage". Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  8. ↑ Paz RY (2021-09-29). "The Stubborn Subversiveness of Judaism's Matrilineal Principle". Verfassungsblog. doi:10.17176/20210930-004728-0.
  9. ↑ "Matrilineal society | Definition, Examples, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannia. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  10. ↑ "Definition of Patrilineage". Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  11. ↑ Strassmann BI, Kurapati NT (June 2016). "What Explains Patrilineal Cooperation?". Current Anthropology. 57 (S13): S118–S130. doi:10.1086/685762. ISSN   0011-3204.
  12. ↑ Shenk MK, Begley RO, Nolin DA, Swiatek A (September 2019). "When does matriliny fail? The frequencies and causes of transitions to and from matriliny estimated from a de novo coding of a cross-cultural sample". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences. 374 (1780): 20190006. doi:10.1098/rstb.2019.0006. PMC   6664135 . PMID   31303165.
  13. ↑ "Patrilineage | sociology | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  14. ↑ Coult AD (February 1964). "Role allocation, position structuring, and ambilineal descent". American Anthropologist. 66 (1): 29–40. doi:10.1525/aa.1964.66.1.02a00030.
  15. ↑ "Ambilineal Descent Definition & Explanation". Sociology Plus. 2022-12-05. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  16. ↑ "The Nature of Kinship: Glossary of Terms". www.palomar.edu. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  17. 1 2 "The Nature of Kinship: Glossary of Terms". www.palomar.edu. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  18. ↑ "The Nature of Kinship: Glossary of Terms". www.palomar.edu. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  19. ↑ Matresse C. "Reading: Lines of Descent and Family Stages | Sociology". Lumen Learning. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  20. ↑ Bell K (2014-12-24). "bilineal descent definition". Open Education Sociology Dictionary.
  21. 1 2 "10.6: Kinship". Social Sci LibreTexts. 2018-04-28. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  22. ↑ "Types of Descent: Patrilineal, Matrilineal, and Bilateral Systems". Testbook. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  23. ↑ "Meaning of Double Descent in Anthropology | Anthroholic". 2023-07-13. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  24. ↑ "What is Lineage in Anthropology?". Anthroholic. 2023-05-28. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  25. ↑ "Heirs' Property Landowners". Farmers.gov. 2020-11-13. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  26. ↑ "Links between childhood religious upbringing and current religious identity". Pew Research Center. 26 October 2016.
  27. ↑ "Tracing Roots: The Significance of Family Trees in Traditional Societies". The Intergovernmental College of Arms and Traditional Cultures (ICATS). Euclid University. Retrieved 2024-04-28.

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