Anthro 2A Midterm 2 Egan UCI

Diversity in terms (categories of kin)

Mom, dad, aunt, uncle, brother, sister

Diversity in underlying logic of kinship ties

Mother is not = Madre is not = Chitnag

Enduring Diffuse Solidarity

special relationships with people

the people you turn to for help

Kin Terms

words in a certain language that people use to identify their categories of kin "mother"

Biological Kin Types

Description of actual genealogical relationships

F M S D B Z C H W

Nuclear Family

Immediate Family (Mom, Dad, Brothers, Sisters)

Extended Family

Expanded family

Bilateral Descent

Person inherits equally from both sides

Unilineal Descent

Descent is only phased through one side (Male or Female)

Patrilineage

Common identity through father

Matrilineage

Common identity through mother

Kindred

All the blood relatives of an individual (both sides)

Lineage

A unilineal descent group larger than an extended family whose members can actually trace how they are related

Clan

Group of people who believe themselves to be related to a common ancestor in a unilineal manner, but CANNOT demonstrate the links

Patriclan

A clan tracing descent through the male line

Matriclan

A clan tracing descent through the female line

Corporate Groups

Collectively holds, manages, controls resources such as land. Lineages are often corporate groups, not kindreds since they don't persist through time (ends with Ego's death)

Genitor

Biological Father

Pater

Performs the duties of a father

Functions of marriage - Descent

"who will inherit the throne"

Provides rights for children

Functions of marriage - Alliance

Marriage = new set of relatives

Affines

In-laws

Incest Taboo

Prohibition on sex (not marriage) between certain people who are related

Monogamy

Practice of being married to one spouse

Polygamy

Practice of being married to more than one spouse at a time

Polygyny

More than one WIFE at a time

Polyandry

More than one HUSBAND at a time

Himalayan Agriculturist and Polyandry

Limited availability of land and inheritance

land is corporate

brothers all marry one wife and collectively run land

Land Tenure

Inheritance of land

Primogeniture

Oldest son inherits everything

Sororate

Custom by which a widower married the sister of his deceased wife

Levirate

Custom by which a widow marries the brother of her deceased husband

Exogamy

Practice of marrying outside one's own group

Endogamy

Practice of marrying inside one's group

Caste System of India

-Brahmin

-Kshatriya

-Vaishya

-Shudra

-Untouchables

Patrilocal Residence

Newly-weds live with husband's people

Matrilocal Residence

Newly-weds live with wife's people

Neolocal Residence

Newly-weds find independent household elsewhere

Bridewealth

Payment from husband's people to bride's people

Dowry

Transfer from wife's people to husbands (giving wealth)

Bride Service

Husband lives with bride's people and works for them

Marriage Exchange

Wife gives to husband, husband gives to wife(s)

Matrilateral biological kin types

Any bio kin type starting with M

Patrilateral biological kin types

Any bio kin type starting with F

Parallel Cousin

Children of same sex siblings (Father's Brother)

Cross Cousin

Children of opposite sexed siblings (Father's sister)

Ascending Generation

Generations of ancestors above the ego (grandparents)

Descending Generation

Generations below the ego (grandchildren)

Ego's own Generation

Generation on the same line as Ego

Band

-Basic unit of social organization among foragers

-Fewer than 100 people

-Often splits up seasonally

Tribe

-Sociopolitical organization based on farming or herding

-no means of enforcing political decisions

Chiefdom

-Single entity under authority of a chief

-kin-based with differential access to resources and a permanent political structure

State

Independent, centrally organized political unit, a government

4th World Peoples

Peoples who have their own ethnic identity (Nuer, Native Americans)

Masai Age Grades

Stages in the life cycle

-Elder

-Warrior

-Youth

Masai Age sets

Cohort group of similarly aged individuals that pass through age grades together, as a group

Stratification

Dividing societies into ranked groups of collectivities of people

Differential access to prestige, power

Egalitarianism

A belief in the equality of all people

Ascribed Status

Inherited, like royalty

Achieved Status

Worked toward status

Role

Duties associated with a particular status

Status Set

All the statuses a person holds at a single time

Authority

Having a legitimate right to tell people what to do

Class

Position within overall division of labor

Mode of Production

The dominant way of making a living in a culture

Means of Production

Facilities and resources for producing goods

Headman

-Achieved status

-Personal attributes: reputation and having skills

Bigman

-Achieved status

-Personal attributes: ability to persuade people, influential

Moka in New Guinea Highlands

Competitive feasting and gifting

-Show superiority with gifts

-Big man organizes this

-Oversees alliances with other villages

Chief

-Ascribed status

-Influence is independent of personal attributes

-Authority invested in the office of the chief

-Authority over fellow kinsmen

Political Leaders in States

Diversity: can be either ascribed (UK) or achieved (US) groups

-Authority

-Territory

Authority and Mobilization of Labor

-Contrast Bigman, Chief, State Leaders

Bigman: constantly gives to create personal relationships

-Creates small mobilization groups because of the effort it takes

Chief: kinship links

-Mobilize more people because of given authority

State: extends over territory

Holism

Any practice has to be understood in its whole context

Ethnographic Fieldwork

-Qualitative research

-Going through the same thing you are researching such as living with the trobriand islanders

Patriarchy

-Society ruled by men

-Associated toward violence

-Women are inferior

Matriarchy

-Society ruled by women

-Not the mirror image of patriarchy

-Do not rule like dictators

-There is still a voting process

Matriliny

Descent through the female line

Patriliny

Descent through the male line

Gender v. Sex

Gender

-Cultural meanings

-Binary opposition: What men are, women aren't

Sex

-Biological differences

Gender roles

Through different cultures and societies there are perceived notions of what female's and male's roles are

Gender Stratification

Inequality between genders

Minangkabau "Matriarchy" (Sumatra)

In Indonesia, males and females relate more like partners for the greater good rather than one gender above another

Matriarchy

Women has control over the land (inherits it)

-Men move into his wife's house

Wealth & Political Relations

Giving away wealth, leaders accumulate power

-Creates alliances

-Causes debt by giving gift in excess

Trobriand Wealth (Men and Women)

Mens wealth:

-Yams

-Stone axe blades

-Pigs

-Clay pots

- Shell necklaces and arm shells

Women's wealth:

-Skirts

-Banana leaf bundles

Public & Domestic Domains

Domestic domain: the household

-(gender construction) typically females

Public domain: relations between and beyond households

-(gender constructions) typically males

Trobriand Matrilineage & Matriclan

Matrilineage: belonging to your mother's lineage rather than fathers

Matriclan: belonging to your mother's clan

Trobriand Sexuality

At a young age the trobrianders engage in sex.

In finding partners they wear coconut oil and other things that make them "beautiful" such as flower and shell arm bands that have "love spells" in them

Lovers are not allowed to be seen together in public so a girl or guy can go to their lovers house in the night but must return before morning

Trobriand Marriage

-Sex before marriage is a common thing for the trobrianders

-Once marriage occurs that ceases because adultery is a serious crime to commit.

-A marriage is acknowledge when the woman goes to her lovers house and her mother brings cooked yams so they can eat together because lovers (before marriage) do not eat in front of each other

Trobriand Views of Conception

-A spirit from Tuma enters a woman's body and then she becomes pregnant

-Their belief in magic influences a woman's chances of getting pregnant also

-Although in modern times the trobrianders understand the biological view of conception they still use magic in certain ways of explanation

Fathers, Parenting, and Child Development

Although a child born belongs to their mother's lineage and clan. The raising of a child is done by the father so that later in life the favor is returned

Brother-Sister Avoidance

The incest taboo also adheres to the idea of a brother can not interfere with his sisters choice of husband

- Very little informal meeting between siblings

- No emotional connection

- Does not spend a lot of time together

Yam Gardens

-Who makes them and for whom

The men makes the yams but for others (gardener's married sister)

Men makes yams for their own sisters or daughters

Trobriand Chief

-Chiefly Lineages

-Redistribution vs Accumulation

-Polygyny

-Chiefly Lineages were established long ago and continued to today or died off when ones matrilineage died.

-A chiefs role is to be generous and distribute his wealth (yams) through this he accumulates political power

-In order to be generous he requires a lot of yams and the only way he gains yams is through his wife(s).

-Chiefs are the only ones that practice polygyny because he gains yams through his wife

Overturning the Yam House

-Chief gives yams away that he received by his wives brothers

-This is to show his generosity

Kayasa

Competition giving of yams between different clans

Death, Funerals, and Trobriand Social Reproduction

-Death: When someone passes the trobriand believes it was because of sorcery

-To die a natural death is to die of old age in their sleep

-Social Reproduction: To be innocent of the sorcery the trobriands that knew the dead person will either be a worker or owner and have tasks to perform

Sagali (Mortuary Exchanges)

-Workers and Owners

-Owners Presentation of Women's Wealth to Workers

Sagali: Mortruary distrubution

-Paying off debts

-Reasserts strength of their lineage

Owners: members of the deceased's lineage

Workers: all others who do the work of the mourners

Valova Exchanges

Exchanges of women's wealth (banana leaf bundles and skirts)

Relationship between

-yam gardens for sister and her husband

-Sagali

-Valolova

In context of a married women:

She will receive a yam house after marriage when the marriage seems solidified

Her brother and father will have a yam garden for her and this will be given to her husband

Yams are used in sagali as one form of payment for those who helped in the rituals for the dead person