kinship

KINSHIP

  • Kinship refers to the "web of social relationships" that humans form as part of a family.

Family Overview

  • Definition: Smallest unit of society, a social and economic unit consisting of one or more parents and their children. (Ferraro and Andreatta, 2010)

  • Characteristics:

    • Can have one or more parents.

    • Can include unmarried parents.

    • Can include same-gender parents.

    • Must have at least one child.

Kinship Types

Kinship by Blood

  • Unilineal Descent:

    • Affiliation to the descent of one sex group (either male or female).

Types of Unilineal Descent

  • Matrilineal Descent:

    • Kinship traced through the female line, with surnames and inheritances passed from female to female.

  • Patrilineal Descent:

    • Kinship traced through the male line, with names and inheritances passed to male offspring only.

Bilateral Descent

  • Allows tracing of kinship ties on both sides of the family.

Kinship by Marriage

  • Marriage Definition: A socially or ritually recognized union or legal contract between spouses that establishes rights and obligations between them.

Types of Families Based on Marriage System

Family Structures

  • Patrifocal and Matrifocal:

    • Focuses on one parent:

      • Patriarchal: Rule of the father.

      • Matriarchal: Rule of the mother.

  • Monogamous Family:

    • Consists of a single couple and their children; also known as a nuclear family.

  • Polygamous Family:

    • Consists of several parents and their children.

Types of Polygamy

  • Polyandry:

    • A woman is allowed to marry several men.

  • Polygyny:

    • A man is allowed to marry several women.

Extended Family

  • Consists of several married couples and their children living in one household.

Reconstituted Family

  • The current spouses were previously married and had children.

Postmarital Residency Rules

Residence Types

  • Patrilocal Residence: Couple lives with the groom's family.

  • Matrilocal Residence: Couple lives with the bride's family.

  • Neolocal Residence: Married couple creates an independent household away from their families.

  • Avunculocal Residence: Couple lives with the husband’s uncle.

  • Natalocal Residence: Each partner remains with their own family of residence after marriage.

  • Matrifocal Residence: Couple lives with or near the bride's family.

  • Ambilocal Residence: Couples can choose to live with the wife’s or husband’s family.

Transitional Families

  • Family structure or living situation is changing.