marriage
the customs, rules, and obligations that establish a socially endorsed relationship between adults and children, and between the kin groups of the married partners
incest taboo
a prohibition on sexual relations between relatives
exogamy
a rule specifying that a person must marry outside a particular group
endogamy
a rule prescribing that a person must marry within a particular group
cross-cousin marriage
marriage between the children of a parent's siblings of the opposite sex (mother's brothers, father's sisters)
parallel-cousin marriage
marriage between the children of a parent's same-sex siblings (mother's sisters, father's brothers
levirate
the custom whereby a man marries the widow of a deceased brother
sororate
the custom whereby, when a man's wife dies, her sister is given to him as a wife
monogamy
a rule that permits a person to be married to only one spouse at a time
polygamy
a rule allowing more than one spouse at a time
polygyny
a rule permitting a man to have more than one wife at a time
polyandry
a rule permitting a woman to have more than one husband at a time
arranged marriage
the process by which senior family members exercise a great degree of control over the choice of their children's spouses
bride service
the cultural rule that a man must work for his bride's family for a variable length of time either before or after the marriage
bridewealth
goods presented by the groom's kin to the bride's kin to legitimize a marriage
dowry
presentation of goods by the bride's kin to the family of the groom or to the couple
nuclear family
a family organized around the conjugal tie (the relationship between husband and wife) and consisting of a husband, a wife, and their children.
conjugal tie
the relationship between a husband and wife formed by marriage
extended family
family based on blood relations extending over three or more generations
consanguineal
related by blood
neolocal residence
system under which a couple establishes an independent household after marriage
patrilocal residence
system under which a bride lives with her husband's family after marriage
matrilocal residence
system under which a husband lives with his wife's family after marriage
avunculocal residence
system under which a married couple lives with the husband's mother's brother
bilocal residence
system under which a married couple has the choice of living with the husband's or the wife's family
surrogate motherhood
a variety of reproductive technologies in which a woman helps a couple to have a child by acting as a biological surrogate, carrying an embryo to term
kinship
a culturally defined relationship established on the basis of blood ties or through marriage
kinship system
the totality of kin relations, kin groups, and terms for classifying kin in a society
inheritance
the transfer of property between generations
succession
the transfer of office or social position between generations
descent
the culturally established affiliation between a child and one or both parents
descent group
a group of kin who are descendants of a common ancestor, extending beyond two generations
unilineal descent
a rule specifying that membership in a descent group is based on links through either the maternal line or the paternal line, but not both
corporate descent groups
permanent kinship groups that have an existence beyond the individuals who are members at any given time
lineage
a group of kin whose members trace descent from a known common ancestor
patrilineage
a lineage formed by descent in the male line
matrilineage
a lineage formed by descent in the female line
clan
an unilineal kinship group whose members believe themselves to be descended from a common ancestor but who cannot race this link through known relatives
patrilineal descent
a rule that affiliates a person to kin of both sexes related through males only
matrilineal decent
a rule that affiliates a person to kin of both sexes related through females only
double descent
the tracing of descent through both matrilineal and patrilineal links, each of which is used for different purposes
nonunilineal (cognatic) descent
any system of descent in which both father's and mother's lineages have equal claim to the individual
bilateral descent
system of descent under which individuals are equally affiliated with their mother's and their father's descent group
kindred
a unique kin network made up of all the people related to a specific individual in a bilateral kinship system
kinship terminology
the words used to identify different categories of kin in a particular culture
ambilineal descent
a form of bilateral descent in which an individual may choose to affiliate with either the father's or mother's descent group
ego (in kinship studies)
the person from whose perspective a kinship chart is viewed
collateral kin
kin descended from a common ancestor but not in a direct ascendant or descendant line, such as siblings and cousins
affinal
relatives by marriage' in-laws
bifurcation
a principle of classifying kin under which different kinship terms are used for the mother's side of the family and the father's side of the family