...Kinship is a culture’s way of establishing and recognizing the relationships between a family or group of people. It can define their roles, obligations, interactions between each other, and the rights among the group. According to Chegg.com, “Kinship and family ties may be defined through genetic relationships, adoption, or other ritualized behavior such as marriage and household economies. Kinship systems range in size from a single, nuclear-family to tribal or intertribal relationships” (2014). There are many different varieties of kinship and how they are addressed within many cultures. There are six different types of kinship in anthropology (Schwimmer, 2001). The two cultures being addressed in this essay are the Crow kinship and the Iroquois kinship. The Crow, also called the Absaroka or Apsaalooke, are a tribe of Native Americans who historically lived in the Yellowstone river valley. Women within these tribes have a highly significant role (Crystallinks.com, 2012). The Crow people are of a matrilineal line. They are a matriarchal tribe and in marriage the husbands moving in with the wife’s family. Following the matrilineal line, Crow kinship further addresses the women within the family. Relatives in the kinship diagram on the mother’s side have descriptive terms whereas the father’s side has more classificatory terms. A relatively distinctive note in the Crow kinship that is different from other kinship disgrams is that they do not distinguish between generations...
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...Iroquois Kinship Tiffany Wheeler ANT 101 Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Alfred Wilfong April 17, 2013 Iroquois Kinship The Iroquois people were very structured, with the women being the top dogs in their social setting. Iroquois women were in control of crops, particularly maize, and that gave them control over more than just a food source. Men were allowed to do their job as long as the women agreed with what they were doing. If women were against a particular raiding activity, they withheld maize from the warriors, which meant the men could not go (Nowak, 1979). Properties were inherited by females, such as land and tools. After marriage, men moved in with their wives to their longhouse. Marriage was encouraged between what the Iroquois considered cross cousins, which today would be what normal people consider to be their cousins. For example, if someone's maternal uncle married an unrelated woman and they had children, it would be encouraged for the cousins to marry one another. Marriage was a delicate thing, however, because the woman was capable of simply packing her husband's belongings and tossing them outside to get her point across that their marriage was over. Based on the above information, the biggest example of the way the Iroquois kinship system impacts the way they behave is their matriarchal system. The eldest woman in each longhouse has the authority to determine the rights to property and resources. Another example would be their belief...
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...If someone asks me who is the most important person in my life, my answer will be my family members and friends because those two relationship have ever made me happy and taken care of me. In my mind, friendship involves recognition or familiarity with another's personality. Everyone has lots of friends around the world. Even though some people might think that the friendship and kinship are similar, I think there are some difference, selectivity, topics of conversation, understanding of mistaking We have opportunity to choose someone to be my friend; however, we cannot choose my family members. Everyone has their own friends and relatives. We can choose our friends who are loyal, cordial, friendly, or kind, who have a similar personality as me, who can share our lives, thoughts, feelings, and frustrations to each other. Also, this will be unlimited to choose. However, we do not have any chance to choose our relatives. Every member is predetermined when we were born. It is possible that we cannot find someone in my family who we really want to talk when we have problems. I have a friend who has a bad relationship with her family members, even though she has a big family. She could not find someone in her family which she would like to talk, because she feels they do not know her very much. When they discuss a question, they might have a quarrel because they could not find common ideas. However, she likes to talk with her friends because she thinks her friends can understand...
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...hunting and gathering food for themselves in order to survive. This was known as a foraging and it is one of the oldest methods of survival for small groups of tribes everywhere. However, this method had its good days and bad days. Sometimes hunters could bring back enough food to last them for a few days at a time, and then sometimes they wouldn’t find anything at all. So, the bond of kinship began to form amongst the tribe. The premise of a kinship bond was to share your goods and food with someone less fortunate. For example, in the San tribe if a group of hunters went out and only some came back with food, the other hunters would share some of their spoils as to help one another out. So as you can see and will find out, this lifestyle and kinship bond has the ability to help the San tribes prosper a long time. The San tribes of southern Africa live in the Kalahari Desert and have so for a long time thriving through foraging. Their concepts and principals of kinship ties are so straightforward and understandable that it is easy to see why they have flourished for centuries. Specific examples of kinship are shown through how this tribe thinks, how they act, and how they live their lives. When it comes to living day by day, the San use their women to gather all sorts of berries, nuts, and fruits to bring to eat while the men go and bring back the meat. Although they only gather what they need, sometimes they have a little excess and usually share this excess with less fortunate hunters...
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...San Kinship Organization Kaleb Michaels ANT 101 March 1, 2013 The San of Southwest Africa, located in the Kalahari Desert have a very basic yet powerful kinship within their culture and sub cultures. The entire culture is based on living harmoniously with each member or kin of the band as well as with nature. The very core of survival for the San is to take care and support their fellow kin. Having been around for thousands of years, they are the true meaning of the word community. They rely on this to be successful and to thrive as a culture. As the text book states: “Among foraging cultures, for example, high value is placed on working together and sharing, as opposed to competing with others to secure individual wealth.” Nowak, B. & Laird, P. (2010). The very survival of this culture is to rely on one another when it comes to the task of providing food for one’s family. However, the San are also known as the “original affluent society”. The culture forages together, taking and using the resources that they need to sustain life. This leaves them with plenty of time to socialize with members of their culture as well as indulge in day to day things that they enjoy to do. One of the things that make this culture very unique is their system of reciprocity that is used between kin and other bands. Because the San do not build storage units for harvests and game hunted, everything they acquire must be used. Furthermore...
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...Running head: THE KINSHIP SYSTEM 1 The Kinship System of the San Vannell Berrien ANT 101 Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Dr. Ilda Jiménez y West January 28, 2013 THE KINSHIP SYSTEM The Kinship System of the San The San of the Kalahari, also known as Bushmen, is the oldest culture in the world dating back over a hundred thousand years ago. The Kalahari Desert, reaching across South Africa, Botswana, and Namibia, is home to some of the most inhospitable lands in the world. The San have a unique language, which incorporates a distinct “click” sound when they are talking. The San have no leader, constantly move around to find new sources of food, and are autonomous when making decisions to stay with a community or move elsewhere. In fact, they are so peaceful that “conflict or disruptive behavior is rare. These communities have no rulers, no written laws, no formal rule enforcers, and no formal mechanisms for controlling, capturing, or punishing rule breakers” (Nowak & Laird, 2010, sec. 3.6). This is due to the small size of their band, their claim to little or no private property, and the fact that food is shared with everyone in the community. Furthermore, San societies are relatively smaller than most societies due to their constant moving to find new areas to forage. Moreover, the San, known for their skills as hunters and gatherers comprise most of their diet from big game, roots and tubers. In the same way, the men of the San culture hunt big game while the women...
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...All societies across the universe have kinship. Some privileged cultural practices have been followed by these societies through ages regardless of the biological rules of sexual relations which ensure that the life span of these kinships is continuous through birth by human beings. (Robert Parkin 1997). Anthropology defines kinship as the connection that exists between human beings by either blood, through adoption or even by marriage. Anthropology does not view kinship in a biological manner but biology on the other hand studies it in the physical manner. The terms pater and mater are used to refer mother and father in anthropology studies whilst in biology the terms genitor and gentrix are used. Every newborn by is said to be recognized to have relations to at least one of his parent by the fact of his birth. Kinship is used to organize members of the society into different categories, roles and various social groups, based on either parentage, marriage or other types of relationship, (Schneider 2005). Inheritance rights are customarily based on how close kinship relationships are and thus, used to transmit property and status from one generation to another. In some cases kinship might be extended through relations not from the same bloodline in the kinship universe. This is what is termed as fictive kinship. The most common used example is where by you’ll get one has godparents who are not his real parents. Some will have aunts and uncles whom they call guardians and they...
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...Australian Aborigines Kinship System Donalee Lund ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Sashur Henninger January 7, 2013 Australian Aborigines Kinship System The Aborigines of Australia have a very complex kinship system and to be honest I am not sure I fully understand their kinship system. You wanted me to give three specific examples on how the kinship system impacts the Aborigines cultures. By the time I finished researching their kinship system my head was pounding. I will try to explain how their kinship system impacts their daily lives In their culture everyone is related to everyone. The Aborigines are a tight net family; they are divided into two moieties. These moieties are really based on the environment surroundings like animals and plants. This also reinforces social and economic exchanges between the two moieties. Each moiety is given a name and in each moiety they have four marriage class names. For example; moiety A and moiety B two groups and then with in those groups are marriage class names (a, b, c and d). So a man from moiety A can only marry women from moiety B and then their children will be b’s in the moiety A. Then if a “c” man can marry only from moiety A and their children will be d’s in moiety B (Descent Groups by Dennis O’Neil 2007). A lot of times the brothers of moiety A will marry the sisters of moiety B. By marry someone in opposite moiety this is called exogamous system (outside the group). The on law they do have...
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...Ramla Mohamed Cultural Anthropology 2:00-3:00 Christopher K. Barrett 10/16/2014 Research: Kinship in Korowai Tribe Korowai society functions with patriclan as the central unit the unity of the patriclan is emphasized by how women in the tribe categorize their children, they follow Omaha kinship system, when it comes to defining their relations. In the Omaha kinship system relatives are sorted according to their descent and gender, father and his brothers are combined and called by a single phrase, and a similar arrangement is seen for mother and her sisters. When it comes to Parallel and Cross cousins Omaha kinship recognizes the differences between the two, as Parallel cousins are fused by the term and called by the same phrase in which...
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...Young 1 Virginia Young Dr. Lawrence Wheeler Honors 101 13 November 2013 Informal Fictive Kinship in Japan: A Summary of Argument This essay will review the use of informal kinship within Japanese culture, as explored by Edward Norbeck and Harumi Befu. Through careful examination I shall analyze the central arguments as presented by Norbeck and Befu, the evidence used to support these arguments, how the evidence and argument complement one another, and the previous training and experience had by the authors that allows them to write a successful article. Together Norbeck and Befu examine how the Japanese use of kinships terms can often give non-relatives the status of relatives. Their process of exploration on this topic of the range for the usage of kinship terms are examined throughout four distinct sections in the article, with subsequent sections found within each. This use of division helps to frame the argument of Norbeck and Befu in a manner that allows the reader to clearly understand the cultural usage of the varying forms of kinship and how it helps to define relationships among people. The first section, “Background Consideration” describes the methods in which Norbeck and Befu gathered information - personal experiences, fieldwork, and thirty informants. Further reading introduces the general rules of kinships and how the method of kinships has been obtained from other cultures. Based on the research conducted by Spier, the Japanese system of classification is similar...
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...the mainland the languages are Kiswahili and English and on Zanzibar Arabic and English are required. Much of the literature available is in either English or Arabic because the indigenous culture is passed on through oral traditions. There are some collections of fables and idioms collected and written down by foreigners. If the family can afford to they will send both male and female children to school, if they must make a choice the male children nearly always are the ones who will be given preferred treatment for education. Education level is a determining factor for women in their marriage and professional opportunities; it also changes how they feel about their traditional labor roles. Kinship systems have always been important within Tanzania with all ethnic groups. These kinship groups are made up of the immediate family, aunts,...
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...outside the household Absolute levels of women’s position on above variables, not necessarily relative to the men in their households . 2 Predictors of the status of women • Education Marriage and kinship patterns North • CULTURAL INFLUENCE South Potential for female employment Exposure Interaction Autonomy • Employment 3 Kinship and Marriage :North South Variations • Northern kinship system is characterized by a principal of expansion and the incorporation of outsiders as wives into the family > Village is exogamous unit. No exchange marriage • South represents the principle of immediate exchange and a policy of consolidation of existing kin network > Intra-kin marriages and marriages within a village 4 Women’s Economic Roles • Opportunities for women’s participation in the labour force • Perception of women and their kin group Women in North India are less likely to be doing work and in waged activity Women’s participation in labour force : Rural areas (Source: Registrar General of India,1987) % of women UP Tamil Nadu In labour force 5 22 Cultivators 48 23 Agricultural labourers 35 53 -----------------------------------------------------------------------Ownership of sewing-machine (%) 22 8 5 Purdah or female seclusion • Origins: marriage and kinship patterns, history of invasions, Islamic influence etc. • Practiced by 45 % of women in UP, 5 % in Tamil Nadu • Effect: differential use of space by women like avoidance of outdoors when there are men...
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...Cross-Cultural Management: Reflection Part. 1 of 2: Traditional Aboriginal Culture and Traditional Chinese Culture This reflective report will attempt to compare and contrast between Traditional Australian Aboriginal Culture and Traditional Chinese Culture. Ferraro & Briody (2013) defines culture as the shared perceptions among group of two or more people, their beliefs, values and behavioural patterns, which ultimately shape their way of life. I will analyse the two cultures around Hodstede’s cultural dimensions, Collectivism. Collectivism determines the degree of close-knit characteristic of the group (Hofstede n.d.). The insight this framework provides could be use as a guide in managing organisations’ and nationals’ cultural difference. The traditional Chinese live off small area of land, mainly used for cultivation of rice. In order to maximise yield, seeding and harvesting period are heavily depends on friends and relatives to help get the job done (Gladwell 2008). This interdependent behaviour is found not only at the family level but also at community level. Chinese society follows the teaching of Confucius, which promotes interdependence and social harmony (Chuang & Su 2009). To avoid potential social conflicts and encourages cohesiveness, Chinese are more likely to compromise their own needs and coordinate their behaviour with the situation (Nisbatt & Masuda 2003). It is common for Chinese to live with their married son. Family structure becomes more...
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...mother’s kinsmen. Ekwefi provides the cassava; Nwoye’s amother and Ojiugo provide smoked fish, palm oil, and pepper .Before the feast start, Uchendu prayed for the health and children of Okonkwo and broke the kola nut. Then threw one of the lobes on the ground for the ancestors. Okonkwo’s final feast is noted for its copious amounts of food – it’s almost like a wedding celebration. Though the feast is a show of gratitude, Okonkwo also emphasizes that the gathering is justified merely because “it is good for kinsmen to meet. At the feast, one man expresses surprise that Okonkwo has been so generous with his food and another praises Okonkwo’s devotion to the kinship bond. At the end of the feast, one of the elders speaks up and gives a warning to the younger generation. He fears for them because he feels the bonds of kinship are breaking, which allows Christianity to pollute their land and steal their men from their gods and their families. With that ominous note, he thanks Okonkwo for his generosity....
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... ANT 101 Bruce Carruthers 16 July 2012 Kinship is an important part of survival, especially for foraging societies. Foraging, or hunting and gathering, is the oldest form of human society. The San, or “Bushman”, are one of the most known communities and they date back thousands of years. I will identify and describe the kinship system of the San, and I will describe how the culture is impacted by their kinship. Last, I will compare the San to my own society and the impact kinship has in my own life. The San have many kinship systems that are important to insure their continued existence. I will discuss the kinship system as it is related to food, conflict, and marriage. The San are hunters and gathers and food is part of surviving. The San follow a form of exchange in which no tabs are kept, or generalized reciprocity (Nowak & Laird, 2010). This means that all the food is collected and distributed equally through out the group. This means that no one will go hungry. This has a lot of impact on their culture as well. It prevents an excess of wealth, so no one is rich or poor. It insures everyone is healthy and reinforces social ties with their kin. “Kinship is the central organizing principle” (Nowak & Laird, 2010, Managing conflict, para. 1). There is limited property and everyone shares food so there are limited major conflicts among the San. Since the San’s kinships are so strong, arguments are the extent of their conflict. Most conflict...
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