Lucinda Ramberg Kinship

In "The Great White Way" Debra Dickerson says "Race is an arbitrary system for establishing hierarchy and privilege, good for little more than doling out the world's loot and deciding who gets to kick whose butt"(Dickerson 68). America has a history of racism. Ever since the first immigrants came to America the "white America" has discriminated against them weather it was European, Asian, Hispanic, African, or any other race. Race has always been America's central drama. What if Aliens came to America how would you explain race to an alien? Dickerson would say "Usually race is skin color...Until recently, race was culture and law: Whites in front, blacks in the back, Asians and Hispanics on the fringes"(Dickerson 68).

Kinship relationships are shown as important part of society throughout the code of laws. The code of law emphasis the relation between family and its

Native Americans established principal relationships either through a clan system, descent from a common ancestor, or through a friendship system, much like tribal societies in other parts of the world. In the Choctaw nation, “Moieties were subdivided into several nontotemic, exogamous, matrilineal 'kindred' clans, called iksa" (Faiman-Silva, 1997, p.8). The Cheyenne tribe also traced their ancestry through the woman's lineage, Moore (1996, p. 154). shows this when he says "Such marriages, where the groom comes to live in the bride's band, are called 'matrilocal'." Leacock (1971, p. 21) reveals that "...prevailing opinion is that hunting societies would be patrilocal.... Matrilineality, it is assumed, followed the emergence of agriculture...." Leacock (p. 21) then stated that she had found the Montagnais-Naskapi, a hunting society, had been matrilocal until Europeans stepped in. "The Tanoan Pueblos kinship system is bilateral. The household either is of the nuclear type or is extended to include relatives of one or both parents...." (Dozier, 1971, p. 237).

Three types of ritual activity inflected the relationship between gender and honor in different ways and involved different sets of participants. Honor was gendered in rites of passage rooted in kinship, specifically nuptial rites – events that helped anchor a family’s reputation in the

While Barker focuses on clans in Papua New Guinea and Hedican on Scottish clans they both come to the same result, clans are hard to gain consistent information on and much of their histories are muddled, complicated, and contradictory specifically with the whom is related to who debacle and the ‘true’ back story/ symbols accompanying each clan. Both Authors also explore the kinship terms of Papua and how it differs from the Westerner way of labelling family members (cousin being the broadest Westerner term) compared to the flexible descent groups and hazy distinction that separates immediate and extended family in the villages of Papua New

It was these systems of kinship which determined who, and for which, members of the clan were responsible. In a society in which excess and wealth were not valued, in fact discouraged, this was a method of survival and insuran ce. These kin relationships were the foundation for all forms of reciprocity within the clan. For example, when a larger animal was caught in the hunt, it was pre-determined, depending on who captured the animal, who would receive which parts of the animal (Edwards 2005, p. 49). Sharing and reciprocity was not a friendly gesture within Aboriginal communities, it was an obligation which was to be taken seriously. It was a method for Aboriginal people to survive in a sometimes harsh and unforgiving land, which took the lives of many settlers.

Aboriginal relationships are governed by a complex and intricate system of rules, known as “the classificatory system of kinship, and is essential to physical, psychological and emotional survival in traditional Aboriginal society” (Fryer-Smith, 2008, p. 47). It organizes social and economic relationships, all of which are of “vital importance” in Aboriginal societies (Edwards, 1998, p. 85).

Choosing an in-law in !Kung San society is primarily arranged by the parents of the woman based on marital status, hunting ability, age, and willingness to accept the responsibilities of family life (Shostak 1981, p.116). The lack of violence and conflict between villages allows !Kung San parents to travel large distances to find an acceptable partner who is not of close relatedness to the girl being married (Shostak 1981, p.115). The almost universal taboo in modern day industrial societies prohibiting marriages between closely related kin is also followed in !Kung San society and the easiest way to avoid marrying your cousin is by marrying someone from a distant group (Shostak 1981, p.115; Allen et al. 2011). Close kinship systems tend to keep families close together so they can all benefit off the same resources. However, in harsh and unpredictable environments, like that faced by the !Kung, flexibility of movement created by non-consanguineous unions and bilateral kinship systems is essential in creating reciprocity systems that allow access to resources that are limiting and seasonal (Allen et al. 2011). Non-consanguineous

Trey Schneider Mr. Fraune Theology 9B, A Block February 28, 2015 Genesis: Chapters 11-20 Chapter 11 Characters: LORD, the family tree of Shem Main Theme(s): This chapter shows the family tree of Shem to Abram. Major Events/Teachings: This chapter talks about the family from Shem’s family all the way to Abram, which is the son of Terah.

Haritaworn et.al and Rifkin’s pieces, through ethnographic examples aim to explain the social construction of kinship groups, which in turns encompasses the construction of sexuality, gender, and emotions. Both articles start by challenging the Western notions of family and intimate relationships. Rifkin exemplifies through the case study of Dakota gender and kinship construction, using the writing of Zitkala-Sa’s. Haritaworn et.al address the phenomenon of polyamory in London’s racial and class diverse context.

When considering the traditions of Pacific Islander Americans, the fourth story from “The Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Piety” featuring Min Ziqian relates the most to what Pacific Islanders would consider the ideal relationship between parents and children in terms of family structure. The story of Min Ziqian revolves around his relationship with his stepmother, who mistreated him for not being her natural born son. Ziqian’s father found out and threatened to banish her from the family, but Ziqian stuck up for her, saying that “But if she goes, then three son will have no one to care for them.” This shows that Ziquian not only cared about his stepmother, but also did not want to see his brothers suffer. In the study “Family Dynamics among

My aspirations in pursuing a Ph.D in Anthropology is to advance my understanding of the relationship bonds formed by individuals while undertaking pilgrimages. Specifically, I want to explore the ways in which the altruistic behavior produces kinship cues that allow for the formation of this fictive kin relationship. Through ethnographic engagement, I seek to investigate how fictive kinship sustains itself throughout the pilgrimage of the Camino de Santiago in Spain. But, I also ideally want to discuss how people create relationships with ideals and symbols and how these connections are influenced by

Matrilineal in nature, the “crests and inheritance are passed down through the mother” (Talhtan Central Government, n.d.). Chiefdoms were inherited; however, a direct matrilineal descendant could be passed over for a person with higher prestige as “status was based on personal character and skills; wealth was a sign of competence” (Albright, 1984, p. 12). Intermarriage was only allowed between the two clans (Tahltan Tribe, 2013). Today, marriage is occurring within between members of the same clan and, while frowned upon by Tahltan elders, is no longer a social taboo (Lawley,

For example, a psychological assessment may find that a child is more connected to their blood-related grandmother than their own mother. In this instance it may be misunderstood that the child would be better off living with their grandmother rather than with their mother. However, in Aboriginal culture it is very common for children to have a greater connection to their grandparents than to their parents. Removing cultural bias in this situation allows us to acknowledge the strong connection to the child’s grandmother as a common relationship within an Aboriginal family. We can also acknowledge that a strong relationship between the child and mother also exists, rather than determining that the child is better off not living with their

Amongst the Tiwa community of Assam family plays the crucial role while constructing an idiosyncratic social as well as cultural system. Customarily Tiwas inhabiting at hills cling to matrilineal descent, inheritance and matrilocal residence. Since family is the basic institution of any society, thus the real essence of that society can actually be realised through the observation of the system followed by the families. Tiwas believe the relationship of the siblings specially between the brother and sister is most significant, thus the bond is acknowledged through maternal line.