Marriage Pattern of the Gbandi Tribe

Before the arrival of European influence, villagers of Umuofia had a single option for a way of life. It was a place to be feared, dominated by war and violent practices. Ibo culture is centered on a patriarchal system based on hierarchy; the highest titles held by male egwugwu in the legal system and the osu at the bottom. The main character, Okonkwo, represents the ambition to strive for a higher position in society in order to gain status: “His life had been ruled by a great passion-to become one of the lords of the clan” (131). Another aspect in Ibo culture is the representation of women. They are undermined in order for men to achieve success; bride prices are used to able men to marry more than one wife and husbands are

Cohabitation- Two people who are not married live together in an emotionally and/or sexually intimate relationship on a long-term or permanent basis

One of the best forms of family structures is polygyny which has been eroded through modernity and changes in culture. A unique culture, polygyny, particularly practiced in the Sub-Saharan Africa. According to Grey (2008), “Of the twenty-nine nations in the world classified as having high rates of polygyny, twenty-seven are located in sub-Saharan Africa, where the incidence of co-wives is ten times that found in other polygynous

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

In Millennium: Strange Relations, presented by David Maybury Lewis examines the concept of marriage by focusing on three different groups the Nyimba of Nepal, Wodaabe of Niger, finally a Canada (Western European viewpoint). Lewis also examines the concepts of monogamy, fraternal polyandry, and polygyny with the respective case studies.

This idea of a balance of life also seeps into Gebusi marriage practices. If two Gebusi people wish to get married often the sister of either the groom or bride must also marry the brother or “brother like” of the other spouse so that one clan is not losing a

In the Ibo culture, when a woman was to be married, the family of her suitor would come and inspect her to be sure she was beautiful and ripe enough to be a part of their family. A woman did not have any value other than her beauty and her abilities to cook and bear children. In a conversation between Okonkwo and his friend Obierika, they spoke of two other villages where their ''customs are all upside down'' and ''titled men climb trees and pound foo-foo for their wives'' (73).

There are many marriage rules and traditions that happen all around the globe. As an aboriginal couple they have different regulations as a male and as a women. As a male, he was permitted to have more than one spouse at the same time. But as a women, she can only remarry if she is a widow. Another thing that is interesting about the marriages in Aboriginal people is the “Blackfella Way”. Meaning the couple has not received an official church blessing or any other type of legal confirmation of their relationship. So in current times, if you do not have any confirmation about your marriage, your marriage would not exist. The other interesting thing about Aboriginals way in current time is the name of their extended family. Instead of calling their cousins, cousins, no matter if it is a boy or girl, they called them “Cousin Brother” or “Cousin Sister”. Even though this is something that makes total sense, I still find it really interesting to know that is what they call each other.

The Gebusi are patrilineal and therefore their lineages follow the men in the clan.it is ideal for the men to marry a woman from another clan, when this happens the man’s sister is exchanged to the other clan and the new wife becomes part of the man’s clan. This display of reciprocity is primarily used to make sure that the same amount of women in each clan remains constant. By 1998 this was no longer the case, the Gebusi women did have a choice in who they married and the men had a rather hard time trying to find a wife because the women could be so

Polygyny and father-son Inheritance are important aspects of the igbo culture although they are only two of many. Polygyny is the practice of having multiple wives, which in the igbo tribe determined your social status. “ There was a wealthy man in Okonkwo’s village who had three huge

Since the family’s origins are in Africa they came from a society with different norms and values. A society composed of many different tribes, each with their own language, customs and traditions. They placed a strong emphasis on the family and kinship ties. Their communities depended on cooperation, assistances and well maintained social order. When a woman was married, she was considered the wife of the family not just the husband (Franklin, 1967-28-31).

This joint family, like any social organization, must face problems such as acceptable division of work, relationships and specific family roles. These familial relationships are managed on the basis of a secular hierarchical principle. In fact, all Indians owe respect and obedience to the head of the family, who usually is the father or the oldest man of the family community. In The Gift of a Bride: A Tale of Anthropology, Matrimony and Murder by Nanda and Gregg, it is explained that, “females [are] placed under the perpetual guardianship of first their fathers and elder brothers, then their husbands.” (Nanda & Gregg 22) Thus, all the spending decisions, studies and profession, or marriage, are exclusively the responsibility of the father after the possible discussions with the other men of the family. Age and sex are the basic principles of this hierarchical system. The eldest sons enjoy greater unchallenged authority than their cadets. Of course men have more authority than women, but older married women have an important role within the family. In fact, the authority of a woman depends on the rank of her husband inside the group. Traditionally, the wife of the patriarch rules over domestic affairs and has considerable power over the other women in the community, especially her daughters- in-law.

Kinship becomes important to the Mbuti when selecting a spouse. Kinship recognition is only important when choosing a wife or husband. No person is allowed to marry kin on their mother's or father's side of the family. Unlike, western societies, there are no formal ritual for marriage or divorce. People are considered married once the couple moves in together. They believe marrying outside their age

For the most part an Igbo marriage takes into consideration two factors: religion and the fertility of the couple. Children

The man and the woman are partners in marriage and it is also a celebration of alliance and act of partnership between two sides which are often already related. Marriage is the best way in making non-kin into two friends or business partners. It ideally take place within the individual’s kindred. The best arrangement of marriage is between cousins. Although, marriage among the first cousin seems rare except for the nobility, they prefer to marriage between second or third cousin. According to Millar (1989), “about twenty percent of the newlyweds in a sample of three hundred Soppeng Marriage that took place in 1975 were listed as