In most indigenous societies, such as the Yanomami Indians, kinship is a fundamental structure. Yanomami kin terms are applied using the Iroquois classificatory pattern. They value patrilineal descent and strengthen relationships through bilateral cross cousin marriage. This means that two men marry each others sisters in order to build a longer relationship.This would continue onto the next generations. One would marry his bilateral cross cousin, who is both his mother’s brother’s daughter and father’s sister's daughter, due to the intermarriage between the parents. A son-in-law should avoid his mother-in-law and be deferential and respectful to his father-in-law. Some important attributes of the Yanomami’s kin term pattern is the use of the bifurcate merging rule. This combines and give family members a single kin term. Some examples are, haya which is the father’s brother and the father, soaya which is the mother’s brother and mother, naya is the mother’s sister and mother, and yesiya is the father’s sister and father. Members from the same patrilineage refer to each other as mash, which just means people who are related patrilineally. Napoleon Chagnon, who studied the Yanomami, stated “In a word, everyone in Yanomamo society is called by some kinship term that can be translated into what we would call blood relatives.” This allows the Indians to culturally establish the relationships between individuals. Kinship is also not only restricted to blood relatives, it is culturally constructed. There are three different kinds of relationships. The first one is consanguineal relatives which are people on both sides of the family related to you by blood. The second is affinal relatives or people who are related to you through marriage. The last one is fictive kinship which is patterned on kin like relations but not actually based upon blood or marriage. Kinship is imperative when it comes to marriage, and strong bonds are formed between kin groups when women are exchanged. There are also different functions of kinship, such as, vertical and horizontal functions. Vertical functions keep successive generations together and provides social continuity. It also allows passing on property and tradition. Horizontal function expand between a single generation making alliances through marriage practices. Alliances are generally used for political, economic, and ceremonial purposes.
Bilateral Cross Cousin Marriage (First Generation)
Second Generation
Yanomami Kin Terms
References:
Roberts, Bruce.
2012. Kinship & Family. Mankato, MN: Minnesota State University. Electronic document, http://web.mnstate.edu/robertsb/380/Kinship%20&%20family.pdf, accessed July 25, 2014.
Schwimmer, Brian.
1995. Yanomamo Kin Terms. Winnipeg, Manitoba. Department of Anthropology University of Manitoba. Electronic document, https://www.umanitoba.ca/faculties/arts/anthropology/tutor/case_studies/yanomamo/yano-trm.html, accessed July 25, 2014.
Schwimmer, Brian.
1995. Bilateral Cross Cousin Marriage. Winnipeg, Manitoba. Department of Anthropology University of Manitoba. Electronic document, https://www.umanitoba.ca/faculties/arts/anthropology/tutor/marriage/bixcuz.html, accessed July 25, 2014.
When it comes to kinship, no group expresses it better than the Yanomami Indians. In the United States, kin terms are only expressed towards blood relatives and people who assume the godfather/godmother role. In Brazil, where my family is from, we tend to call our elders uncles and aunts even if they are not related. This brings a stronger sense of family in the community. Although I have not been with the Yanomami Indians, I would imagine that family is extremely important to their culture. The use of kinship towards everyone in their society unifies their group to a greater extent than you would see in places such as the United States. I think that more places should be like the Yanomami, in regards to kinship, as it would build a stronger community.
ReplyDeleteLove the idea about sense of community, and your personal reflection is awesome as well. I appreciate it Fabio. You guys are also doing great when writing your sources, it shows consistency, and that there has been a conversation among you. That is what I really value the most here. Just a minor thing, that you can add here, and in particular mention during your presentation, please, use course content, use some of the concepts from class, whatever that you may see fit to be mentioned. If you have questions email me too. Great job Fabio. Thanks for the very responsible work in my class.
ReplyDeleteSome concepts that I had to apply from class is cultural relativity and not having an ethnocentric view. I say this because Bilateral Cross Cousin marriage is something that we don't see in our society. However, I due understand that it was used to strengthen relationships between alliances throughout several generations.
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