Hawaiian kinship
Encyclopedia
Hawaiian kinship is a kinship system used to define family
. Identified by Louis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Hawaiian system is one of the six major kinship systems (Eskimo
, Hawaiian, Iroquois
, Crow
, Omaha
, and Sudanese
).
. In it, differences are distinguished by generation and by gender. There is a parental generation and a generation of children. In this system, a person (called Ego in anthropology) refers to all females of his parent's generation as "Mother" and all of the males as "Father". In the generation of children, all brothers and male cousins are referred to as "Brother", all sisters and female cousins as "Sister".
The Hawaiian system is usually associated with ambilineal descent
groups. It is found in approximately one third of the world's societies, although these are usually small societies.
. Today the Hawaiian system is most common in Malayo-Polynesian-speaking areas.
This form of kinship is most common in societies with ambilineal descent groups, where economic production and child-rearing are shared.
Family
In human context, a family is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity, affinity, or co-residence. In most societies it is the principal institution for the socialization of children...
. Identified by Louis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Hawaiian system is one of the six major kinship systems (Eskimo
Eskimo kinship
Eskimo kinship is a concept of kinship used to define family in anthropology. Identified by Lewis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Eskimo system was one of six major kinship systems .-Kinship system:The Eskimo system places no...
, Hawaiian, Iroquois
Iroquois kinship
Iroquois kinship is a kinship system used to define family. Identified by Lewis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Iroquois system is one of the six major kinship systems .-Kinship system:The system has both classificatory and...
, Crow
Crow kinship
Crow kinship is a kinship system used to define family. Identified by Lewis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Crow system is one of the six major kinship systems .-Kinship system:The system is somewhat similar to the Iroquois system, but...
, Omaha
Omaha kinship
Omaha kinship is the system of terms and relationships used to define family in Omaha tribal culture. Identified by Lewis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Omaha system is one of the six major kinship systems which he identified...
, and Sudanese
Sudanese kinship
Sudanese kinship is a kinship system used to define family. Identified by Lewis Henry Morgan in his 1871 work Systems of Consanguinity and Affinity of the Human Family, the Sudanese system is one of the six major kinship systems .The Sudanese kinship system is the most complicated...
).
Kinship system
Within common typologies, the Hawaiian system is the simplest classificatory system of kinshipKinship
Kinship is a relationship between any entities that share a genealogical origin, through either biological, cultural, or historical descent. And descent groups, lineages, etc. are treated in their own subsections....
. In it, differences are distinguished by generation and by gender. There is a parental generation and a generation of children. In this system, a person (called Ego in anthropology) refers to all females of his parent's generation as "Mother" and all of the males as "Father". In the generation of children, all brothers and male cousins are referred to as "Brother", all sisters and female cousins as "Sister".
The Hawaiian system is usually associated with ambilineal descent
Ambilineality
Ambilineality is a system containing both unilineal descent groups, namely patrilineal and matrilineal, in which one belongs to one's father's and/or mother's descent group, or lineage...
groups. It is found in approximately one third of the world's societies, although these are usually small societies.
Usage
The Hawaiian system is named for the pre-contact kinship system of peoples in the Hawaiian IslandsHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. Today the Hawaiian system is most common in Malayo-Polynesian-speaking areas.
This form of kinship is most common in societies with ambilineal descent groups, where economic production and child-rearing are shared.
See also
- FamilyFamilyIn human context, a family is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity, affinity, or co-residence. In most societies it is the principal institution for the socialization of children...
- Kinship and descent
- AnthropologyAnthropologyAnthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
- List of anthropologists
- HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
Sources
- William Haviland, Cultural Anthropology, Wadsworth Publishing, 2002. ISBN 0-534-27479-X
- "The nature of kinship", University of Palomar
- Archnet: Hawaiian kinship