ANTH 1000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Reproductive Endocrinology And Infertility, Bride Price, Cloning
Kinship, Family & Marriage:
● Marriage Patterns:
○ Exogamy: when someone marries someone outside of their group
○ Endogamy: when someone marries someone inside their group
■ In the United States, kindred exogamy is favored. We have a broad
definition of incest. The United States also favors ethnic group
endogamy. This means that most people marry within their own ethnic
group. Historically, marrying outside one’s ethnic group was actually
illegal in the United States, and interracial marriage stigmas still follow,
despite it being completely legal now
○ In some cultures, the exchange of gifts is very important in marriage
■ Bridewealth: in this exchange, the man and his relatives gift something of
great value to the family of the bride. It is seen as an exchange to help
compensate for the bride’s family loss of her
■ Dowries: dowries are similar to bridewealth. However, in this case the
bride’s family gives gifts to the groom’s family. This was seen as a
compensation to the groom’s family for taking on an extra person into
their family. Dowry was once common in India, however due to deaths
surrounding the Dowry (the groom would kill the bride, marry someone
else, get more gifts, etc), it has become less popular
● Arranged marriages are common in India
● Biology, Marriage and Kinship:
○ Close relationships, like that with kin, are often found and created with people
who are not blood relatives or relatives by marriage
○ Often, close friends become and “aunt” or “uncle” to a child, despite having no
blood or marital relation
○ Example:
■ The Langkawi people of Malaysia share food and bodily fluids, creating
kin
■ The Zumbugua people of Ecuador adopt children and share their food
with them, making them kin
■ There are networks of African American people in Chicago, Illinois
○ Relationships that are established with non-related people that are like those
relationships we share with kin are often established through mutual support
and shared experiences
○ Kinship is a powerful survival tool and has been evolutionarily
○ It’s important to be able to create a supportive network for yourself
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ANTH 1000 Full Course Notes
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Document Summary
Exogamy: when someone marries someone outside of their group. Endogamy: when someone marries someone inside their group. In the united states, kindred exogamy is favored. The united states also favors ethnic group endogamy. This means that most people marry within their own ethnic group. Historically, marrying outside one"s ethnic group was actually illegal in the united states, and interracial marriage stigmas still follow, despite it being completely legal now. In some cultures, the exchange of gifts is very important in marriage. Bridewealth: in this exchange, the man and his relatives gift something of great value to the family of the bride. It is seen as an exchange to help compensate for the bride"s family loss of her. However, in this case the bride"s family gives gifts to the groom"s family. This was seen as a compensation to the groom"s family for taking on an extra person into their family.
