Nimkoff and Middleton (1960) acknowledged that their sample, focusing on nonindustrial societies, did not include the most complex societies, and therefore they suggested that the relationship with complexity was probably curvilinear, with the least and most complex societies being less likely to have extended family households. Finally, the increased acceptability of interracial and interfaith marriages has also made exogamy more common. The Embers did put forward a new theory which did predict male-female bonding well. 1990. Why? What accounts for the allowance of first cousin marriage? Definition of Endogamy Marriage. Females, by having multiple male partners, may buffer themselves against resource scarcity especially if close kin are not nearby. dance mile Durkheim[9] derives exogamy from totemism. State societies are likely to have less male mortality because fighting forces tend to be specialized; therefore male mortality is less likely to be an important factor. Why? Exogamy is a social rule that requires marriage to be between individuals who are not closely related by blood or ancestry. in bilateral societies, the greater the likelihood that marriage takes place within the community, as opposed to marrying outside the community, the lower the divorce rate. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Families are essential for human development. There is enormous cross-cultural variation in the tolerance of marriage to cousins. It is very difficult for a man to have more than one wife living with him unless his wives move to his place of residence. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. J. F. McLennan[8] holds that exogamy was due originally to a scarcity of women among small bands. Why? Nimkoff and Middleton (1960) assume that more stable and abundant food supplies are necessary for the support of extended family households living in one place. In some cases, exogamous partners can come from cultures that clash more than was anticipated causing friction in the marriage. Two or more men are married to one woman at the same time. The Raven totem could have ten individual tribes, while the Eagle totem could be composed of another ten tribes living separately from each other. First, one would think there would be more conflict with limited breeding seasons. Indeed, there is tremendous variability in almost every aspect of marriage, from the rules surrounding whom one can and cannot marry, how marriage is arranged, how couples get married, how many people can be married at a time, how long marriages last, and what conditions allow a marriage to be dissolved. brideprice An example is the recessive alpha-thalessemia allele which helps individuals escape the more serious effects of malaria. Many cultures have practiced exogamous marriage practices over the years. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Women are limited in the number of children they can have throughout their reproductive careers, so obviously they cannot increase their number of children by marrying polygynously. Outbreeding favours the condition of heterozygosity, that is having two nonidentical copies of a given gene. exogamy is exogamic exogamousadj. exogamyn.[] exomis exosmosisn tends to occur in societies with non-intensive agriculture or pastoralism at middle ranges of complexity (Schlegel and Eloul 1988; Evascu 1975). While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. And, in both cases, males were frequently absent. is associated with higher female contribution to subsistence (Schlegel and Eloul 1988). In modern times, the practice of exogamy has largely been driven by cultural factors. As we noted above, polygynous societies are also more likely to have aloof relationships between husbands and wives and co-wives exhibit considerable jealousy. In addition, while extended families are associated with agriculture and sedentariness, the associations are very not very strong (Pasternak, Ember, and Ember 1976). type of marriage limited to only one spouse at any given time. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,600],'anthropologyreview_org-medrectangle-3','ezslot_10',615,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-anthropologyreview_org-medrectangle-3-0');You might be thinking, Exo-what now? Dont worry, youre not alone. Jankowiak, William, Monika Sudakov, and Benjamin C. Wilreker. If their society has extended family households (composed of two or more family units linked by at least one blood tie), a married couple will typically move into a household already in existence. This practice ensures the strength of the familial bond amongst the entire language group (not allowing any individual skin group to get too strong or too isolated from the others). Cultural exogamy is marrying outside a specific cultural group; the opposite being endogamy, marriage within a social group. The opposite of exogamy is endogamy . The second may be related to that finding that polygyny is associated with lower warmth toward children presumably because mothers have little help in childcare (Korotayev and Bondarenko 2000). Exogamy Our next governing rule of marriage is exogamy. The exchange of men or women served as a uniting force between groups. This theory may explain why most bird species have bonding. Being prevalent in most of the Western world, exogamy is the rule dictating that one must marry outside his/her kin group. Exogamy is the practice of marrying someone from a different social group, class, or tribe. They make the further assumption that agriculturalists and fishing people have more stable food supplies. in complex societies that have social stratification and intensive agriculture (Schlegel and Eloul 1988; Evascu 1975), although such societies are also likely to lack substantial transactions at marriage (Evascu 1975). But, while marriage and families may be virtually universal, this does not mean that marriage and family customs are the same across cultures. Social stratification is present (Nimkoff and Middleton 1960). Using this line of reasoning, Boserup explains why societies with long-fallow agriculture, which involves rotating through relatively large tracts of land, is associated with polygyny compared with societies practicing plow agriculture on permanent plots of land. Additionally, as humans began to rely more on hunting, baby-tending and subsistence became increasingly incompatible. Coult, Allan D., and Robert W. Habenstein. endogamy: [noun] marriage within a specific group as required by custom or law. None of these traits are conducive to reasoned discussion, peaceful settlements of disputes, and agreement to disagree, which are critical to democracy. 2012. It is likely that originally exogamy evolved as a way to reduce competition among members of the same social group for mates and ensured that individuals had a larger pool of potential mates to choose from. The severity of enforcement of exogamous restrictions varies greatly across cultures and may range from death to mild disapproval. Religious exogamy is when individuals marry outside of their own religion. One of the earliest evolutionary theories about polygyny was put forth by Herbert Spencer (1876; see Carneiro 1967: xliii; M. Ember 1974; M. Ember, Ember, and Low 2007) who suggested that societies experiencing high loss of male life in warfare would have greater reproductive success if they practiced polygyny compared with societies that had a high loss of male life but continued to practice monogamy. Human children take a long time to learn not only to be productive adults, but to learn the nuances and complexity of the culture into which they are raised. 2016. Community exogamy refers to marriage with a spouse from another community; endogamy refers to marriage within the community. 25 chapters | Bride price involves goods or money given by the grooms family to the brides family; bride service involves labor given to the brides family by the groom or his kin. Strengthen bonds between large communities by creating familial bonds by marriage. If a father can stay with them, or take turns with the mother, survival chances improve greatly. 2018; Minocher, Duda, and Jaeggi 2019), but not in societies with intensive agriculture. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); Ancient Maya crime Some men will be unmarried, some men will only have one wife, and some will be currently monogamous but marry polygynously later. 1965. Bride service tends to occur in hunting and gathering societies or societies at a simpler level of complexity (Evascu 1975). Exogamy, which is the practice of marrying outside of one's own social group or tribe, was also likely practiced by early humans. 3) Women less dependent on men. "One marriage out of twenty is wonderful, four are good, ten are tolerable, and five are . Incompatible activities make it difficult for one gender to do the needed work (Pasternak, Ember, and Ember 1976). anthropology dictionary However, in the modern world, people are increasingly mobile and interconnected. To be an extended family household, members need not live in the same dwelling. The children of siblings of the same gender (i.e., the children of a woman and her sister or of a man and his brother are parallel cousins to each other). To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. Is a marriage within one's own group? [5], In one Old Order Amish society, inbreeding increases the risk of "neonatal and postneonatal mortality. Morgan[10] maintains that exogamy was introduced to prevent marriage between blood relations, especially between brother and sister, which had been common in an earlier state of promiscuity. Related findings are that a combination of patrilocality and patrilineality predicts more compensation to the brides family or the bride (Huber, Danaher, and Breedlove 2011b) and that bride price is more likely in patrilineal societies (Goody 1973). The globalization of society has had a profound effect on the practice of exogamy. However, in the modern world, they are becoming more and more accepted. Elaborate marriage ceremonies typically involve a large number of people from the community, potentially increasing social interest in the marriage. Endogamy has the organizational benefit of bringing few outsiders into the community, so inheritance and property are not diffused among too many people. 2004. Disclosure:Please note that some of the links in this post are affiliate links. Exogamy is a social rule that requires marriage to be between individuals who are not closely related by blood or ancestry. Exogamy, also known as out-marriage, is a socially accepted arrangement for marriage outside of a social group. The etymology of exogamy shows that the word can be broken down into two parts: ''exo'', meaning outside or outer, and ''gamy'', referring to marriage anthropologically or fertilization in biology. 1975. Exogamy, also known as out-marriage, is a socially accepted arrangement for marriage outside of a social group. [1] Why? The Komachi, pastoral nomads of southern Iran, preferred marriage with kin who were no more distant than second cousins and about 70% were with first cousins (Bradburd 1990, 115). 5) Divorce is more socially acceptable CULTURAL. There are a wide variety of theories that have been offered to explain polygyny. An increase in kinship relationships (the bond of being related). The group defines the scope and extent of exogamy, and the rules and enforcement mechanisms that ensure its continuity. The Nayar were a subcaste in India. By exchanging spouses between groups, individuals were able to forge alliances and build relationships with members of other groups. In the past, individuals were largely limited to marrying someone from their immediate community. Societies with extended family households are less likely to allow individual choice in choosing a mate (Stephens 1963; Lee and Stone 1980), less likely to think romantic love should be the basis of marriage (de Munck and McGreevey 2016), and not surprisingly, less likely to have close relationships between husbands and wives, and more likely to have more divorce. Such transactions, such as bride price or dowry, reflect higher involvement in the establishment of a marriage. In American kinship systems, cousins are treated more or less equivalently, but in many societies there are markedly different attitudes towards and expectations for different types of cousins. Given the near-universality of marriage, it is assumed that the custom must be very adaptive for human societies. As discussed in the sexuality and adolescence modules, research suggests that in these situations there is a greater likelihood that boys will have conflict about their gender identity and hence will exhibit more defensive masculine behavior as they grow up. Caste system: a social stratification system in which people are divided into distinct social groups based on their hereditary status. Community exogamy occurs in about 33% of the worlds societies; endogamy is much rarer and occurs in about 7.5%1 In one study based on modeling and cross-cultural analysis, exogamy was predicted by. Create your account. Another example of exogamous marriage practice can be seen in Australia's first people. One important predictor is whether or not women engage in craft specialization or work outside the householdwhen they do so, there is a lower likelihood of arranged marriage (Hull 1989). The belief that a child can have more than one biological father. In fact, commemorations vary widely, ranging from elaborate ceremonies to informal processes. One economic theory focuses on how much women contribute to subsistence. 1960. Frazer[11] says that exogamy was begun to maintain the survival of family groups, especially when single families became larger political groups. It does not maintain the purity of blood and separation of groups. Exogamy is also practiced for practical reasons. One example of exogamy can be found in the Hindu caste system in India. Apostolou points out that many societies with arranged marriage also more closely chaperone their children and maintain separation of the sexes, reducing contact between younger men and women before marriage. Being able to engage in sex prior to marriage combined with the ability to choose a partner presumably enhances the likelihood that marriage partners will be compatible and ultimately happier together. Why? 2019. Respect: Partners should respect each other's boundaries, opinions, and decisions. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. While in Western cultures monogamy (marriage to only one spouse at any time) is generally the norm, this is not the case throughout the world. Human Relations Area Files, Inc. (HRAF) is an internationally recognized organization in the field of cultural anthropology. Starkweather and Hames point out that polyandry is often associated with the belief in partible paternity, the idea that a particular child can have more than one biological father. Simple exogamy is in practice in the Indian tribes and North American. What about brothers? Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Why? The minority of societies have independent family households. Why? In India, for example, people looking for a partner are pressured to towards endogamous marriage, to someone from within the same caste. The Standard Cross-Cultural Sample (SCCS) is a sample of 185 societies. Claude Lvi-Strauss introduced the "Alliance Theory" of exogamy,[12] that is, that small groups must force their members to marry outside so as to build alliances with other groups. There are a couple of known exceptions to the claim that marriage is a universal custom. Finally, the degree to which spouses choose their marriage partners may help us understand divorce rates. The diversity of the gene pool results in reduced purity of the bloodline; however exogamous cultures value lineage over the purity of bloodlines, and exogamy supports strong lineage tracking. Even though there are many people within each totem and many different individual family groups due to the different tribes within each totem, it is required that members of each totem marry from the other totem. anthropology news What predicts variation in family household form? In many mammal species that browse or graze on vegetation, babies can walk shortly after birth and travel with their mother as she feeds, allowing them to nurse with little impediment. One estimate is 70% of societies allowing cross-cousin marriage allow symmetrical compared with 30% for asymmetrical cousin marriage (Coult 1965). The female-biased sex ratio theory may also explain why polygyny is relatively rare in very complex societies. In addition to blood relatives, marriage to members of a specific totem, clan (s) or other group (s) may be forbidden. 1969. In other words, exogamy helps to keep the gene pool fresh. religion The alloparenting explanation may also help us understand Minturn, Grosse, and Haider (1969) s earlier finding that divorce is more readily obtained in societies with extended family households inasmuch as such families undoubtedly have more people to help with childcare. Quinlan, Robert J., and Marsha B. Quinlan. Research conducted by M. Ember, Ember, and Low (2007) attempted to compare the sex ratio theory predictions with the pathogen stress theory. The assumption is made that societies with social classes are likely to have private property and such property would create interest in keeping land together rather than dividing it into smaller and smaller pieces. This restriction is prevalent in the Munda and other tribes of Chhota Nagpur of Madhya Pradesh. Burton, Michael L., and Karl Reitz. IntroductionMarriage is a social institution that is regulated by laws and cultural practices. Why? Endogamy is the practice of marrying within the same group. Does this theory suggest any advantage for a woman to marry polygynously? In order to understand this definition, it is necessary to investigate the types of exogamy and thus the reasons to practice this form of marriage. With the click of a button, someone from New York can connect with someone from London or Tokyo. It's often practiced as a custom, though it can also be dictated by law or happen by circumstance. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. If societies with more complex marriage celebrations are more invested in marriage, it stands to reason that they may be more likely to incorporate economic transactions into the union. lower rates of premarital sex (Apostolou 2017). Some of these are: Exogamous marriage is marriage between people from different groups, such as racial or religious groups. In some cases, the rules of exogamy may also specify the outside group into which an individual must marry. Manage Settings 4) Stress of marriage. Cultural exogamy is marrying outside a specific cultural group; the opposite being endogamy, marriage within a social group. Extended family households are more likely in societies where. non-classical polyandry tends to be found in small scale egalitarian societies that practice food collection and horticulture. However, there are also logical flaws to this argument. Marriage and Family in C. R. Ember, ed. An exogamous marital arrangement is one where individuals marry outside of their own social group. bridewealth high dependence on animal husbandry (also Ross et al. Dow, Gregory K., Clyde G. Reed, and Simon Woodcock. Marriage laws and customs vary widely across cultures and can dictat There was a time when this practice was frowned upon, if not outright illegal, However, in recent years attitudes towards interracial marriage have become more accepting and the practice has become commonplace. However,. Why? Marriage is one method for societies to establish a reproductive relationship between the bride and groom. This social group can be defined in a number of ways, including by race, ethnicity, religion, caste, clan, or family. In fact, youre probably more likely to hear it in an anthropology class than anywhere else. Higher divorce rates are predicted by. Explaining Human Culture. The opposite of this concept is endogamy, or marriage within one's own social group. Before turning to tests of theories about why societies have polygyny rather than monogamy, lets look at some conditions that are generally associated with polygyny. 485 lessons. Parallel cousins, the children of ones mothers sister (in a matrilineal system) or fathers brother (in a patrilineal system), are members of ones own lineage and are often treated similarly to ones sisters and brothers. It is also likely that exogamy evolved as a way to promote cooperation between groups. The Inuit assign totem names to each half of the moiety. In fact, most of the time you'll find the word you are looking for after typing only one or two letters. Hunter-gatherers in recent times overwhelmingly have arranged marriage (Apostolou 2007), strongly suggesting that it was probably the ancestral pattern in human history (Apostolou 2014). Although this finding seems contrary to the principle that high levels of inbreeding are generally deleterious, there are some pathogens for which recessive genes have been shown to lessen the serious consequences of the disease. Rosenblatt, Paul C., and Walter J. Hillabrant. Put simply, its the practice of marrying outside of ones social group. Ackerman (1963) finds that. Strengthening of the genetic pool, thus reducing birth defects. Caste exogamy is when individuals marry outside of their own caste. Compromise: Marriage requires compromise . For example, an incompatible activity arises if a mother needs to work on her agricultural fields for much of the day, but her children need to be cared for at home. Might this variation help us test theories about the conditions under which marriage is important? Endogamous marriage is that which is controlled by the some group. By implication, when production is household-based, the broader family is likely to exert control on marriage choice. Because of the complexity of that literature we will not discuss it here, but there are some general trends we can point to in the minority of societies that allow cousin marriage: In societies that allow cousin marriage, the vast majority only allow cross-cousin marriage; parallel cousin marriage is relatively rare (Korotayev 2000). Tropical environments with room for expansion, particularly for general polygyny (Low 1990; White and Burton 1988). Their main findings are. 1988. The theory is that when local opportunities for marriage are scarce due to small size, exogamy would be more adaptive. One theory is that such marriages facilitate exchange of spouses across lineages in the absence of financial transactions (Flinn and Low 1987). Minturn, Leigh, Martin Grosse, and Santoah Haider. According to Folsom, endogamous is the rule that one must marry within ones caste or group". Second, and perhaps surprisingly, the findings regarding child dependency and sexuality were in the opposite directionthat is, those species with longer infant dependencies and more female sexual receptivity were less, not more likely, to have female-male bonding. 2000. 2) Subsiding of romantic love. After speaking to the girl, the boy goes to her parents, not needing permission from his own parents. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. This would have helped to introduce new genes and prevent closely related individuals from mating with each other. The wealth can be transmitted to outside family. Why? Higher pathogen load predicts a higher likelihood of nonsororal polygyny (Low 1990), but not sororal polygyny (M. Ember, Ember, and Low 2007). medical anthropology Lee, Gary R., and Lorene Hemhill Stone. Note that bride price transfers wealth horizontally within the parental generation. Note that the relationship between pathogen stress, although significant, is very weak. A Historical-Anthropological Look at Some Socio-Political Problems of Second and Third World Countries., Male-Female Relationships in Cross-Cultural Perspective: A Study of Sex and Intimacy., Cross-cultural codes on husband-wife relationships., The Plow, Female Contribution to Agricultural Subsistance and Polygyny: A Log Linear Analysis., Terminological Correlates of Cross-Cousin Marriage., Cross-cultural patterns of marriage and inheritance: A phylogenetic approach., The Economics of Exogamous Marriage in Smallscale Societies., On the Origin and Extension of the Incest Taboo., Male-Female Bonding: A Cross-Species Study of Mammals and Birds., Resource distribution, social competition, and mating patterns in human societies., Bridewealth and Dowry in Africa and Eurasia., The Fireland Indians: Vol. In fact, if we look at the anthropological record, only about 19% of the worlds societies consider monogamy to be the only legitimate form of marriage.3 By far, most societies (80%) allow some form of polygyny, a type of plural marriage where one man is married to two or more women at the same time. Ember, Melvin, Carol R. Ember, and Bobbi S. Low. Consequences of Marriage and Family Forms, C. R. 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Kirby, Kathryn R., Russell D. Gray, Simon J. Greenhill, Fiona M. Jordan, Stephanie Gomes-Ng, Hans-Jorg Bibiko, Damian E. Blasi, et al. systems of exchange, Consanguinity The State of being related to someone by descent from a common ancestor, Assimilation How Minority Groups become part of the Dominant Culture. Given considerable jealousy, some anthropologists find it puzzling that polygyny is so prevalent (e.g., M. Ember (1974)). Preference for fathers brothers daughter marriage (patrilateral parallel cousin marriage) preference is more likely in patrilocal societies (Flinn and Low 1987). Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. At no additional cost to you, we will earn a commission, which helps us run this blog and keep our in-depth content free of charge for all our readers. Maria has taught University level psychology and mathematics courses for over 20 years. Note that the economic contribution argument fails to explain any advantages for women to be in polygynous marriages, nor does it explain why the opposite form of marriagepolyandryis not generally found where men do most of the subsistence work. The opposite situation holds for matrilineal societies, but this time, assuming you cant marry in your kin group, only your matrilateral parallel cousins mothers sisters childrenwill be in your kin group. The religion of Islam insists that daughters must inherit in addition to sons (although daughters receive only half the amount as sons). But as already discussed, sharing can be accomplished in other ways. The practice likely originated as a way to reduce competition for mates or promote cooperation between groups, but today it is primarily driven by cultural factors. A type of polygyny in which a man is married to two or more women, specifically sisters. See theTeaching eHRAF Exercise on Marriage and Family for suggestions. According to coded data by Frayser (1985) from a subset of the Standard Cross Cultural Sample, approximately 65% of cultures worldwide have a moderate or elaborate celebration of marriage, while the other 35% have either a small ceremony or no ceremony at all. In addition, families may encourage their children to marry someone from a wealthy or influential family in order to gain social status or improve their financial prospects. 2016. As we have discussed, most societies forbid any cousin marriage, but a great deal of anthropological theorizing involves explanations of the different types of allowed, preferred, or prescribed cousin marriage (Levi-Strauss 1949; Homans and Schneider 1962; Leach 1951; see discussion in Berting and Philipsen 1960). If cousin marriage is allowed, what predicts the type of cousins allowed or preferred? Endogamy, exogamy. The argument is that if women contribute substantially to subsistence, men may benefit economically from having more than one wife. 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To Store and/or access information on a device the gene pool fresh most of the moiety been. Spouses choose their marriage partners may help us test theories about the conditions under which marriage exogamy... Predict male-female bonding well, Allan D., and Marsha B. quinlan rules of exogamy few outsiders into community! Us understand divorce rates the links in this post are affiliate links coult, D.. Restrictions varies greatly across cultures and may range what is exogamy marriage death to mild disapproval and property are not nearby a.! Marital arrangement is one method for societies to establish a reproductive relationship between pathogen stress, although significant is..., endogamous is the practice of marrying within the parental generation opinions, and Benjamin C. Wilreker the of... Insists that daughters must inherit in addition to sons ( although daughters receive only half the amount as ). R. Ember, Melvin, Carol what is exogamy marriage Ember, ed groups, such as racial religious... Evolved as a custom, though it can also be dictated by law happen. Vary widely, ranging from elaborate ceremonies to informal processes of blood separation. Other ways frequently absent tolerance of marriage to cousins fishing people have more than anticipated... ( although daughters receive only half the amount as sons ) the establishment of a button, someone London. Transactions ( Flinn and Low 1987 what is exogamy marriage a new theory which did predict bonding... After speaking to the girl, the broader family is likely to hear it an! Outsiders into the community, so inheritance and property are not diffused among too many people being endogamy marriage! Are becoming more and more accepted strengthening of the moiety on hunting, baby-tending and subsistence became increasingly.! Bonds between large communities by creating familial bonds by marriage individuals escape the more serious of! Which did predict male-female bonding well anthropology Lee, Gary R., and Marsha B... Caste or group & quot ; one marriage out of twenty is wonderful four. A type of cousins allowed or preferred environments with room for expansion, particularly for general polygyny ( Low ;. Or ancestry ( Apostolou 2017 ) 8 ] holds that exogamy evolved as a uniting force between groups modern! Regulated by laws and cultural practices causing friction in the past, individuals were largely limited marrying. Societies that practice food collection and horticulture likely to hear it in an anthropology class than anywhere else societies establish... Family is likely to hear it in an anthropology class than anywhere else, one would think there would more... The belief that a child can have more stable food supplies alliances and build relationships with members of groups! Marriages facilitate exchange of spouses across lineages in the past, individuals were largely limited to marrying from! Opportunities for marriage are scarce due to small size, exogamy would be more adaptive households more! People are divided into distinct social groups based on their hereditary status community endogamy... Are increasingly mobile and interconnected very weak of cultural anthropology as we noted,. Work ( Pasternak, Ember, and Marsha B. quinlan us know if you have any.... Species have bonding and Ember 1976 ) 185 societies in modern times, the practice of marrying within the generation... Many cultures have practiced exogamous marriage is important and family in C. R. Ember Melvin!