Kinship Terminology

Terms of Address and Terms of Reference

Independent of the category of kinship, we divide terms that describe related individuals into terms of address and terms of reference. Terms of address are the ones we use from birth (Ego) to address our kin, such as “Mum” or “Dad.” Terms of reference are the ones we use to refer to our kin in the third party: “my mother,” or “my father.” As these examples demonstrate, terms of address and terms of reference may be identical. Our use of kinship terms depends on how familiar we are with the relatives involved and the ages and genders of these relatives. Both terms of address and terms of reference exist only with respect to one another: “father” or “mother” implies there is a “son” or “daughter” and vice versa.

Classificatory Terms—Kinship Systems

Based on earlier work by both L. H. Morgan and G. P. Murdock, we now use six categories to classify systems of kinship: Eskimo, Hawaiian,Iroquois, Sudan, Crow, and Omaha. The main criterion for classifying a system is how the Ego uses the same term for different relatives. For instance, the kinship system of Western societies belongs to the Eskimo group, where the brothers of the parents are “uncles” and their sisters, “aunts.” In contrast, in societies belonging to the Hawaiian group of classification, the same people are “fathers” and “mothers,” respectively. Using the same term for different relatives entails a significant similarity in the behavior of Ego toward them, for example, the possibility of marriage.

Descriptive Terms

Descriptive terms number but a few: father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, husband, wife. To eliminate any chance of confusion, we use each of these terms or a combination to describe only one relative. In the kinship systems of Western societies, individuals use descriptive terms wherever specific terms for each and every relative do not exist. For example, uncles from both the father's and the mother's side are not distinguished from the other; both are uncles. We can make the distinction because of descriptive terminology: father's brother and mother's brother.

In the Dinka and the Shilluk in Sudan, a special term-phrase exists for the relatives that Western societies call uncles and aunts: brother/sister of mother/father. Sudanese call every cousin daughter/son of brother/sister of mother/father.

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