Sideways or downwards? Lateral and vertical succession, inheritance and descent in africa and eurasia

Man, n.s. • Vol/Iss. 5 • Published In • Pages: 627-638 •
By Goody, Jack

Abstract

This article examines direction of succession and inheritance as they relate to culture area and kinship system. Several hypotheses are presented and all are supported.

Samples

Sample Used Coded Data Comment
Ethnographic Atlas (EA)

Hypotheses (4)

HypothesisSupported
The proportion of uterine systems of inheritance (matrilineal) is greater in Africa than in Eurasia or other continents. But agnatic (patrilineal) inheritance is predominant worldwide (630)Supported
"Both within and between continental areas uterine succession has a greater tendency to be lateral (i.e. for the office to go first to a brother) rather than vertical (for the office to go first to a sister's son)" (630)Supported
"Both for real property and movable property there is a very significant association of patrilineal systems with vertical transmission and matrilineal ones with lateral transmission" (634)Supported
". . . descent groups of the matrilineal kind are significantly less likely to be found in the Eurasian continent. Matrilineal descent groups . . . are found more frequently in Africa than in Eurasia" (636)Supported
Documents and Hypotheses Filed By: mas  Megan Farrer