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  1. A worldwide view of matriliny: using cross-cultural analyses to shed light on human kinship systemsSurowiec, Alexandra - Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 2019 - 10 Hypotheses

    The study is about matrilineal systems, where descent is traced along female lines. Matrilineal systems are relatively rare in human populations, and previous research has discussed the rarity and apparent instability of matriliny. The study aims to study the evolution of descent systems on a worldwide scale. The study tests for significant associations between matriliny and numerous cultural traits that have been theoretically associated with its stability or loss, such as subsistence strategy, animal domestication, mating system, residence pattern, wealth transfer, and property succession. Additionally, by combining genetic and linguistic information to build a global supertree that includes 16 matrilineal populations, the study also performs phylogenetically controlled analyses to assess the patterns of correlated evolution between descent and other traits.

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  2. Spread of cattle led to the loss of matrilineal descent in Africa: a coevolutionary analysisHolden, Clare Janki - Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences, 2003 - 2 Hypotheses

    Through phylogenetic comparison, Holden and Mace explore the relationship between descent and cattle among a sample of 68 Bantu/Bantoid-speaking populations in Africa. The authors posit that when matrilineal cultures adopt cattle, they become patrilineal. Possible theories are offered to explain trends and variation in the data.

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  3. The origins of the economy: a comparative study of distribution in primitive and peasant economiesPryor, Frederic L. - , 1977 - 39 Hypotheses

    Considerable disagreement exists in regard to the origin and distribution of economic phenomena such as money, slavery, markets, exchange, and imbalanced transfers. Here the author utilizes a worldwide cross-cultural sample of 60 pre-industrial "societies" to empirically test many economic hypotheses, with a focus on distributional mechanisms and institutions.

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  4. Matrilineal descent in cross-cultural perspectiveAberle, David F. - Matrilineal Kinship, 1961 - 15 Hypotheses

    This chapter explores and tests some propositions about matrilineal societies. Supplementary to that discussion, the author also explores the problems of method associated with the use of coded data on large samples of cultures.

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  5. Why did foraging, horticulture and pastoralism persist after the Neolithic transition? The oasis theory of agricultural intensificationMedupe, Dithapelo - Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2023 - 3 Hypotheses

    Using t-test, generalized linear models (GLMs) and Bayesian regression models in a sample of 1188 pre-industrial societies, this study explores the research question: Why have foraging, horticulture, and pastoralism persisted into the 20th and 21st century? The authors test the marginal hypothesis and the oasis hypothesis of agricultural intensification. The first hypothesis suggests that foragers persisted because foragers predominantly inhabited marginal habitats that were typically unsuitable for agricultural purposes. The second hypothesis suggests that intensive agriculture emerged in regions characterized by limited biodiversity and a dependable water supply not reliant on local rainfall. In addition, the authors test whether specific kinds of biodiversity (elephants, malaria, and tsetse flies) correlate with agricultural intensification in African societies. The results support the marginal and oasis hypotheses, but only marginally support the African hypothesis, since only tsetse fly has a significant negative correlation to agricultural intensification.

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  6. Archaeology of slavery from cross-cultural perspectiveHrnčíř, Václav - Cross-Cultural Research, 2017 - 8 Hypotheses

    The authors examine correlations between slavery and variables that can potentially be detected archaeologically. The authors do not test specific hypotheses, but aim to explore the variables in a broader sense. As such, the authors use a grounded theory approach to data analysis in order to examine trends that emerge from the data itself.

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  7. Social Practice and Shared History, Not Social Scale, Structure Cross-Cultural Complexity in Kinship SystemsRácz, Péter - Topics in Cognitive Science, 2019 - 6 Hypotheses

    Researchers examined kinships terminology systems for explanations regarding specifically observed typology of kin terms for cousins cross-culturally. They explore two theories, the first relating to population size via bottleneck evolution, and the second relating to social practices that shape kinship systems. Using the Ethnographic Atlas within D-PLACE, 936 societies with kinship system information were studied. The findings did not suggest a relationship between increased community size and a decrease in kinship complexity, however the research does suggest a relationship between practices of marriage and descent and kinship complexity.

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  8. The Fish is the Friend of Matriliny: Reef density predicts matrilineal inheritance across the world and its persistence in MelanesiaBenYishay, Ariel - Allied Social Science Associations Annual Meeting, 2014 - 1 Hypotheses

    In order to evaluate previous claims of association between reliance on fishing and matrilineal inheritance practices, the researchers test the association between matriliny and reef density within a 10 km radius among the 186 societies of the Standard Cross Cultural Sample (SCCS). A positive correlation between these variables is complemented by a supplementary analysis of 56 villages in the Solomon Islands, intended to control for phylogenetic and demographic impacts on incidence of matriliny. The authors conclude that ecological factors such as reef density can and do have a direct effect on inheritance rules, with potential secondary effects on welfare and economic development.

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  9. A phylogenetic analysis of dispersal norms, descent and subsistence in Sino-TibetansJi, Ting - Evolution and Human Behavior, 2022 - 3 Hypotheses

    In this study, the authors analyze the evolutionary history of female and male marital dispersal norms in Sino-Tibetan ethnic groups. They also test for the coevolution of agriculture, domesticated cattle pastoralism, and unilineal descent with these dispersal norms. Results indicate that early Sino-Tibetans were likely patrilocal, agriculture and unilineal descent coevolved with female dispersal norms, and cattle domestication did not coevolve with dispersal norms in Sino-Tibetan ethnic groups.

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  10. Economic Systems of Foraging, Agricultural, and Industrial SocietiesFrederic L. Pryor - , 2005 - 26 Hypotheses

    The second and third parts of this book classify the economic systems of foraging and agricultural societies in the SCCS based on correlations between their institutions of property an distribution. These economic types are then examined for relationships with other social, political, demographic, and environmental factors in order to draw tentative conclusions regarding the origins of the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions. The fourth part of the book uses cross-national data to examine similar associations in industrial/service economies, and is not included here.

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