Matrilineal descent and the societies that have it have long been seen as being more in need ofexplanation than patrilineal descent, which tends to be treated as humanity’s default when discussingdescent. There is a long history of theories of matrilineal exceptionalism in anthropology, dating fromthe theory of an evolutionary priority for ‘mother right’ in the nineteenth century to its contemporaryrevival through what has become known as the ‘grandmother’ hypothesis, positing female coalitionsas prior in evolutionary terms, with a grandmother looking after her daughter’s children so the lattercan go gathering. Along the way matriliny has been explained with reference to horticulture,increased women’s rights and the so-called ‘matrilineal puzzle’. However, it is also reasonable tosuggest that matrilineal systems are not simply mirror images of patrilineal ones and that theypotentially have characteristics of their own such as the ‘visiting husband’ phenomenon and the morefrequent tendency generally for the marriage bond to be weak and unimportant. The article exploresthese latter aspects further.
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