Cultural Anthropology Chapter 9 Review Quiz (Kinship, Family, and Marriage)

Match each term to the correct definition. patrilineal ambilineal matrilineal unilineal

Answer 1: descent group constructed through father's side of the family Answer 2: kinship traced through both mother's and father's side of the family Answer 3: descent group constructed through mother's side of the family Answer 4: descent measure through only one side of family (either mother's or father's)

In India, the compulsory practice of a bride's family providing gifts to the groom's family upon marriage was outlawed in 1961, as it led to multiple cases of domestic violence. This practice was best known as which of the following terms?

d. dowry

The nuclear family today is more myth than fact. Consisting, by definition, of a kinship unit of a mother, father and offspring, many forces have changed this definition. Historically, the nuclear family came into existence...

d. during the industrialization of the nineteenth century

In the United States, law and custom forbid marriage to certain family members. These laws and customs perpetuate:

d. kindred exogamy.

The 1996 United States Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) sought to define marriage as it was being challenged, particularly in the realm of same-sex couples who wished to be recognized on a legal level. Parts of DOMA were struck down in 2013. Supporters of DOMA felt strongly that same-sex marriage posed a threat to...

d. social order

In contrast to the English line of kings and queens, the Scottish had a system that was similar but was unable to establish any one group or ancestral line as undisputed leaders of the country. A large part of the problem was that there was insufficient documentation prior to about the 13th or 14th centuries. This particular type of kinship group is referred to as...

b. a clan

Reproductive technologies are blossoming and include a host of new technologies. Despite the advent of dramatic technologies such as cloning, reproductive technologies have been around for a very long time and include...

b. abortion

Blood or consanguinal ties are the most common way we experience kinship. Our "kin" is often taken to mean a brother or sister. Marriage, however, changes all of that. Anthropologists refer to kinship established by marriage as...

b. an affinal relationship

Different cultures define kinship differently. Common to many is the idea that kinship helps everyone recognize who is related to who, which helps maintain the integrity of the incest taboo. In addition, nearly every culture includes an explicit understanding of how kinship confers rights around matters such as inheritance. More subtly, and often not made explicit in the defining of kinship, are...

b. expectations placed on different relatives, such as mothers, fathers, uncles, etc.

In certain remote parts of Tibet, one woman will become married to all of the brothers in a particular family. Which term best describes this practice?

b. polyandry

Israel has seen an upending of how kinship is constructed and accepted. Reproductive technologies are paid for by insurance. Family planning services are not strongly promoted. And the country has more fertility clinics than any other nation on earth. All of these ideals lead to pressure to reproduce the family and the nation itself. A considerable amount of this pressure lands on the woman, in part because...

d. Jewishness passes down matrilineally from mother to child.

For most societies, until quite recently, a marriage was done to meet social obligations. Only recently has love and pleasure become a reason to marry. Anthropology refers to these marital bonds as...

d. companionate marriages

The long line of kings and queens that have ruled England have sometimes been a colorful source of contention, some having been challenged on the basis of their legitimacy. This particular genealogical tree depends on highly accurate documentation and is often referred to as...

a. a lineage

While kinship is often thought of as a biological and culturally rule-bound process, recent developments have opened the door to kinship that is accomplished...

a. by choice

The text points out that biology and marriage are not the only basis for kinship in human societies. Which of the following are examples of other kinship strategies revealed in the chapter?

a. co-residence and co-feeding leading to adoption or fostering

The family you are born into is known as the family of __________. The family people construct when they reach adulthood and acquire a mate is the family of __________.

a. orientation, procreation

Some kinship groups trace their primary relationships via consanguine relatives. Anthropologists call this type of group...

c. a descent group

In many cultures, the parents of the groom are expected to provide gifts, sometimes substantial, to the bride and her family. This establishes many social expectations—reciprocity, obligation and legitimacy of any offspring. This is known as...

c. bridewealth

We may think of marriage in solely romantic terms, and certainly the bond of marriage can allow for that. While such matters as parenting responsibility, family relations and inheritance all flow from marriage, marriage for many cultures represents something altogether different. Some aspects of marriage, depending on the form, help to...

c. build alliances

When we talk about marriage between two people who maintain an exclusive relationship with one another while the marriage exists, we're referring to marriage as a form of...

c. monogamy

Traditionally, Nuer men could be married to more than one woman at the same time. Which term best describes this practice?

c. polygyny