Kinship System of Yanomamo Culture - Research Paper Example

? Kinship System of Yanomamo Culture Kinship is a vital system among the Yanomamo people. These people have very violent lifestyles and are commonly referred to as fierce people (Rosman, Rubel & Weisgrau, 2009). Their culture has mainly remained unchanged due to their ferociousness along with strong wills. Their kinship system conforms to a pattern referred to as the Iroquois classification which insists on them having bilateral cross marriages between cousins (Chagnon, 2012). On the other hand, their Iroquois systems are based on the principles of fork merging though they disallow marriage between a brother and a sister within the same homestead. The concepts importance to these people makes them form groups and regulate their relations through the acts of warfare and making alliances. The people from the Yanomamo community usually organize their relationships in the order of closeness (Early & Peters, 2000). They are organized from the local partilineal moieties, village settlements, feasting alliances, marriage alliances and trading alliances to their enemies. In localized moieties there are rarely partrilineage groups that have members who exceed two grown-up generations with members coming from the same villages. When bilateral marriages across cousins occur within the same village, hostilities can arise because the males have lesser relations among them (Rosman, Rubel & Weisgrau, 2009). When the hostilities have broken out, new settlements are created by the new lineages and could end up existing as enemies. The village settlements on the other hand are composed of patrilineages that are paired. Marriage alliances are normally permitted between individuals who hail from different villages. These types of alliances were mainly utilized for the purpose of making of alliances with their armed forces. They mainly formed feasting alliances for the purpose of maintaining peaceful relations in the villages that were not linked by marriage (Early & Peters, 2000). The feasting alliances among the Yanomamo people are also normally used for the purpose of carrying out valuable trading activities with other settlements. The trading activities are thereby utilized for the purpose of containing the hostilities that may exist between the different settlements (Chagnon, 2012). In the Yanomamo community, their males are considered to be more valuable than their female counterparts (Rosman, Rubel & Weisgrau, 2009). The leadership positions in their community determine their village’s relations with neighboring villages due to the existing kingship along with marriage patterns. The leaders within the community are chosen from the kinship groups with most members in the village (Early & Peters, 2000). Within the Yanomamo society, marriages are usually arranged by the older kin within them who include brothers, fathers and uncles (Rosman, Rubel & Weisgrau, 2009). In these communities, there exists a social imbalance with women being less than men which is worsened by the fact that some of the men are polygamous. These people additionally practice marriage within related groups of people which have in turn helped in speeding their population’s growth (Early & Peters, 2000). The women in these villages undergo abductions along with incest taboos that play a great part in decreasing the effects that come from inbreeding. When bilateral marriages between cousins are allowed double relations are created since their parents may have gone through similar marriages (Rosman, Rubel & Weisgrau, 2009). The resultant internal conflicts that arise tend to bring about village fissioning among them. The villages that are not related through marriage are urged to make peace by engaging in trading activities which help them in abstaining from war. Gifts are also offered between the leaders in the warring villages to help in preventing the occurrence of conflicts (Chagnon, 2012). The Yanomamo people usually have role prescriptions within their communities which are mainly keyed into people who hold certain statuses. The individuals living within this community are supposed to know who they really are in order for them to handle their prescribed roles appropriately. The individuals with superior statuses within the community are given extra roles for them to perform since they are pivotal for the operations of the society (Rosman, Rubel & Weisgrau, 2009). When death comes to the Yanomamo people, they normally attribute its cause to Hekura if not caused by an animal or another human being. Their kinship rules prohibit the living from speaking about the dead and forgetting anything that concerns them (Early & Peters, 2000). The people usually burn the bodies of dead adults in open areas with the sick and the children being sent away during the ritual. This is done to ensure that they are not contaminated by the smoke emanating from the burning bodies (Rosman, Rubel & Weisgrau, 2009). The Kinsmen of the dead people are then tasked with the duty of placing the ashes in hollowed logs that are intentionally prepared for the ceremonies after they have cooled down. This activity is carried out by a kinsman for the purposes of ensuring that the dead person’s lineage is not contaminated by foreign relations and their souls can rest peacefully. The entire community later on assembles to cry and carry the dead person’s ashes around the village (Early & Peters, 2000). The Yanomamo people believe that the generous people among their kinsmen live semi-immortal lives once they die while those who are stingy among them are bound to be sent in a large fire that will consume them forever. However, most of the community members consider these beliefs to be foolish and presume that when a person dies he just lies down and is incapable of doing anything (Chagnon, 2012). In conclusion, the paper discussed the importance of kinship among Yanomamo people and its relation to their behaviors along with beliefs in marriage and their ferocious nature and strong wills that have made them to remain unchanged over time. It also classifies these people into the Iroquois system and speaks on the bilateral marriages that are allowed in the community between close cousins. In addition, this paper talks about how the Yanomamo people organize themselves into several types of alliances for the purpose of ensuring that the members of their community coexist in peace. It asserts that men are considered superior to females and gives descriptions of the roles that are prescribed to certain members depending on their status. Finally, the paper addresses the issue of burial rites among the Yanomamo people in relation to their kinship system. References Chagnon, N. A. (2012). The Yanomamo. London: Cengage Learning. Early, J. D. & Peters, J. F. (2000). The Xilixana Yanomamo Of The Amazon: History, Social Structure And Population Dynamics. Florida: University of Florida. Rosman, A, Rubel, P. G. & Weisgrau, M. (2009). The Tapestry of Culture: An Introduction to Cultural Anthropology. New York: Rowman Altamira. Read More