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10-13-03, 09:02 PM
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Study: Cows Give Men Power
Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News
Matriarchal vs. Patriarchal Families
Oct. 13, 2003 — The spread of cattle in Africa caused societies to shift from female to male lines of descent, according to a recent study.
Researchers believe a similar change took place in India, Europe and many Western societies, with a legacy that remains today.
For the study, published in a recent Proceedings B (biological sciences) of The Royal Society, anthropologists charted language, social organization and cultural trends among 68 Bantu-speaking African cultures. They found that when men acquired cows, many matrilineal societies in Africa became patrilineal.
Matrilineal means that property inheritance, political succession and residence all are passed down through females in the society. While rare, female-based lines of descent exist today in 17 percent of cultures throughout the world. Most are located in regions dominated by simple farming without ploughs or large domestic livestock, such as in Central Africa, the Pacific Islands and within some Native American cultures.
Women in these groups often possess sexual freedoms not commonly present in patriarchal societies. This can result in fatherhood uncertainty upon the birth of a child, so men often ensure their line of descent by giving their inheritance to a sister's son or daughter.
"Horticultural societies tend to be matrilineal because there are few really valuable resources that would benefit sons much more than daughters, so the factor of paternity uncertainty leads to daughter-biased inheritance," explained Clare Holden, co-author of the Royal Society paper and a senior research fellow in the Department of Anthropology at University College London.
When cows came in, many matriarchal societies went out.
Holden told Discovery News that because livestock are vulnerable to raiders, they require defense by males. While the livestock in the study were cattle, Holden theorizes any kind of large, valuable herd animal, such as camels, could lead to a similar power shift from female to male.
She added that these kinds of valuable resources give men a greater bargaining tool for marriage and enable them to support many wives.
Land ownership also could affect how a society is organized. Holden suggested that regions where land was plentiful for everyone, such as in Central Africa, tended to favor matriarchal groups. In areas where land was scarce and requiring defense, such as in Europe and India, patriarchal societies tended to develop.
Mark Pagel, professor of evolutionary biology in the School of Animal and Microbial Sciences at the University of Reading, agrees with the new findings, including the fact that the theory outlined in the study could reach beyond Africa.
Pagel said, "There is every reason to believe that this is a general explanation that could and probably does apply elsewhere in the world."
Study: Cows Give Men Power
Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News
Matriarchal vs. Patriarchal Families
Oct. 13, 2003 — The spread of cattle in Africa caused societies to shift from female to male lines of descent, according to a recent study.
Researchers believe a similar change took place in India, Europe and many Western societies, with a legacy that remains today.
For the study, published in a recent Proceedings B (biological sciences) of The Royal Society, anthropologists charted language, social organization and cultural trends among 68 Bantu-speaking African cultures. They found that when men acquired cows, many matrilineal societies in Africa became patrilineal.
Matrilineal means that property inheritance, political succession and residence all are passed down through females in the society. While rare, female-based lines of descent exist today in 17 percent of cultures throughout the world. Most are located in regions dominated by simple farming without ploughs or large domestic livestock, such as in Central Africa, the Pacific Islands and within some Native American cultures.
Women in these groups often possess sexual freedoms not commonly present in patriarchal societies. This can result in fatherhood uncertainty upon the birth of a child, so men often ensure their line of descent by giving their inheritance to a sister's son or daughter.
"Horticultural societies tend to be matrilineal because there are few really valuable resources that would benefit sons much more than daughters, so the factor of paternity uncertainty leads to daughter-biased inheritance," explained Clare Holden, co-author of the Royal Society paper and a senior research fellow in the Department of Anthropology at University College London.
When cows came in, many matriarchal societies went out.
Holden told Discovery News that because livestock are vulnerable to raiders, they require defense by males. While the livestock in the study were cattle, Holden theorizes any kind of large, valuable herd animal, such as camels, could lead to a similar power shift from female to male.
She added that these kinds of valuable resources give men a greater bargaining tool for marriage and enable them to support many wives.
Land ownership also could affect how a society is organized. Holden suggested that regions where land was plentiful for everyone, such as in Central Africa, tended to favor matriarchal groups. In areas where land was scarce and requiring defense, such as in Europe and India, patriarchal societies tended to develop.
Mark Pagel, professor of evolutionary biology in the School of Animal and Microbial Sciences at the University of Reading, agrees with the new findings, including the fact that the theory outlined in the study could reach beyond Africa.
Pagel said, "There is every reason to believe that this is a general explanation that could and probably does apply elsewhere in the world."