Kinship System

Kinship System refers to the roles and relationships of members of a family. It defines each member's relation to another, what each one is called, as well as their obligations, rights, and limitations in relation to one another. The Kinship System varies depending on one's culture. For example, in the American culture, siblings refer to each other as brother or sister, distinguishing between genders.

In some Asian cultures, the terminologies siblings use to refer to one another not only distinguishes between gender, but also specifies one's birth order such that there is a "first/eldest brother," "third sister," "youngest brother," and so on. This suggests that in those cultures, one's birth order in the family comes with certain rights, roles, and responsibilities, that may not necessarily exist in an American family.