Parallel cousin

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Parallel cousin is an anthropological term denoting consanguinial kin who are in the same descent group as the subject and are from the parent's same-sexed sibling. Simply put, a parallel cousin is a first cousin who is the child of the father's brother or the mother's sister.

A chart showing the relation of family members in relation to Ego

Unlike cross cousins, parallel cousins are usually not the subject of promoted marriage since a union in many cultures would fall under an incest taboo. In a patrilineage, parallel cousins are part of the subject's (ego's) unilineage whereas cross cousins are not. The same is true in matrilineal societies, wherein parallel cousins are considered to be related to the subject (and therefore unwedable) while cross cousins are not.

1 Naming conventions
2 Relatedness taboos and kinship
3 See also
4 Sources and external links

[edit] Naming conventions

In many societies parallel cousins use names that we often associate only with direct siblings. For instance, in the Omaha system, a male parallel cousin is referred to as "brother". Likewise, a female parallel cousin is "sister." This system is also in place in the Crow system and the Hawaiian system. The Iroquois system is different in that they apply sibling naming terminology to cross cousins as well. This system is not in use in the Eskimo system, nor in the Sudanese system as they have separate terminology for cross and parallel cousins.

[edit] Relatedness taboos and kinship

John Maynard Smith (1978), in "The Evolution of Sex" notes that Richard Alexander suggested the following reason for the intermarriage taboo on parallel, but not on cross cousins. Fathers who are also brothers may overtly or covertly share sexual access to the wife of one or the other, raising the possibility that apparent parallel-cousins are actually half-sibs, sired by the same father. Likewise, mothers who are also sisters may overtly or covertly share sexual relations with a single man, raising the possibility that apparent parallel cousins are actually half-sibs, sired by the same father.

This possibility does not exist for cross-cousins, because in the absence of full-sib incest, it is impossible for cross-cousins to share a mother or a father by overt or covert sexual relationships. Neither Ego's father's sister, nor his mother's brother can possibly be his parent, unless full-sib incest has occurred.