Chinese kinship
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The Chinese kinship system (simplified Chinese: 亲属
In the extended family, every child, from birth, participated in an organized system of kinship relations involving elder brothers, sisters, maternal elder brothers' wives, and various aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, and in-laws. These relationships were precisely named and differentiated and carried rights and duties. Family members anticipated being addressed by the correct term that indicated their relationship to the person communicating with them.[2]
In the Chinese kinship system:
- Maternal and paternal lineages are distinguished. For example, a mother's brother and a father's brother have different terms.
- The relative age of a sibling is indicated by specific terms. For example, a father's younger brother has a different terminology than his older brother.
- The gender of the relative is distinguished, as in English.
- The generation from ego is indicated, like in English.
The 19th century anthropologist Lewis Henry Morgan, without field-work or detailed descriptions, classified Chinese kinship as a "Sudanese" or "descriptive" system.
Kinship and Chinese societies
[edit]Literature and history
[edit]Kinship terms appeared in the earliest Chinese lexicon, Erya. Chapter Four Shiqin (释亲/
With the influence of Confucianism, the concepts of kinship and consanguinity are deeply ingrained in Chinese culture. One of the Confucian teachings is filial piety, which it is extended to a series of five relationships known as the Five Cardinal Relationships (
- ruler and subject (
君臣 Pinyin: jūnchén) - father and son (
父子 fùzǐ) - elder and younger brother (
兄弟 xiōngdì) - husband and wife (
夫婦 fūfù) - between friends (
朋友 péngyǒu)
In the Three Character Classic, the nine agnates are listed in the following stanza:
Great-great-grandfather, great-grandfather, grandfather, father and self, self and son, son and grandson, | |
from son and grandson, on to great-grandson and great-great-grandson. These are the nine agnates, constituting the kinships of man. |
Culture
[edit]In Chinese culture where the extended family is still valued, kinship terms have survived well into current usage. Also, since it is taboo to refer to or address a more senior family relation by his or her given name, the kinship term is the only possible term of address. When there are many siblings as in many Post–World War II baby-boom families, the relation is distinguished and addressed according to age or rank. For example,
Because some of these terms have no equivalent in foreign languages, they are not easily translated and the descriptiveness is often lost in translation. However, terms such as "Second Uncle" are sometimes used.[4] Translating kinship terms from other languages often presents the problem of ambiguity as there is no equivalent general term such as "aunt".
Despite the complexity of the kinship address system (see terminology section below), it is common to simplify it for the sake of familiarity. Some formal kinship terms are not familiar to many people, cumbersome, or not preferred by the addressee. For example, a cousin once removed may at her discretion be referred to as simply a cousin if she is of a similar age to the speaker.
Law
[edit]The Great Qing Legal Code (
Among the 47 statutes added in 1740 under Qianlong Emperor, Statute 2 (Charts/Tables of Mourning Attire, (
The "extermination of nine kindreds" (誅九
In the first year of the reign of the Yongle Emperor (Ming dynasty, reigned 1402–1424), the prominent historian Fāng Xìao-rú (
To this day, a three-character term (冚家鏟) for "death to the entire family" remains a powerful profanity in the Cantonese language.
Clan
[edit]A Chinese clan is a patrilineal and patrilocal group of related Chinese people with a common surname sharing a common ancestor. In southern China, clan members could form a village known as an ancestral village. In Hong Kong, clan settlement is exemplified by walled villages. An ancestral village usually features a hall and shrine honoring ancestral clan members. A clan pedigree can be found recording male members of the clan. A married woman is considered part of her husband's clan.
Marriage and divorce
[edit]Marriage is an important rite signifying the coming together of two clans and the beginning of a new family unit. Marriage has to be permanent and issue is expected.[5] Weddings were central occasions in a family's life. Spouses were chosen carefully by the parents. Marital agreements, especially among the well-to-do, were stipulated with contracts between both families. This practice was continued for centuries and spread throughout the world, and goes on to this day. Divorce was nearly impossible. The choices made between the families held great importance weddings were held on certain days to ensure good fortune. This practice gained prominence during the Han dynasty (202BCE-220CE).[6]
Polygamy
[edit]Polygamy (specifically polygyny) had been practiced in Chinese societies for thousands of years. Since the Han dynasty, Chinese men have been able to legally have only one wife. It was common for privileged Chinese men to have a wife and various concubines, however. For those who could afford a bride price and support a family of multiple concubines and children, polygyny provided a better chance of issuing heirs. The importance of this was apparent in the imperial court, which usually housed hundreds of concubines. Aside from concubinage, having multiple wives with equal status was also accepted prior to the ban on polygamy.
In a concubinage situation, the wife, concubines and their children would live in the same household. Wives and concubines would often refer to each other as "sisters". As a concubine was not wedded in a marriage ceremony, she had fewer rights in the household. There was also no inter-clan relation between the man's clan and the concubine's own kin.
Polygamy was banned in China in 1930 when the Republic of China government promulgated Civil Code (Part IV) where Section 985 states "A person who has a spouse may not contract another marriage. A person shall not marry with two or more persons simultaneously."[7] This is still in effect today in the territories under effective administration of the Republic of China including Taiwan and Kinmen and Matsu. However, as infringement of marriage cannot be prosecuted without a complaint by the wife, one can still unofficially practice polygamy by registering only one marriage. Such practice still happen occasionally among older and wealthy men. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China by the Chinese Communists on the mainland, this banning was reaffirmed in the passage of the Marriage Code of 1950. In Hong Kong, new polygamous marriages were no longer legally allowed after 1971 with the passage of the Marriage Reform Ordinance (Cap. 178). Due to this, incidents of extramarital affairs are rising. Some men have even established a family with their mistresses and children kept secret from their wives. There is a phenomenon of cross-border polygyny usually involving Hong Kong men and their mistresses living in Mainland China.[citation needed]
Demographics
[edit]With modern Chinese governments advocating smaller families through family planning campaigns and policy-making, large extended families may be a thing of the past. The People's Republic of China introduced its One-child policy in 1979, and The Family Planning Association of Hong Kong began its "Two is enough!" (
As of 2006, the fertility rates in Hong Kong and Macau ranked among the lowest two in the world. Hong Kong, ranked the lowest in the world, was the only territory with less than one child born per woman on the average. Both Mainland China and Taiwan were ranked well below the world average. Similarly, the birth rates in Hong Kong and Macau ranked among the lowest three in the world. Both Mainland China and Taiwan were ranked below the median.[citation needed]
A product of rising divorce rates in Chinese societies is the breakdown of the traditionally close-knit kinship relation. On the other hand, remarriage could provide more than two sets of paternal or maternal relatives. [citation needed]
Defining kin
[edit]Nine grades of relations
[edit]The "nine grades of relations" (
The "older" interpretation ("
The "contemporary" interpretation ("
Yet another interpretation suggests that "nine" is actually an arbitrary number as nine is considered a large number in Chinese culture. As such, it means anyone and everyone related is to be executed in the context of family annihilation.
Five degrees of mourning attire
[edit]The five degrees of mourning attire (
In a concubinage situation, a concubine was only required to mourn for her husband, his wife, his parents, and all his children including her own, whereas a wife was required to mourn for almost all of her husband's near relatives. In addition, there was no requirement to mourn the death of a concubine except by the man's children.
Since the end of feudal China, the rituals of the five degrees of mourning have largely given way to simpler and less elaborate observance.
Conventionally, clans adopted the five degrees of mourning according to unwritten definitions that determines the difference between close and distant relatives. As such, marriage between relatives that were covered within the five degrees of mourning was considered taboo and immoral. These definitions, unlike the mourning ritual, are still applicable in determining whether a marriage is acceptable, albeit fewer people are familiar with the mourning rituals themselves.
According to these definitions, many relatives considered "distant" in Western cultures are considered close in Chinese culture.
The five degrees of mourning attire in decreasing order of severity are:
- 1.
斬 榱 - 3 years (actually 25 months) - 2.
齊 榱 - 3 years, 1 year, 1 year with staff of mourning, 5 months, 3 months - 3.
大功 - 9 months, 7 months - 4.
小 功 - 5 months - 5. 緦麻 - 3 months
Common extended family and terminology
[edit]This section covers members and their spouses in the immediate and extended family that is commonly found in the first nine corner cells on the table of consanguinity or cousin chart (from ego to grandparents on the rows and columns). The terms are listed in Standard Chinese, regional and dialectal usages are listed in the corresponding row. The degrees of mourning attire are included as an indication of how close the relation is to ego and what level of respect is expected. "1" being the highest; "5" being the lowest. "0" means they are not within the definition of the five degrees of mourning. Some of these are common relations and are included for completeness. The degrees of mourning indicated in the table are based on ego as an unmarried member of the family.
General prefixes
[edit]外 (wài) - prefix to indicate maternal lineage on some of the relations堂 (táng) - cousin: used in relation to descendants of father's brother表 (biǎo) - other cousins: used in relation to descendants of father's sister and both mother's brother and sister高 (gāo) - prefix for relations four generations removed senior of ego, i.e.: great-great-grandparents (高 祖父母 )- 曾 (zēng) - prefix for relations three generations removed, i.e.: great-grandparents; great-grandchildren (
曾祖 父母 ;曾孫 ) 祖 (zǔ) - prefix for relations two generations removed senior of ego, i.e.: grandparents (祖父母 ), also a general prefix for relations two or more generations senior of ego.孫 (SC: 孙) (sūn) - prefix for relations two generations removed junior of ego, i.e.: grandchildren (孫 ), also a general prefix for relations two or more generations junior of ego.玄 /元 (xuán/yuán) - prefix for relations four generations removed junior of ego, i.e.: great-great-grandchildren (玄孫 /元 孫 )
Where they differ, the Simplified Chinese character is presented first, followed by the Traditional Chinese character in parentheses.
Members of the nuclear family
[edit]As with all languages, there exist a high degree of regional variation in kinship terminology. Different Chinese languages, dialects, and even families can have distinct words and pronunciations for the same person. In the tables below, the "other variants" presented happens to be mostly from Cantonese, and should not be interpreted as being comprehensive. Also, a person may use terminology from a region but pronounce the term with the regional pronunciation, a different regional pronunciation, or in Putonghua, which may be the case when a person has family members from different parts of China.
Primary members | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Formal term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning duration | |
Standard Mandarin | Other variants | ||||
father | ( fù, fùqīn |
爸爸 bàba | father | 1 (3 years) | |
mother | ( mǔ, mǔqīn |
妈妈 (媽媽) māma | 媽咪 maa1 mi4 |
mother | 1 (3 years) |
elder brother | xiōng |
哥哥 gēge | brother | 2 (1 year) | |
younger brother | dì |
brother | 2 (1 year) | ||
elder sister | 姊 zǐ |
姊姊 zǐzi |
sister | 4 5 if married | |
younger sister | mèi |
sister | 4 5 if married | ||
wife | qīzi |
牽手khan tshiú |
wife | 2* (1 year) 2 (1 year) if in-law parents are not deceased | |
husband | zhàngfu, xiānsheng |
husband | 1 (3 years) | ||
son | 儿子 ( érzi |
儿子 ( |
son | 2 (1 year) | |
daughter | nǚ'ér |
闺女 ( |
daughter | 2 (1 year) |
Members of the extended family
[edit]Paternal lineage | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Formal term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) | |
Standard Mandarin | Other variants | ||||
father's father | zǔfù |
爷爷 ( |
(paternal) grandfather | 2 | |
father's mother | zǔmǔ |
奶奶 nǎinai | 嫲嫲 mama |
(paternal) grandmother | 2 |
father's older brother | bófù |
uncle | 2 (1 year) | ||
father's older brother's wife | bómǔ |
aunt | 2 (1 year) | ||
father's younger brother | shūfù |
叔叔 shūshu | uncle | 2 (1 year) | |
father's younger brother's wife | 婶母 (嬸母) shěnmǔ |
婶婶 (嬸嬸) shěnshen |
aunt | 2 (1 year) | |
father's older sister | gūmǔ |
aunt | 2 (1 year) 3 -if married | ||
father's older sister's husband | gūfu |
uncle | 0 | ||
father's younger sister | gūjiě |
aunt | 2 (1 year) 3 -if married | ||
father's younger sister's husband | gūfu |
uncle | 0 | ||
father's brother's son, older than ego | first cousin | 3 | |||
father's brother's son, younger than ego | tángdì |
first cousin | 3 | ||
father's brother's son's wife | tángsǎo |
first cousin-in-law | 5 | ||
father's brother's daughter, older than ego | tángzǐ |
first cousin | 3 4 -if married | ||
father's brother's daughter, younger than ego | tángmèi |
first cousin | 3 4 -if married | ||
father's sister's son, older than ego | biǎoxiōng |
first cousin | 5 | ||
father's sister's son, younger than ego | biǎodì |
first cousin | 5 | ||
father's sister's son's wife | biǎosǎo |
first cousin-in-law | 5 | ||
father's sister's daughter, older than ego | biǎozǐ |
first cousin | 0 | ||
father's sister daughter, younger than ego | biǎomèi |
first cousin | 0 |
Maternal lineage | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Formal Term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) | |
Standard Mandarin | Other variants | ||||
mother's father | wàizǔfù |
gōnggong |
(maternal) grandfather | 4 | |
mother's mother | wàizǔmǔ |
(maternal) grandmother | 4 | ||
mother's brother | jiùfù |
uncle | 4 | ||
mother's brother's wife | jiùmǔ |
妗母 jìnmǔ | aunt | 0 | |
mother's sister | 姨母 yímǔ |
姨妈 (姨媽) yímā (older than ego's mother); |
aunt | 4 | |
mother's sister's husband | 姨父 yífù |
姨夫 yífu | 姨丈 yízhàng | uncle | 0 |
mother's sibling's son, older than ego | biǎoxiōng |
first cousin | 5 | ||
mother's sibling's son, younger than ego | biǎodì |
first cousin | 5 | ||
mother's sibling's daughter, older than ego | biǎozǐ |
first cousin | 0 | ||
mother's sibling's daughter, younger than ego | biǎomèi |
first cousin | 0 |
Nephews and nieces | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Formal Term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) |
brother's son | zhíér |
zhízí |
nephew | 2 (1 year) |
brother's son's wife | zhíxífù |
niece-in-law | 3 | |
brother's daughter | zhínǚ |
niece | 2 (1 year) 3 -if married | |
brother's daughter's husband | zhínǚxù |
nephew-in-law | 0 | |
sister's son | wàishēng |
姨甥 (if ego is female) yíshēng |
nephew | 0 |
sister's daughter | wàishēngnǚ |
姨甥 yíshēngnǚ |
niece | 0 |
Grandchildren | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) |
son's son | 孙儿 ( sūnér |
孙仔 ( sūnzí |
grandson | 2 (1 year) -heir-apparent 3 -all others |
son's daughter | 孙女 ( sūnnǚ |
granddaughter | 2 (1 year) | |
daughter's son | wàisūnér |
wàisūnzí |
grandson | 5 |
daughter's daughter | wàisūnnǚ |
granddaughter | 0 |
In-laws | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) |
older brother's wife | sǎo |
sǎozi |
sister-in-law | 4 |
younger brother's wife | dìfù |
sister-in-law | 4 | |
older sister's husband | 姊夫 zǐfū |
jiěfū |
brother-in-law | 0 |
younger sister's husband | mèifū |
brother-in-law | 0 | |
son's wife | 儿媳 ( érxí |
媳妇 (媳婦) xífù |
daughter-in-law | 2 (1 year) -wife of heir-apparent 3 -all others) |
daughter's husband | nǚxù |
son-in-law | 0 | |
son's son's wife | 孙媳妇 ( sūnxífù |
granddaughter-in-law | 2 (1 year) -wife of heir-apparent 5 -all others | |
son's daughter's husband | 孙 sūnnǚxù |
grandson-in-law | 0 | |
daughter's son's wife | wàisūnxífù |
granddaughter-in-law | 0 | |
daughter's daughter's husband | wàisūnnǚxù |
grandson-in-law | 0 | |
wife's father | yuèfù |
father-in-law | 5 | |
wife's mother | yuèmǔ |
mother-in-law | 5 | |
husband's father | gōnggōng |
father-in-law | 1 (3 years) | |
husband's mother | pópó |
奶奶 nǎinǎi |
mother-in-law | 1 (3 years) |
wife's older brother | nèixiōng |
dàjiù |
brother-in-law | 0 |
wife's younger brother | nèidì |
xiǎojiù |
brother-in-law | 0 |
wife's older sister | 姨姐 yíjiě |
dàyí |
sister-in-law | 0 |
wife's younger sister | 姨妹 yímèi |
xiǎoyí |
sister-in-law | 0 |
husband's older brother | dàbó |
brother-in-law | 3 | |
husband's older brother's wife | dàsǎo |
sister-in-law | 4 | |
husband's younger brother | xiǎoshū |
brother-in-law | 4 | |
husband's younger brother's wife | xiǎoshěn |
sister-in-law | 4 | |
husband's older sister | dàgū |
sister-in-law | 4 | |
husband's younger sister | xiǎogū |
sister-in-law | 4 | |
wife's sister's husband, older than ego | jīnxiōng |
(elder) (co-)brother-in-law | 0 | |
wife's sister's husband, younger than ego | jīndì |
(younger) (co-)brother-in-law | 0 | |
husband's brother's wife | 妯娌 zhóulǐ |
(co-)sister-in-law | ||
son's or daughter's father-in-law | 亲家 qìngjiāgōng |
亲家 qìngjiāwēng |
co-father-in-law (rare) | |
son's or daughter's mother-in-law | 亲家 qìngjiāmǔ |
亲家 qìngjiāpó |
co-mother-in-law (rare) | |
husband's wife, senior to ego | ?媵 | co-wife | ||
husband's wife, junior to ego | ?媵 | co-wife | ||
husband's wife, younger sister to ego | 娣媵 dìyìng |
sister-wife | ||
concubine | qiè |
concubine |
Larger extended family and terminology
[edit]This section covers members and their spouses found beyond the first nine corner cells on the table of consanguinity or cousin chart. Although some of the relations seem distant, they are considered close relatives and it is common for Chinese families to have regular contact with these members.
Extended family | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) |
paternal (maternal) grandfather's older (younger) brother | ( (wài) bó (shū) zǔfù |
( (wài) bó (shū) gōng |
granduncle | paternal: 4 maternal: 0 |
- wife | ( (wài) bó (shěn) zǔmǔ |
(wài) bó (shěn) pó |
grandaunt | paternal: 4 maternal: 0 |
paternal (maternal) grandfather's sister | ( (wài) gūzǔmǔ |
( (wài) gūpó; ( (wài) cóngzǔgū |
grandaunt | paternal: 4; 5 if married maternal: 0 |
- husband | ( (wài) gūzǔfù |
( ( |
granduncle | 0 |
paternal (maternal) grandmother's brother | ( (wài) jiùzǔfù |
( (wài) jiùgōng |
granduncle | 0 |
- wife | ( (wài) jiùzǔmǔ |
( (wài) jiùpó |
grandaunt | 0 |
paternal (maternal) grandmother's sister | ( (wài) yízǔmǔ |
( (wài) yípó |
grandaunt | 0 |
- husband | ( (wài) yízǔfù |
( (wài) yígōng |
granduncle | 0 |
paternal (maternal) great-grandparent | ( (wài) zēngzǔfùmǔ |
( (wài) tàigōng/pó |
great-grandparent | paternal: 2 (5 months) maternal: 0 |
paternal (maternal) great-grandfather's older (younger) brother | ( (wài) zúzēngzǔfù |
( ( |
great-granduncle | paternal: 5 maternal: 0 |
- wife | ( (wài) zúzēngzǔmǔ |
( ( |
great-grandaunt | paternal: 5 maternal: 0 |
paternal (maternal) great-grandfather's sister | ( (wài) zúzēngzǔgū |
( (wài) zēngzǔgū |
great-grandaunt | paternal: 5; 0 if married maternal: 0 |
paternal (maternal) great-great-grandparent | ( (wài) gāozǔfùmǔ |
great-great-grandparent | paternal: 2 (3 months) maternal: 0 | |
paternal (maternal) great-great- great-grandparent |
( (wài) tiānzǔfùmǔ |
great-great- great-grandparent |
paternal: 2 (3 months) maternal: 0 | |
paternal (maternal) great-great-great- great-grandparent |
( (wài) lièzǔfùmǔ |
great-great-great- great-grandparent |
? | |
paternal (maternal) great-great-great- great-great-grandparent |
( (wài) tàizǔfùmǔ |
great-great-great- great-great-grandparent |
? | |
paternal (maternal) great-great-great-great- great-great-grandparent |
( (wài) yuǎnzǔfùmǔ |
great-great-great-great- great-great-grandparent |
? | |
paternal (maternal) great-great-great-great- great-great-great-grandparent |
( (wài) bízǔfùmǔ |
great-great-great-great- great-great-great-grandparent |
? | |
son of brother's son (daughter) | ( (wài) zhísūnér |
grandnephew | 2 (1 year) maternal: 0 | |
- wife | ( (wài) zhísūnxí |
grandniece in-law | 5 maternal:0 | |
daughter of brother's son (daughter) | ( (wài) zhísūnnǚ |
grandniece | 2 (1 year); 3 if married maternal: 0 | |
sister's grandchildren | wàishēngsūnérnǚ |
grandnephew; grandniece | 0 | |
children of son's son | 曾孙儿女 ( zēngsūnérnǚ |
great-grandchildren | male: 5; female:0 | |
all other great-grandchildren | wàizēngsūnérnǚ |
great-grandchildren | 0 | |
children of son's son's son | xuánsūnérnǚ |
yuánsūnérnǚ |
great-great-grandchildren | male: 5; female:0 |
all other great-great-grandchildren | wàixuánsūnérnǚ |
wàiyuánsūnérnǚ |
great-great-grandchildren | 0 |
grandson of brother's son (daughter) | ( (wài) zhízēngsūnér |
great-grandnephew | 5; maternal: 0 | |
granddaughter of brother's son (daughter) | ( (wài) zhízēngsūnnǚ |
great-grandniece | 5; maternal: 0 | |
sister's great-grandchildren | wàishēngzēngsūnérnǚ |
great-grandnephew; great-grandniece | 0 |
First cousins | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Term | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) | |
children of father's brother's son | tángzhíérnǚ |
first cousin once removed | ||
all other grandchildren of father's sibling | biǎozhíérnǚ |
" | ||
grandchildren of mother's sibling | biǎoshēngérnǚ |
" | ||
son of paternal grandfather's brother who is older than ego's father | tángbó |
" | ||
son of paternal grandfather's brother who is younger than ego's father | tángshū |
" | ||
daughter of paternal grandfather's brother | tánggū |
" | ||
son of maternal grandfather's brother | tángjiù |
" | ||
daughter of maternal grandfather's brother | tángyí |
" | ||
son of paternal grandfather's sister who is older than ego's father | biǎobó |
" | ||
son of paternal grandmother's sibling who is older than ego's father | biǎobó |
" | ||
son of paternal grandfather's sister who is younger than ego's father | biǎoshū |
" | ||
son of paternal grandmother's sibling who is younger than ego's father | biǎoshū |
" | ||
daughter of paternal grandfather's sister | biǎogū |
" | ||
daughter of paternal grandmother's sibling | biǎogū |
" | ||
son of maternal grandfather's sister | biǎojiù |
" | ||
son of maternal grandmother's sibling | biǎojiù |
" | ||
daughter of maternal grandfather's sister | biǎoyí |
" | ||
daughter of maternal grandmother's sibling | biǎoyí |
" | ||
son of paternal (maternal) great-grandfather's brother who is older than ego's grandfather | ( (wài) zúbózǔfù |
first cousin twice removed | ||
son of paternal (maternal) great-grandfather's brother who is younger than ego's grandfather | ( (wài) zúshūzǔfù |
" | ||
daughter of paternal great-grandfather's brother | ( (wài) zúzǔgū |
" | ||
children of father's brother's son's son | tángzhísūnérnǚ |
|||
all other great-grandchildren of parent's sibling | biǎozhísūnérnǚ |
" |
Second cousins | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) |
paternal grandson of paternal grandfather's brother older than ego | zàicóngxiōng |
second cousin | 4 | |
paternal grandson of paternal grandfather's brother younger than ego | zàicóngdì |
" | 4 | |
paternal granddaughter of paternal grandfather's brother older than ego | zàicóngjiě |
" | 4; 5 if married | |
paternal granddaughter of paternal grandfather's brother younger than ego | zàicóngmèi |
" | 4; 5 if married | |
maternal grandson of paternal grandfather's brother older than ego | gédàibiǎoxiōng |
" | ||
maternal grandson of paternal grandfather's brother younger than ego | gédàibiǎodì |
" | ||
maternal granddaughter of paternal grandfather's brother older than ego | gédàibiǎojiě |
" | ||
maternal granddaughter of paternal grandfather's sister older than ego | gédàibiǎomèi |
" | ||
paternal great-grandson of paternal grandfather's brother | tángzhí |
second cousin once removed | ||
paternal great-granddaughter of paternal grandfather's brother | tángzhínǚ |
" |
Third cousins | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Relation | Term | Vocative or Address | English equivalent | Degree of mourning (duration) |
great-grandson of paternal great-grandfather's brother older than ego | zúxiōng |
sāncóngxiōng |
third cousin | 5 |
great-grandson of paternal great-grandfather's brother younger than ego | zúdì |
sāncóngdì |
" | 5 |
great-granddaughter of paternal great-grandfather's brother older than ego | zújiě |
sāncóngjiě |
" | 5; 0 if married |
great-granddaughter of paternal great-grandfather's brother younger than ego | zúmèi |
sāncóngmèi |
" | 5; 0 if married |
Distant relations
[edit]Other than some of the relations mentioned in the previous sections that are not covered under the five degrees of mourning attire, the following are kin that are also considered distant.
- (
外 )來 孫 - great-great-great-grandchildren - (
外 )晜孫 - great-great-great-great-grandchildren - (
外 )仍孫 - great-great-great-great-great-grandchildren - (
外 )雲 孫 - great-great-great-great-great-great-grandchildren - (
外 )耳 孫 - great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandchildren
Partial or no consanguinity
[edit]The following familial relationship suggests partial or no consanguinity. Most of them are not a modern phenomenon, however. In fact, polygamy (specifically polygyny) was widely accepted in pre-republican China.
The saying of "three fathers and eight mothers" (
- Cohabiting stepfather (
同居 的 繼父 ) - Non-cohabiting stepfather (
不 同居 的 繼父 ) - Stepfather from remarriage of father and mother (
從 父母 嫁 之 繼父 ) 嫡母 - father's official wife (when birth mother of ego is a concubine)繼母 - stepmother養母 - adopted mother慈母 - concubine replacing ego's birth mother who died嫁 母 - widowed birth mother who has remarried出 母 - birth mother who has been divorced- 庶母 - father's concubine who is also a mother (when birth mother of ego is the official wife)
乳母 - wet nurse
Another saying of "five fathers and ten mothers" (
生 父 - birth father養父 - adopted father繼父 - stepfather義父 - godfather師父 - (male) teacher/coach/master
and two mothers added to the eight mentioned above:
生母 - birth mother諸 母 - father's concubine
As a result of polygamy there would be half-siblings:
同 父 異母 兄弟 姐 妹 - siblings sharing the same father同母 異父 兄弟 姐 妹 - siblings sharing the same mother
See also
[edit]- Chinese marriage
- Chinese surname
- Chinese compound surname
- Chinese given name
- Little Emperor Syndrome
General:
Notes
[edit]- ^ JankowiakSun (2017).
- ^ Fairbank, John; Goldman, Merle (2006). China: A New History. Harvard University Press. p. 20. ISBN 0674116739.
- ^ (in Chinese) Transcript of essay on Chinese kinship. Dated 1561. - NB. link broken, Internet Archive copy instead
- ^ Yang, Rae (1998), Spider Eaters: A Memoir, University of California Press, p. 46, ISBN 0-520-21598-2, retrieved 2009-07-14,
The letter became evidence of Second Uncle's yearning for the Nationalists to come back.
- ^ Wiesner-Hanks. Gender In History. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 30.
- ^ Wiesner-Hanks. Gender In History. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 30.
- ^ http://law.moj.gov.tw/Eng/Fnews/FnewsContent.asp?msgid=740&msgType=en&keyword=marriage[permanent dead link]
References and further reading
[edit]- Jankowiak, William; Sun, Yuezhu (8 June 2017). "Family Relationships in Contemporary China". Oxford Bibliographies.
- Morgan, Lewis Henry. 1877. Ancient Society. MacMillan & Company, London (complete text online)
- Watson, James L (1982). "Chinese Kinship Reconsidered: Anthropological Perspectives on Historical Research". The China Quarterly. 92: 589–622.
- Wolf, Arthur P. and Chieh-shan Huang. 1985. Marriage and Adoption in China, 1845-1945. Stanford University Press.
- (in Chinese) Code of (Mourning) Attire tables
- http://extremeorient.revues.org/234 The Father-Son Relationship in Early Medieval China