It refers to a marriage to more than one person i.e plurality of husbands & wives in marital bonds
Example – it is fairy widespread all over the world ;
- In tribal Indian
Types
- Polygyny
- Polyandry
Polygyny
it refers to marriage in which one common husband is engaged in marital ties with more than one wife.
- Features of such societies – hunter gathers, frequent warfare, primitive agri, horticulture & high role of women in subsistence
- Example – The Baiga, Naga, Gonds & Toda, Naga
- In Pre independent Bengal, practice of Hypergamy leas to polygyny
- More wives in Nagas → status symbol → heroism
- More women → ↑ child → more labour i.e Economic pragmatism ; African tribes & central Indian tribes like Santhal
- Types of Polygyny
- Sororal Polygyny
- Non Sororal Polygyny
Sororal Polygyny
Marriage in which a man is married to two nor more sisters.
Non Sororal Polygyny
Marriage in which wives are not related as sisters.
Polyandry
It refers to marriage in which more than one husbands are engaged in marital ties with a single common wife.
- Found mainly in societies with female infanticide, minimum role in subsistence & mainly involved in childbearing & socialisation
- In Society with high bride price
- Example – It is comparatively restricted in its distribution
- Found in Central & NE Himalayan religion or less whole in the Himalayan region of N-W to Eastern Himalaya
- Tribes – Tibetans, Khasa, Toda, Ladakhi bota & Nayar etc
- Types
- Adelphic / Fraternal Polyandry
- Non-Fraternal or Non-Adelphic Polyandry
- Familial Polyandry
Adelphic or Faternal Polyandry
when serval brothers share same wife
- Tibetan & Khasa of Jaunsar – Dehradoon – Due to economic reasons ; to avoid population pressure on & division of land as scarcity of land. Eldest bro marry & girl automatic wife of all
- In this fatherhood goes to eldest brother
- Toda – due to religious regions belief of female infanticide prevalent → sacrificed to goddess → female imbalance
- Fatherhood voluntary ; performer of bow & arrow ceremony
- Ladakhi Bota
Non-Fraternal or Non-Adelphic Polyandry
Here husband are not brothers of each other
- E.g Nayar of Kerala – are matrilineal warrior tribe → ♂ on frontier → adult ♀ after formally tieiing knot with ritual husband can havae r/l with other males c/l visiting husband.
- Ritual husband enjoy status of father
Familial Polyandry
A female married to father & some simultaneously.
