Skip to content
Vinony

matrilineal

adjective

  1. tracing descent through female lines
L1522523 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˌmeɪtɹɪˈlɪnɪəl/ / /ˌmætɹɪ-/

adj

Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr Proto-Italic *mātēr Latin māterder. English matri- English lineal English matrilineal From matri- + lineal. Coined by British government anthropologist Northcote Whitridge Thomas in 1904 along with patrilineal.

  1. Tracing descent only through female ancestors.

    “Kerala traditionally has matrilineal inheritance.”

    “Enkidu expresses the values of nature, matrilineal conservatism, and the populism of the assembly, the assembly of village elders from the days before military dictatorship.”