Kinship, Clans, and History

Abstract Notions of kinship, and the obligations they imply, provide basic models for close social relations, both within the household, and beyond it. Longestablished networks are the basis of most social interaction beyond the household, and are relied upon to provide support and assistance in times of need. The idiom of kinship may be used to describe the members of an individual’s network. The term ah duu means’ brothers and sisters’ but can be applied to friends as well as relations (hamaatan). Kinship is traced bilaterally and networks usually include patrilateral, matrilateral, and affinal kin. The closest bonds are generally found between members of a minimal lineage of around three generations in depth (particularly if they live near each other). Beyond this, however, the incidence and importance of clans and lineages differs between different Mongolian groups. Clans are prominent in Hulun Buir among the Barga and Buryat groups, in Hinggan, Jirem, and Juu Ud leagues, among the Mongoljin and Turned Mongolians of Liaoning, the Chahar and the more western Mongol groups-the Turned, Ordos, Bayan Nuur, and Alasha Mongolians. In contrast, the Shilingol Mongolians, including the Sunid, Ujumchin, and Abaga (like most of the Halh Mongolians of’ Outer’ Mongolia) recognize the noble Borjigin clan, but apart from this have relatively little by way of widely extended kinship structures.1 The most widely used Mongolian term for the clan is obug but in Hulun Buir clans are known by the Manchu term hala, and in some areas they were traditionally known as yasan (which means bone), or aimag (a word that can be used used to mean tribe, but is mainly used to mean a large administrative district).