Bugis - Kinship

Kin Groups and Descent. The Bugis exhibit a general Eskimo kinship organization with bilateral descent. Personal kindreds function as occasional kin groups and are often referred to by the term siajing. The kapolo of Luwu' has been described as an ambilateral ramage, but this type of group, although centered on a core of related noble kin, also includes nonconsanguineally related members. It is thus better considered an entourage of followers, invoked on such occasions as marriages of noble leaders.

Kinship Terminology. Eskimo cousin terms are used. While cousin terms are not differentiated, same-sex sibling terms are differentiated as elder and younger, while opposite-sex sibling terms are also distinguished. Neither father's nor mother's siblings are distinguished by sex, nor from each other; the same is true for siblings' and cousins' children. Grandparent and grandchild terms can be further specified reciprocally as from the lap, knee, calf, instep, and "scraping interface" as the generational difference moves from 2 to 7 (e.g., eppo ri uttu, "grandchild of the knee" = great-grandchild) . The importance of rank is evident in the divergent usage of address terms by nobles and commoners. Nobles of higher generation or greater age in the same generation are addressed as "lord" ( puang ). Where generation and age are incongruent, a combination of terms is often used. Commoners may extend kin terms to nonkin, and usually use teknonyms to address and refer to fellow commoners.