Senoi - Marriage and Family



Marriage. Casual east Semai and Temiar liasons shade into marriage with little ritual, although local elders may intervene in inappropriate teenage love affairs. Other Senoi have modified Malay weddings. West Semai have a form of bride-price. Less than 5 percent of marriages are polygynous, sometimes sororal. These marriages are often unstable, as first wives feel neglected and leave. West Semai polygynists usually have wives in separate settlements, spending some time with each. Only the Temiar have polyandry, often fraternal. East Semai brothers have limited access to each other's wives, if the wives consent. Since most sakaq residents are kin, marriage tends to be exogamous. Postmarital residence is ambilocal, with the couple living first in the wife's sakaq, then the husband's, then the wife's again and so on until they settle. Divorce is common, often following long periods of living apart. Children and the parents decide on where the children will then live.

Domestic Unit. Nuclear families predominate in most Senoi groups, with extended families found in all groups, ranging from the hill Temiar longhouses to the more amorphous arrangements resulting from overcrowding among the east Semai.

Inheritance. Land goes to the surviving spouse, with siblings or children receiving movable goods, depending on the need. West Semai divide land or trees acquired after marriage equally between widow (er) s and close blood relatives of the deceased.

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