Swedes - Kinship

Kinship and Descent. Swedish kinship is bilateral and cognatic. Generally the kinship system follows the same rules of other European peoples. Except for the family, kin groups have been of little importance as a focus of social organization during the most recent centuries.

Kinship Terminology. Kin terms follow the Eskimo System with local and regional variations in terminology. In some regions in northern Sweden, cousins are numbered from first to fourth. They can be called, as for example in northern Värmland, tvämänningar, tremänningar, fyrmänningar , femmänningar. In central and southern Sweden the words syssling, brylling, pyssling are used instead of the number of the cousins.