Torres Strait Islanders - Kinship

Kin Groups and Descent. Throughout the islands there is a patrilineal bias to the reckoning of kinship, but maternal kin are recognized as well. Community groups tend to be predominantly made up of patrilaterally related men, their spouses, and their children, but descent is not reckoned very deeply. The concept of "family" is now strongly "privatized" in accordance with the majority practice of Australian society.