Fipa - Kinship

Kin Groups and Descent. The Fipa are grouped in cognatic kindreds, each focused on an elected leader or chairperson. These are fluid groups, whose members are drawn together by a need for mutual aid and a common interest in the accumulation and distribution of wealth.

Kinship Terminology. Although descent and inheritance are bilateral, Fipa kin terms are unilineal, distinguishing father's brother from mother's brother and father's sister from mother's sister, whereas cousin terms are of the Iroquois type.