Kin Groups and Descent. Prior to contact, Aleut kinship was likely matrilineal, though the ethnohistoric information on this is not altogether clear. It is doubtful that kin groups beyond the matrilineage, such as moieties or phratries, existed. Within a few decades of Russian contact, this system ceased to function.
Kinship Terminology. The pattern of precontact Aleut kinship terminology has not been adequately determined.
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