Consanguineous Marriage and Human Evolution

Bittles, Alan H.; Black, Michael

doi:10.1146/annurev.anthro.012809.105051

Cited by 63 publications

(78 citation statements)

References 84 publications

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“…As in other populations Bittles & Black, 2010a), marriages between first cousins occurred at somewhat younger male and female ages, and this also applied to second and third cousin unions. But from an overall perspective there appeared to be little significant variation in spousal ages and age differences at different levels of consanguinity or with non-consanguineous spouses (Table 3).…”

Section: Demographic Influencessupporting

confidence: 60%

Socioeconomic, Demographic and Legal Influences on Consanguinity and Kinship in Northern Coastal Sweden 1780–1899

Egerbladh

Bittles

2011

J. Biosoc. Sci.

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SummaryMost studies on consanguinity have been conducted on contemporary populations and have focused on the prevalence and types of preferred intra-familial marriage. With its comprehensive birth, marriage and deaths records dating back to the late 17th century, and the legal bar on first cousin marriage removed in the mid-19th century, Sweden offers unique opportunities to examine the factors that determine by whom, where and why consanguineous marriages were contracted. The present study covers the period 1780–1899 and presents a detailed portrait of cousin and sibling exchange marriages in the Skellefteå region of northern coastal Sweden. The combined prevalence of first, second and third cousin marriage increased from 2.3% in 1790–1810 to 8.8% in 1880–1899, and multi-generation consanguinity also increased significantly over the study period. The distribution and prevalence of first cousin marriages was strikingly non-random, with a significantly greater propensity for consanguinity among land-owning families, especially involving first-born sons, within specific pedigrees, and in a number of more remote inland communities. Additional factors associated with a greater likelihood of consanguineous marriage included physical or mental disability among males, and among females the prior birth of an illegitimate child. Besides the inherent interest in the social and demographic structure of this region of northern Sweden during the course of the 19th century, in future studies it will be important to determine the degree to which the observed patterns of consanguineous and sibling exchange marriages in these past generations could have influenced present-day genetic structure.

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Section: Demographic Influencessupporting

confidence: 60%

Socioeconomic, Demographic and Legal Influences on Consanguinity and Kinship in Northern Coastal Sweden 1780–1899

Egerbladh

Bittles

2011

J. Biosoc. Sci.

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“…In many countries the extended kin-groups, strengthened by kin-marriages, plays an important role. In parts of the world first and second cousin marriages account for 20 to 50 percent of all marriages (Bittles and Black 2010). The social closure implied by kin-marriage creates much tighter family networks compared to less fractionalized societies where the nuclear family dominates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Churches' Bans on Consanguineous Marriages, Kin-Networks and Democracy

Schulz

2016

SSRN Journal

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Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen:Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden.Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen.Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. Terms of use: Documents in

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“…In many parts of the world, particularly in the region stretching from North Africa through the Arabian Peninsula to Pakistan and India, arranged cousin marriages are extensively practiced, especially between the children of brothers. It is estimated that the fraction of the global population practicing consanguineous marriage is around 10.4% (Bittles, 2010).…”

Section: The Consanguinity Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The biggest overall limitation was the sample size; only 70 nations were used in the analysis owing to the fact that this represents the near totality of countries for which consanguinity statistics are available (Bittles, 2001). Despite this, however, the nations surveyed were inclusive of all of the populated continents and were quite culturally diverse.…”

Section: Limitations Of the Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Consanguinity as a Major Predictor of Levels of Democracy

Woodley

Bell

2012

Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology

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This article examines the hypothesis that although the level of democracy in a society is a complex phenomenon involving many antecedents, consanguinity (marriage and subsequent mating between second cousins or closer relatives) is an important though often overlooked predictor of it. Measures of the two variables correlate substantially in a sample of 70 nations (r = -0.632, p < 0.001), and consanguinity remains a significant predictor of democracy in multiple regression and path analyses involving several additional independent variables. The data suggest that where consanguineous kinship networks are numerically predominant and have been made to share a common statehood, democracy is unlikely to develop. Possible explanations for these findings include the idea that restricted gene flow arising from consanguineous marriage facilitates a rigid collectivism that is inimical to individualism and the recognition of individual rights, which are key elements of the democratic ethos. Furthermore, high levels of within-group genetic similarity may discourage cooperation between different large-scale kin groupings sharing the same nation, inhibiting democracy. Finally, genetic similarity stemming from consanguinity may encourage resource predation by members of socially elite kinship networks as an inclusive fitness enhancing behavior.

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Consanguineous Marriage and Human Evolution

Cited by 63 publications

References 84 publications

Socioeconomic, Demographic and Legal Influences on Consanguinity and Kinship in Northern Coastal Sweden 1780–1899

Socioeconomic, Demographic and Legal Influences on Consanguinity and Kinship in Northern Coastal Sweden 1780–1899

The Churches' Bans on Consanguineous Marriages, Kin-Networks and Democracy

Consanguinity as a Major Predictor of Levels of Democracy

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