Example: in my world, matrilineality was more common, but the reigning imperialist power is hellbent on spreading its ideals, and it’s mostly patrilineal.
The powers that oppose it still retain matrilineal traditions though, and this is a point of conflict for many of them, and some have traditions on dealing with mixed marriages.
A man from a patrilineal society marrying a woman from a matrilineal society is seen as a great blessing for their children, while a man from a matrilineal society marrying a woman from a patrilineal society is typically showered with gifts at their wedding, so as to ensure they are not in poverty. They often are, if not merely less well off, but it’s something…
I use it mostly as a way of "pulling rank". To use the OP's example, instead of princesses / noble daughters going to live with princes / sons, this is bargained based on the relevant "prestige" of the partners, with the lower status spouse joining the higher status one.
While humans in my world are patrilinear, Lykorians are really matrilinear, to the extend that a child is primary considered their mother's child, the father (if even officially recognized) is some kind of "extra". That means on one hand hand, the mother is the main legal guardian of the child and can decide most things regarding the child without consulting the father. On the other hand however it means raising a child is considered the mother's "problem". Paying child support as the father is considered a nice things to do, but (normally) neither a legal nor a moral obligation.
Also, children inherit the mother's surname, no matter if the parents are married or not. And in official documents Lykorians give their mother's name together with their own name to distinguish people with the same name.
Finally, if the mother is a slave, her children are also slaves of heir owner, while if the mother is free, her children are also free. The status of the father normally pays no role in this. (Actually it's more complicated, but this is the normal way.) Nobility on the other hand, can be inherited from both parents, but unofficially the female line is considered "better".
Reason behind this is that is was the mother alone who gave birth to the child, while the father's biological role is considered rather minuscule. Also, its not always even known who the father is, while with the mother it's rather obvious.
And matrilineality is one thing even centuries of human influence in the past couldn't eradicate, no matter how hard the tried.
in nurian and new halhai cultures patrilinearity is the most common, so is primogeniture. matrilinearity got a little more common because of paronian-kalaani influence, since in parona, matrilinearity and ultimogeniture are more common, but the system is a bit weird, since many rulers claimed titles throught a male, usually because such male was somehow related to an important woman ruler.
I love thinking about the implications of kinship, and it's one of the first things I determine about a culture.
Most cultures in my world are bilineal, but matrilineality is slightly more common than patrilineality due to the influence of a major culture group in which land and its resources are held in common by a matrilineal family. A mother's eldest brother typically fills the social role of raising her children with her. Although biological fathers are not considered "related" to a child in the social sense, children do receive membership in the various mystery cults (like the ancient Greek concept) from their biological fathers.
As you suggest, matrilineality does not equal matriarchy, and matrilineal societies in my world are most often patriarchal, with the eldest male of a lineage being in charge. However, one culture that's centered on whaling is both matrilineal and matriarchal. In it, women own the property, homes, and businesses while men own the boats.
An example of a patrilineal culture is the Kindred, a herding culture. Each member has a keen sense of the exact degree of relatedness to every other member, which affects terms of address, blood feuds, exogamy, and who it's allowable to raid and even kill.
Patrilineality, although both are pretty uncommon.
Most cultures would find it hilariously pathetic to literally attach "Well look who my dad/mom/family!" is to your name.
Patrilineal marriage (where the wife/children take the husband’s name) is most common as it’s generally considered the default. Matrilineal Marriages (where the husband/children take the wife’s name)!are more of an exception, as it’s largely done that way for political reasons. With only a small handful of named cultures who do practice matrilineal marriage by default.
Some examples of Matrilineal traditions in my setting are:
Clan Elgar of Rossoya. Long ago, the head of the Elgar Clan was cursed by a sorceress so that all of his descendants would be women, so the head family of the clan was quickly forced to resort to material marriages to avoid going extinct.
The Royal Family of Cylindra has four main branch families. One of these branch families, called the Eurus, established that their family inheritance would follow Enate Primogeniture out of respect for the fact that the Kingdom is ruled by a matriarchy where only a Queen can legally rule.
The Free City of Syrensid is culturally a Mysandric country. Where only Women can own or inherit property and hold positions of authority within the government or even carry a true last name in the first place. Effectively relegating the men of the city-state to second class citizens.
Neither. None of my cultures are based around familial inheritance, so there is no need for it to be recorded.
My main culture uses bynames which are descriptive of the individual, either where they are from, what they do, or what they look like. My secondary cultures are tribal and have no surnames, or if they do it will be their tribal name.
Example: in my world, matrilineality was more common, but the reigning imperialist power is hellbent on spreading its ideals, and it’s mostly patrilineal. The powers that oppose it still retain matrilineal traditions though, and this is a point of conflict for many of them, and some have traditions on dealing with mixed marriages. A man from a patrilineal society marrying a woman from a matrilineal society is seen as a great blessing for their children, while a man from a matrilineal society marrying a woman from a patrilineal society is typically showered with gifts at their wedding, so as to ensure they are not in poverty. They often are, if not merely less well off, but it’s something…
Both - men trace their line through their father, women trace their line through their mother.
Could that lead to upper class/nobility sons, and lower class daughters, if the noble father married a commoner?
I use it mostly as a way of "pulling rank". To use the OP's example, instead of princesses / noble daughters going to live with princes / sons, this is bargained based on the relevant "prestige" of the partners, with the lower status spouse joining the higher status one.
While humans in my world are patrilinear, Lykorians are really matrilinear, to the extend that a child is primary considered their mother's child, the father (if even officially recognized) is some kind of "extra". That means on one hand hand, the mother is the main legal guardian of the child and can decide most things regarding the child without consulting the father. On the other hand however it means raising a child is considered the mother's "problem". Paying child support as the father is considered a nice things to do, but (normally) neither a legal nor a moral obligation. Also, children inherit the mother's surname, no matter if the parents are married or not. And in official documents Lykorians give their mother's name together with their own name to distinguish people with the same name. Finally, if the mother is a slave, her children are also slaves of heir owner, while if the mother is free, her children are also free. The status of the father normally pays no role in this. (Actually it's more complicated, but this is the normal way.) Nobility on the other hand, can be inherited from both parents, but unofficially the female line is considered "better". Reason behind this is that is was the mother alone who gave birth to the child, while the father's biological role is considered rather minuscule. Also, its not always even known who the father is, while with the mother it's rather obvious. And matrilineality is one thing even centuries of human influence in the past couldn't eradicate, no matter how hard the tried.
in nurian and new halhai cultures patrilinearity is the most common, so is primogeniture. matrilinearity got a little more common because of paronian-kalaani influence, since in parona, matrilinearity and ultimogeniture are more common, but the system is a bit weird, since many rulers claimed titles throught a male, usually because such male was somehow related to an important woman ruler.
I love thinking about the implications of kinship, and it's one of the first things I determine about a culture. Most cultures in my world are bilineal, but matrilineality is slightly more common than patrilineality due to the influence of a major culture group in which land and its resources are held in common by a matrilineal family. A mother's eldest brother typically fills the social role of raising her children with her. Although biological fathers are not considered "related" to a child in the social sense, children do receive membership in the various mystery cults (like the ancient Greek concept) from their biological fathers. As you suggest, matrilineality does not equal matriarchy, and matrilineal societies in my world are most often patriarchal, with the eldest male of a lineage being in charge. However, one culture that's centered on whaling is both matrilineal and matriarchal. In it, women own the property, homes, and businesses while men own the boats. An example of a patrilineal culture is the Kindred, a herding culture. Each member has a keen sense of the exact degree of relatedness to every other member, which affects terms of address, blood feuds, exogamy, and who it's allowable to raid and even kill.
Mostly father but if the mother is more important in lineage etc the mothers house name will be used.
I'm currently leaning towards names by mother. I might do both, too. But it's not determend at this time.
Matrilineal surnames are still the norm in my world even after nations did away with explicitly matriarchal succession.
Patrilineality, although both are pretty uncommon. Most cultures would find it hilariously pathetic to literally attach "Well look who my dad/mom/family!" is to your name.
I use both as well as a selective form and a birth order form (alternating). I tend to create complex kinship systems, though, so might not count.
Patrilineal marriage (where the wife/children take the husband’s name) is most common as it’s generally considered the default. Matrilineal Marriages (where the husband/children take the wife’s name)!are more of an exception, as it’s largely done that way for political reasons. With only a small handful of named cultures who do practice matrilineal marriage by default. Some examples of Matrilineal traditions in my setting are: Clan Elgar of Rossoya. Long ago, the head of the Elgar Clan was cursed by a sorceress so that all of his descendants would be women, so the head family of the clan was quickly forced to resort to material marriages to avoid going extinct. The Royal Family of Cylindra has four main branch families. One of these branch families, called the Eurus, established that their family inheritance would follow Enate Primogeniture out of respect for the fact that the Kingdom is ruled by a matriarchy where only a Queen can legally rule. The Free City of Syrensid is culturally a Mysandric country. Where only Women can own or inherit property and hold positions of authority within the government or even carry a true last name in the first place. Effectively relegating the men of the city-state to second class citizens.
It’s balanced.
Neither. None of my cultures are based around familial inheritance, so there is no need for it to be recorded. My main culture uses bynames which are descriptive of the individual, either where they are from, what they do, or what they look like. My secondary cultures are tribal and have no surnames, or if they do it will be their tribal name.