Book

The dynamics of clanship among the Tallensi: being the first part of an analysis of the social structure of a Trans-Volta tribe

Oxford University Press for the International African InstituteLondon • Published In 1945 • Pages:

By: Fortes, Meyer.

Abstract
This source is devoted to a structural analysis of the clanship and lineage relationships among the Tallensi. It deals with the constitution and interrelations of the corporate groupings found in Tallensi society. He develops the idea that the tendency towards equilibrium is marked in every sector of Tallensi society and in the society as a whole, this tendency being a result of the dominance of the lineage principle in the social structure. He spends some time relating the economy and religion to the lineage system within the structure of the society. The interpenetrations of kinship with these aspects of the structure are left for a second volume. Material culture is touched upon only incidentally. Fortes received his doctorate in psychology from the University of London in 1930, studying subsequently under Radcliffe-Brown and Malinowski. He is currently William Wyse Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Cambridge.
Subjects
Clans
Kin relationships
Rule of descent
Lineages
Avoidance and taboo
Spirits and gods
Lineages
Cult of the dead
Sacred objects and places
Mythology
Ethos
Community structure
Community heads
Gender status
Settlement patterns
Real property
culture
Tallensi
HRAF PubDate
2010
Region
Africa
Sub Region
Western Africa
Document Type
Book
Evaluation
Creator Type
Ethnologist
Document Rating
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
Timothy J. O'Leary ; 1957
Field Date
1934-1937 ; 1943
Coverage Date
1934-1945
Coverage Place
Tongo village, Ghana
Notes
Meyer Fortes
Includes bibliographical references and index
LCCN
a 47002656
LCSH
Tallensi (African people)