Final answer:
Cognatic descent groups create discrete groups by tracing kinship through both maternal and paternal lines, in systems like ambilineal or bilateral descent, leading to a variety of social dynamics within a community.
Step-by-step explanation:
Cognatic descent groups can create discrete groups by tracing kinship through both the maternal and paternal lines, which allows for a more complex and inclusive family structure. This form of kinship is diverse and flexible, with various systems like ambilineal descent where families can choose to follow either the mother's or father's line, and bilateral descent, where both parents' lines are equally considered. The formation of discrete groups is possible as families make specific choices about descent that can ultimately influence social structures, inheritance, and marriage rules within a community.
Forms of Cognatic Descent:
- Ambilineal descent - Family chooses maternal or paternal line at marriage and applies it to their children.
- Bilateral descent - Individual's kinship is traced through both mother's and father's lines, typical in the United States today.
- Bifurcate merging kinship - Combines unilineal descent with the merging and bifurcating of relational ties to form discrete kin groups.
These kinship structures allow for the development of strong, identifiable groups within a society, with their own specific relationships and social obligations. They play an integral role in maintaining or transforming ethnic identity, through dynamics such as the changeover model or the clearance model of ethnic change. Also, geographical factors can affect the preservation or alteration of ethnic identity, for instance, by limiting the influx of outsiders or through outmigration.