Class and Marriage in Africa and Eurasia

The concepts of class, caste, and estate, derived as they are from Eurasian models, are not wholly satisfactory when applied to Africa. Homogamy and in-marriage are not characteristic of the social strata in African states, which tend to encourage marriage between groups of different status, hence these groups tend not to develop in isolation with distinctive modes of life. Out-marriage and bridewealth in Africa stand in contrast to in-marriage and dowry in Eurasia. It is suggested that the more intesive form of agriculture in the latter area encouraged the preservation of familial status by the transmission, inter alia, of property ot females (e.g., the dowry) as well as males, a procedure which strongly encourages the marriage of like with like. In africa, out-marriage strengthens the social ties and cultural similarities within a society. As a consequence, "class conflict" was less significant in the political system, although the situation is now changing in the "modern" sector.