ABSTRACT
This chapter explores some dimensions of marriage: first, relationships between spouses in terms of differences in marriage forms (monogamy, polygyny, and polyandry) and, second, the creation of in-laws, or the nature of marriage as a mechanism for alliance. But given all the fluctuations in individual cases, only slightly more than half of all Nyinba marriages turn out to be polyandrous. The use of marriage as a mechanism for alliance between groups may have been a brilliant human invention, but arranging a marriage between groups is no easy task. To clarify who belongs to which descent group, the circle and triangle symbolizing the members of patrilineal descent group A are shaded. Exogamy would thus help promote peaceful relations, or at least prevent groups from forming only hostile relationships and killing each other off. In the case of lineage endogamy, the descent group cannot use marriage to forge or maintain alliances with other descent groups, but it acquires other advantages.
