Indian Antiquary Vol 40

SR No.: 032532
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications
Publication Year: 1984
Total Pages: 388
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 15 MB

Page 209

JULY, 1911.)
AN ENQUIRY INTO BIRTH AND MARRIAGE CUSTOMS
195
(c) Then, again, the terms used by the cousing themselves are most instructive. In Chaudas and in Bians,
father's brother's son, mother's sister's son, are called Yhd (brother)
brotber showing that these cannot be married, but
| father's sister's son, i.e., marriageable male cousins are called Chhe (Chandas)
mother's brother's son, and Pod (Bians) showing both these belong to one kind and are different from the cousins Yhd above; and
father's sister's daughter, (m. 8.) i,e., marriageable female cousins, are called
mother's brother's Chhémain (in Bians) showing that these two kinds of cousins belong to the same group. Both are marriageable, I have forgotten what the term is in Chaudas dialect, but I have no doubt it is the same for both. Thus we find that of the four kinds of cousins:
(1) two are forbidden in marriage, and are denoted by the same term as brother (lha), and (2) two are marriageable and are denoted by the same term :
Pod (Biang) for males.
Chhémain (Bians) for females. That though among the Rajputs and Brâhmans of Almora cousins of neither class may be married, yet their language from the parents' point of view divides the cousing into the same two groups: those of group (1) are treated as own children, but not so the other two. This possibly points to the existence of such cousin marriages at some remote time. But the Rajpats and Bråhmaņe, laving adopted the Brahmanical religious code, resent any such insinuation.
An interesting development of the idea that marriageable male cousins are called Pod and marriageable female cousins Chhémain, is seen in the application of the term Pod to all males, who are in marriageable degree of relationship, and whose brothers or sisters have actually been married and, therefore, who are (so to speak) cousins by courtesy. These are
husband's brother (f. s.) 1 - PAA
sister's husband (f. 8.) And the term Chhémain is applied to similar females, viz.,
wife's sister, m. s. Chhémain.
| brother's wife, m.s. There remain only the cousins of the same sex bat within marriageable degree, i.e., who, if one of them had been of a different sex, would have been marriageable, and, therefore, whose brothers and sisters have actually married or are marriageable. These are :
Father's sister's son (m. s.) Mother's brother's son (m. B.) Father's sister's daughter (f. 8.) Mother's brother's daughter (f. s.) Husband's sister (f. s.) Brother's wife (f. s.) Wife's brother (m. 8.)
Sister's husband (m. s.) These all are denoted by the term Tété !
Thus we see that in the Biansi dialect the names for cousins is based upon the idea of marriage. There is one term for the forbidden ones, another for marriageable males (f. s.), a third for marriageuble females (m. s.), and a fourth for males and females who would have been marriageable but for the fact that they are of the same sex as the speaker.
In the family given in our diagram Kishensundari and Kishensingh are, thus, marriageable cousins. Let us suppose them to marry each other. We thus get a triple bond between the couple, 8. c.
(1) Kishensingh is Ramsingh's sister's son, wife's brother's son, daughter's husband, m. s.
(2) Râmsingh is Kishensingh's mother's brother, father's sister's husband, wife's father, IN, S.
(3) Ramsundari is Kishensingh's father's sister, mother's brother's wife, wife's mother, m. 8.