Indigenous Wisdom

Female-centric cultures have existed for hundreds of years and can still be found in almost every continent on the globe today. In such cultures, women have played a leading role in almost every sphere, including politics, social structure, economics and spirituality. The most prevalent of these female-centric cultures have been matrilineal and matriarchal societies. Before going further, it is important to highlight the difference between matrilineal and matriarchal societies as they are often mistakenly used synonymously. A matriarchy is a system in which governance and decision-making lies with the mothers or women of a society. A mother is not necessarily a biological mother as common motherhood is a principle that matriarchies often practice amongst a group of blood-related women. A matrilineal system is one in which kinship is established through the mother’s lineage. Matriarchal systems may or may not necessarily be matrilineal in nature. According to a study by the University of New Mexico, about 17 percent of societies are matrilineal. Yet, there is little knowledge of such societies. In matrilineal cultures, it is common for women to inherit family property and for surnames to be passed on based on mothers’ lineages. We have provided a list of matrilineal societies, both past and present, for you below. Of these, we will be spending time exploring the role of women in Khasi, Choctaw, and Cherokee cultures, through a variety of podcasts with well-known personalities from each culture and experts on the topics.