GEN-MEDIEVAL-L Archives

Archiver > GEN-MEDIEVAL > 2004-10 > 1099177507


From:
Subject: Re: More on King's Kinsfolk
Date: Sat, 30 Oct 2004 19:05:07 EDT


A picture of Celtic society is presented in the text "Celtic Britain" by
Lloyd Laing, pp. 20 - 21. It describes the family unit as a large group of
descendants from a common great-grandfather, called the "derbfine" and had its own
identity in law. Succession depended on it, (i.e., this family relationship),
and any member of a king's "derbfine" could succeed him: an uncle, brother, or
nephew etc. The "derbfine" owned land collectively and there was no
individual ownership. The large group was known known as a "tuath" or tribe, which
was ruled over by a chief or king. In Britain, Ireland, and Scotland this
Celtic root was patterned, as a warrior society with the family (clan) as it
foundation. In Wales, this is first described on a sixth-century tombstone from
Llantrisant in Anglesey, "...example to all his fellows [cives] and kinsmen
[parentes], in character, in discipline and in wisdom". {see Social Ties and
Social Strata, The Family, In: Wales In the Early Middle Ages, by Wendy Davies,
Leicester University Press, 1982, pp. 71- 81. The Welsh term for kindred is
"cenedl" and the principle of kinship "parentelae". Welsh laws made clear
statements about the structure of the Welsh kindred (cenedl) and defined certain
responsibilities between tribes and the kindred group. Most Welsh law involved
the kindred to six-generations, with a six-generation patilineal kindred. For
some purposes, such as homicide payments, the kindred extended to the fifth
cousins, for others such as inheritance, the sharing did not go beyond the
second cousin.
These social systems have existed in Britain prior to Roman occupation,
and shared among the Celtic groups having common roots and language.
Therefore, it is not suprising that your study revealed the same.

This thread: