|
As
the Dreaming played a major role in society, the relationships
of the Adnyamthanha people with each other and the land were
deeply spiritual. In
Adnyamathanha society there were two main divisions (moieties)
called Matheri (the south wind) and Arura (the north wind) which
underpinned the marriage system and all interactions in Adnyamthanha
society. A person's moiety was inherited from the mother, for
example, if the person's mother was Arura then that person was
also Arura. People had many responsibilities to their moiety.
For example if a member of their moiety had died,
|
the members
of that moiety had to perform certain rituals.
One of
the outcome of this system was the prevention of marriage
between close relatives.
Adnyamthanha
people today still know their moiety and many still marry
according to their traditions. "The
next generation will say "Moiety, what's that?" and we'll
explain, what it means, where it started. We even know the
place where it started, that's going back in history."
(Lynch Ryan 1989 in Education Department of SA 1992: 70)
|
