The Clan and Lineage System

The district, the largest territorial unit of Konkomba organization, is occupied by a clan, the largest unit of political organization. The clan is a structure composed of lineages, themselves genealogical structures, and between lineages of one clan agnatic relationship is assumed, even though no ancestor common to all lineages is known. The clan is a segmentary system of enduring, agnatic lineages which on the levels of the major and minor lineage are localized corporate units with political functions. The age-sets stratify Konkomba major lineages into fifteen sets, beginning with the children between four to eight years of age in the youngest set, up to the elders in the oldest set. The age-sets therefore give a birth order or order of seniority within the limits of the major lineage. While the age-sets segment the major lineage horizontally, the association of the &s;young men&s; brings the young men of the lineage together and confers on its members equality of status as dancers and warriors.

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