Radniecība mūsdienu Latvijā

The chapter provides an insight into the basic principles of kinship, i.e., the bilateral succession system used by Latvian and many other European societies, where kinship is equally attributed to father and mother. The main consequence of this system is that the circle of relatives does not have clear boundaries and therefore social ties (frequency of meeting, mutual care) largely determine what is and is not considered relatives. In Latvia, it is customary to classify relatives into “real” or “blood relatives”, “married relatives” or in-laws. Analytically, the so-called “fictive kinship” can also be distinguished. It includes, for example, godparents or cases of adoption. However, such a category does not exist in the Latvian language and in practice. The practical effect of kinship can be seen mainly in restrictions on inheritance and marriage, where beliefs about who is born to whom play an important role. Equally important is the principle known in anthropology as “shared substances”, e.g., genes or blood.