> I was under the impression that Orlanthi are exogamus (sp?) i.e. they
> always marry outside the clan. But the Harvest Race of the Greydogs
> described in TotRM#18 implies that the Queen and King most likely are
> from the same clan and might even be from the same bloodline. In the
> Garhound most participants come from outside the clan but Caryllon(sp?)
> might be from the Garhound clan.
Remember that an Orlanthi "all" is six out of seven or around 86%. :). There are always exceptions in Orlanthi society. *Heortling* Orlanthi are exogamous at the clan level, and personally I'd think the 'all' in this case would be 95%+. Other Orlanthi, such as those in Ralios, practice other forms of kinship.
The clan is the fundamental, enduring unit of Heortling society, and exogamous marriage customs bind the clans together. There are lots of variations - some clans have prescriptive exogamy and direct exchange ('you "must" marry someone from the Black Oaks or ThreeNosed BlueDeer clan'), others indirect exchange ('the four clans of the Tovtaros only marry each other') or preferences based on history and alliance ('It is best to take a husband from the GreenThunder or Stretching Storm clan'). Others - such as those of the city rings or rebel upland clans of the deep gors - practice a broad exogamy welcoming any Orlanthi.
The influx of outsiders from the Empire taking clan husbands and brides is a seed with the potential to destroy the Heortling kinship system and with it most Heortling social institutions.
The major exceptions to exogamous marriage are of course ritual and ceremonial marriages. Marriage, involving union, sex, and kinship, is a powerful element of magic and ceremony. Normally taboo actions such as 'incest' (the Heortling definition, not ours), polyandry or polygyny may be a feature of magical rites. Such rites are always based on a Godtime example. Some of these rites stretch back to before the time that Orlanth made the first clan. They usually involve important people who 'embody' the clan in some way - a king, a priestess, a godi or gyrda, or people linked by cult or ancestry to important features of the tula ('The Fox Priestess of the Salt Licks must always marry a Yinkini hunter of the Rain Gors, as first laid down in the Great Before').
I imagine the Grey Dog marriage you mention to be an example of this - for the marriage of a king and queen is a powerful ritual heroquest. The inhabitants of Pavis County have a mixed culture that incorporates elements of Yelmalian, Pavic, and Heortling society. Solar villages are often endogamous - inmarrying - this may be one reason for their paranoia and fear of outsiders! In any case, The Garhound Contest is also a ceremonial marriage linked to the magical fertility of the area, and based on an Ernaldan myth.
Cheers
John
I don't give a damn if some Thracian ape strut Proud of that first-rate shield the bushes got. Leaving it was hell, but in a tricky spot I kept my hide intact. Good shields can be bought.
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