Just thought I would throw a couple of comments in on the discussion. As always, YGWV,
Jane mentions:
Which gets us onto the social life of the average
Orlanthi, a subject well worth visiting in itself.
The impression I'd always had was that other clans are seen as foreigners, and that contact between them was deliberately restricted to clan leaders and formal occasions. That, in fact, this was a large part of what clan leaders are *for*.
My Reply:
There are clans, and then there are strangr clans. Several hundred years
of neighborliness has removed some of the official foreignness from
neighbors. If they are not enemies, they are probably friends.
Clans are not rigid with cell-like boundries keeping foreign bodies out.
Many times clans share a village or town. They share the resources of that
town and travelthere for markets, judgements and entertainment.
Clans OFTEN share temples, and hence people meet fairly regularly for the
annual ceremonies. This is especially true for spcialty deities.
Annual markets and tribal moots often have people (and NOT just the upper
classes) going to them.
Many clans have regular "sharing" ceremonies, especially to share their
special foodstuffs.
Often clans have parts of othr clans living in their treritory, especially
if a clan is a specialist in something and "lends" some of its people to
neighbors to do things like make wagons, bless sheep or replant forests.
Loose bloodlines, which have no real clans themselves, often live on the
lands of a powerful clan and serve them. (such bloodlines are generally
poor cottars, of course.)
Even if it is the upper class which goes to a neighboring clan for
buisness, regular people generally go along to tend the horses, etc.
And as Jane mentioned, there are always the shepherds in the hills on
those long, long summer days.
Donald Oddy:
A difficulty with exogamous marriages is distance for courting, it
may only be half a mile to the next clan's tula but when it takes
a couple of hours each way there are going to be limited opportunities.
Reply:
Courting? What is so difficult aobut you and your wife talkign, through an
intermediary, with me and my wife to arrange a mutually saisfacory
marriage for our children?
Oh, they believe in love? That disastrous, uneconomic practice ruled over
by the lurid goddess herself? Well, they will find a way to court then,
won't they!
He continues:
That's my point *IF brought before the courts*. I think that there is
a lot that doesn't get anywhere near the courts because the families
deal with the matter themselves.
Reply:
A clan would NEVER go to court against itself! I would ALWAYS handle its
internal affairs by itself.
Jane again:
p250 "Bloodlines are exogamous.."
p250 "The clan is also responsible for overseeing
marriages within its bloodlines..."
Reply:
My original intent was to make clans exogamous. As for that second line,
change "within" to "among" and it is more correct.
And as always, go and read John Hughes material again. There are always exception, there are always variants, there is always MGF.
Sincerely,
Greg Stafford
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