Nyandom ni ba-��yandom

Among the Basaa people the term “ŋyandom” is a reciprocal term of address for offspring on the one hand and members of their mother’s patriclan on the other. A ŋyandom is an offspring of a sister in marriage. “Ba‑ŋyandom” (plural) designates the entire clan of mother’s origin. The term “ŋyandom ni ba‑ŋyandom” expresses a specifiable set of attitudes in the relations among these two categories of individuals and claims of rights in one another.Social anthropologists have examined these relations under various rubrics namely “the mother right” “the mother’s brother” “the sister’s son” “the daughter’s child” and “avuncular relationships.” We retain the term “avuncular relationships.” The Basaa term “ŋyandom ni ba‑ŋyandom” would be the corresponding term. In this study we examine avuncular relationships in the purview of the Basaa ideology of descent.