matriarchy
Women hold power
Matriarchy is a social system in which women hold primary power—in families, communities, or governments.
The term often appears in contrast to patriarchy, describing societies where mothers or female elders lead: Some ancient cultures may have been matriarchies.
In families, matriarchy means the mother or grandmother is the dominant authority: My grandmother ran a matriarchy—nothing happened without her approval.
Descent from progenitors
- clanRelated group sharing ancestry
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- descentDownward slope or lineage
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
genealogy · inheritance · heritage · foremothers · kinship · dynasty · household · family
State of being a female parent
- nurturingSupportive care-giving
- caregivingAttending to dependents
- womanhoodAdult female state
- femininityFemale nature or character
goddess · queen · elder · wisdom · intuition · fertility · creatrix · Gaia
Advocacy for sex equality
- gender rolesExpected behaviors by sex
- women's rightsLegal equality for females
- empowermentGaining authority or confidence
- egalitarianismPhilosophy of universal equality
liberation · suffragettes · activism · intersectionality · misogyny · sexism · glass ceiling · representation
Most powerful chess piece
- empressFemale ruler of empire
- chieftessFemale tribal leader
- elderSenior figure of authority
- grandmotherMother of a parent
materfamilias · dame · duchess · dowager · headwoman · lady · ruler · regent
Governing principle or standard
- leadershipAbility to direct others
- authorityPower to enforce obedience
- powerEnergy transfer rate
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
administration · council · elders · chieftain · queendom · regime · jurisdiction · command
Pueblo people of Arizona
- IroquoisNative American confederacy
- indigenousOriginating in a region
- tribalOf a clan
- communalShared by a community
goddess worship · fertility · ancestral · traditional · agrarian · cooperative · village · ceremonial
lineage
Descent from progenitors
bloodline · genealogy · inheritance · heritage · foremothers · kinship · dynasty · household · family · tribe
motherhood
State of being a female parent
- nurturingSupportive care-giving
- caregivingAttending to dependents
- womanhoodAdult female state
femininity · goddess · queen · elder · wisdom · intuition · fertility · creatrix · Gaia · shakti
feminism
Advocacy for sex equality
- gender rolesExpected behaviors by sex
- women's rightsLegal equality for females
- empowermentGaining authority or confidence
egalitarianism · liberation · suffragettes · activism · intersectionality · misogyny · sexism · glass ceiling · representation · reform
queen
Most powerful chess piece
grandmother · materfamilias · dame · duchess · dowager · headwoman · lady · ruler · regent · princess
rule
Governing principle or standard
- leadershipAbility to direct others
- authorityPower to enforce obedience
- powerEnergy transfer rate
sovereignty · administration · council · elders · chieftain · queendom · regime · jurisdiction · command · succession
Hopi
Pueblo people of Arizona
- IroquoisNative American confederacy
- indigenousOriginating in a region
- tribalOf a clan
communal · goddess worship · fertility · ancestral · traditional · agrarian · cooperative · village · ceremonial · oral tradition
- familyfather, parents, siblings, parent, son
- governancegovernance, government, democracy, vote, parliament
- social systemspolitical systems, capitalism, feudalism, economic systems, socialism
- women's historywomen's history, herstory, women's movement, suffrage movement, notable women
- family dramafamily bonds, sibling rivalry, family reunion, kinship, family secret
- anthropologyanthropology, fieldwork, ethnography, social anthropology, cultural anthropology
matriarchypatriarchy
Male-dominated social order
patriarchal society · male supremacy · paternal authority · agnatic succession
matriarchyegalitarianism
Philosophy of universal equality
gender equality · egalitarian society · gender parity · equality · anarchy
- matriarchal societyFemale-dominated social order