tribal
Like ancestral customs
Tribal relates to tribes—social groups united by kinship, territory, or common ancestry.
The word describes traditional societies and their customs: tribal lands, tribal elders, tribal warfare.
In contemporary use, tribal often describes fierce group loyalty that overrides individual judgment, especially in politics: The debate devolved into tribal posturing.
This newer sense carries negative connotations of blind allegiance and us-versus-them thinking.
Spiritual clan symbol
- heirloomInherited family treasure
- artifactHuman-made historical object
- relicsPreserved items from antiquity
- regaliaCeremonial emblems of authority
masks · carvings · beadwork · pottery · weavings · headdress · amulets · spears
Descent from progenitors
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
- clanRelated group sharing ancestry
- kinshipState of being related
- genealogyStudy of family descent
descent · forebears · ancestors · forefathers · progenitors · roots · heritage · family
State of fitting in
- affiliationFormal organizational connection
- clanRelated group sharing ancestry
- kinshipState of being related
- in-groupExclusive social cluster
loyalty · cohesion · brotherhood · sisterhood · unity · collectivism · bonding · communal
Indigenous to a place
- nativeOriginating from a place
- autochthonousOriginating where found
- pre-colonialBefore imperial conquest
- stewardsThose who manage affairs
dreamtime · oral-history · sovereignty · reservations · self-determination · treaty · territorial · homelands
Ceremonial repeated practices
- ceremoniesFormal observances with ritual
- ritesFormal ceremonial acts
- initiationFormal admission ceremony
- traditionsLong-established customs passed down
elders · taboos · shamanism · animism · totems · mythology · folklore · storytelling
totem
Spiritual clan symbol
- heirloomInherited family treasure
- artifactHuman-made historical object
- relicsPreserved items from antiquity
regalia · masks · carvings · beadwork · pottery · weavings · headdress · amulets · spears · shields
lineage
Descent from progenitors
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
- clanRelated group sharing ancestry
- kinshipState of being related
genealogy · descent · forebears · ancestors · forefathers · progenitors · roots · heritage · family · dynasty
belonging
State of fitting in
- affiliationFormal organizational connection
- clanRelated group sharing ancestry
- kinshipState of being related
in-group · loyalty · cohesion · brotherhood · sisterhood · unity · collectivism · bonding · communal · fellowship
aboriginal
Indigenous to a place
- nativeOriginating from a place
- autochthonousOriginating where found
- pre-colonialBefore imperial conquest
stewards · dreamtime · oral-history · sovereignty · reservations · self-determination · treaty · territorial · homelands · guardianship
rituals
Ceremonial repeated practices
- ceremoniesFormal observances with ritual
- ritesFormal ceremonial acts
- initiationFormal admission ceremony
traditions · elders · taboos · shamanism · animism · totems · mythology · folklore · storytelling · dance
aboriginal
Indigenous to a place
- AfricaEgypt, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania
- civilizationsancient, medieval, modern, feudal, imperial
- drummingsnare drum, drum roll, drumroll, beat, drumsticks
- Ancient ArabiaArabia, Mecca, Arabian Peninsula, Medina, Yemen
- artepintura, oleo, sketch, croquis, tempera
- -al adjectivescultural, emotional, environmental, federal, financial
tribalnational
Of a country
cosmopolitan · urban · civilized · metropolitan · imperial
tribalindividualistic
Favoring personal autonomy
independent · autonomous · nonconformist · unaffiliated · atomized
tribaluniversal
Affecting all equally
cosmopolitan · ecumenical · inclusive · nonpartisan · impartial
- tribal councilIndigenous community's ruling body
- nomadic tribeMigrating group of people
- tribal societyKinship-based communal organization
- tribal traditionsInherited communal practices
- tribal ceremoniesFormal communal cultural observances
- tribal patternsTraditional indigenous designs
tribe, tribalism, tribune, intertribal, tribally, tribalistic, tribalist, tribalisms, nontribal