Matrilineal Meghalaya is set to break the tradition of share of parental property to the khatduh, which means the youngest daughter in the Khasi language.

Matrilineal Society of Meghalaya

• The matrilineal tradition which the Khasi and other subgroups practice in Meghalaya is unique within India.
• Khasi are an ancient tribe said to be the largest surviving matrilineal culture in the world.
• Matrilineal principles among the Khasi are emphasised in myths, legends, and origin narratives.

Their evolution

• Khasi kings embarking on wars left the responsibility of running the family to women and thus their role in society became very deep rooted and respected.
• Reference to Nari Rajya (female kingdom; or land of matriarchy) in the epic Mahabharata likely correlates with the Khasi and Jaintia Hills and Meghalaya’s present-day matrilineal culture.

Property rights

• The youngest daughter of the family, the Ka Khadduh, inherits all ancestral property.
• After marriage, husbands live in the mother-in-law’s home.
• The mother’s surname is taken by children.
• When no daughters are born to a couple, they adopt a daughter and pass their rights to property to her.
• The birth of a girl is celebrated while the birth of a son is simply accepted.
• There is no social stigma attributed to a woman remarrying or giving birth out of wedlock as the “Khasi Social Custom Lineage Act” gives security to them.
• Care of children is the responsibility of mothers or mothers-in-law.

Matrilineal, not matriarchal

• While society is matrilineal, it is not matriarchal. In past monarchies of the state, the son of the youngest sister of the king inherited the throne.
• Even now in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly or village councils or panchayats the representation of women in politics is minimal.

Issues with the system

• Some Khasi men perceive themselves to be accorded a secondary status.
• They have established societies to protect equal rights for men.
• They express that Khasi men don’t have any security, they don’t own land, they don’t run the family business and, at the same time, they are almost good for nothing.

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