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descent

Translation
descent
/di sent"/, n.
1. the act, process, or fact of descending.
2. a downward inclination or slope.
3. a passage or stairway leading down.
4. derivation from an ancestor; lineage; extraction.
5. any passing from higher to lower in degree or state; decline.
6. a sudden raid or hostile attack.
7. Law. transmission of real property by intestate succession.
[1300-50; ME < AF, OF descente, deriv. of descendre to DESCEND, modeled on such pairs as vente, vendre]
Syn. 1. falling, sinking. 2. decline, grade, declivity. 4. ancestry, parentage. 6. assault, foray.

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System of acknowledged social parentage whereby a person may claim kinship ties with another.

Descent systems vary widely. The practical importance of descent comes from its use as a means for individuals to assert rights, duties, privileges, or status. Descent has special influence when rights to succession, inheritance, or residence follow kinship lines. One method of limiting the recognition of kinship is to emphasize the relationship through one parent only. Such unilineal kinship systems are of two main types
patrilineal systems, in which the relationships through the father are emphasized; and matrilineal systems, in which maternal relationships are stressed. These systems differ radically from cognatic systems, in which everyone has similar obligations to, and expectations from, both paternal and maternal kin. The cognatic system is somewhat vague and tends to characterize the more industrialized countries, in which individual rights and duties are increasingly defined institutionally or legally.

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      the system of acknowledged social parentage, which varies from society to society, whereby a person may claim kinship ties with another. If no limitation were placed on the recognition of kinship, everybody would be kin to everyone else; but in most societies some limitation is imposed on the perception of common ancestry, so that a person regards many of his associates as not his kin.

      The practical importance of descent comes from its use as a means for one person to assert rights, duties, privileges, or status in relation to another person, who may be related to the first either because one is ancestor to the other or because the two acknowledge a common ancestor. Descent has special influence when rights to succession, inheritance, or residence follow kinship lines.

      One method of limiting the recognition of kinship is to emphasize the relationships through one parent only. Such unilineal kinship systems, as they are called, are of two main types—patrilineal (or agnatic) systems, in which the relationships reckoned through the father are emphasized, and matrilineal (or uxorial) systems, in which the relationships reckoned through the mother are emphasized.

      In systems of double unilineal descent, society recognizes both the patrilineage and the matrilineage but assigns to each a different set of expectations. For example, the inheritance of immovable materials, such as land, may be the domain of the patrilineage, while the matrilineage controls the inheritance of moveable objects such as livestock.

      In ambilateral systems, patrilineal and matrilineal principles both operate at the societal level, but at the level of the individual various rules or choices define a person as belonging to either the mother's or the father's group. In some ambilateral systems, marriage broadens one's choice of lineage to include those of one's mother- or father-in-law. Bilateral or cognatic descent systems reckon kinship through the mother and the father more or less equally.

      In practice, unilineal systems differ radically from bilateral systems. In a matrilineal system, for example, a person would feel cousin obligations only to the children of his mother's siblings, while in a bilateral system the person is in some sense allied to the children of both parents' siblings.

      Interestingly, many cultures that notionally adhere to a given descent system have methods whereby the system can be abridged. Perhaps the most common of these is adoption, in which an individual gains a new kinship identity. Adoption varies widely across cultures; in some the adoptee abjures his previous kin group, while in others he gains new kin while retaining his original ties. A second method for abridging a descent system occurs when a unilineal group recognizes the cognatic kin of an individual for some specific purpose, such as the assumption of a leadership position. A third method is to alter the history, myths (myth), or folklore of a descent group in order to expand or contract its membership.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • descent — 1> спуск Ex: labourous descent трудный спуск Ex: descent of the mountain спуск с горы Ex: to make a descent спуститься 2> снижение (самолета и т. п.) 3> понижение (местности и т. п.) 4> косм. посадка 5> склон, скат, спуск Ex: sharp descent крутой …   Новый большой англо-русский словарь

  • descent — I (declination) noun change from higher to lower, comedown, coming down, downrush, droop, drop, falling, going down, inclination downward, lapse, settlement, sinking, subsidence II (lineage) noun ancestry, birth, birthright, blood, bloodline,… …   Law dictionary

  • Descent — De*scent , n. [F. descente, fr. descendre; like vente, from vendre. See {Descend}.] 1. The act of descending, or passing downward; change of place from higher to lower. [1913 Webster] 2. Incursion; sudden attack; especially, hostile invasion from …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Descent — steht für: den Originaltitel des Films Feuerhölle Descent (2007), einen US amerikanische Thriller von Talia Lugacy Descent (Computerspiel), ein Computerspiel Descent: Die Reise ins Dunkel, ein Brettspiel Siehe auch: The Descent – Abgrund des… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • descent — noun 1) спуск; снижение to make a parachute descent спуститься спарашютом 2) склон, скат 3) понижение (звука, температуры и т. п.) 4) проис хождение 5) поколение (по определенной линии) 6) передача по наследству, нас ледование (имущества, черт… …   Англо-русский словарь Мюллера

  • descent — dɪˈsent сущ. 1) а) спуск, снижение (может прямо не переводиться); спуск, лестница, ступеньки I do not think the descent to Avernus is always easy. ≈ Не думаю, чтобы …   Большой англо-русский и русско-английский словарь

  • descent — 1) снижение; спуск 2) склонение к горизонту 3) опускание, сход (шихтовых материалов) 4) переход от общего к частному • in descent со снижением, в режиме снижения (о полёте) descent of burden сход шихты, сход столба материалов (в доменной печи)… …   Англо-русский словарь технических терминов

  • Descent — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Sur les autres projets Wikimedia : « Descent », sur le Wiktionnaire (dictionnaire universel) Descent un mot anglais signifiant descente et… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • descent — 1. спуск; снижение 2. склонение к горизонту to slow (down) descent замедлять снижение autorotative descent braked descent cruise descent emergency descent gliding descent in descent …   Англо-русский словарь по гражданской авиации

  • descent — 1) спуск 2) нисхождение 3) слезание 4) спускаемый 5) убывание 6) понижение 7) происхождение 8) снижение – approach descent – constrained descent – controlled descent… …   Англо-русский технический словарь

Фильмы

  • Moscow., 1927 — Species film about Moscow. The film shows the architectural monuments, the work of urban enterprises, life and leisure of citizens.
  • Fidel Castro-the Guest Of the city of Volgograd., 1963 — The visit of the first Secretary and Prime Minister of the Revolutionary Government of the Republic of Cuba Fidel Castro Ruz to the Hero-City Volgograd.
  • Eight Corners Under One Roof., 1986 — The film tells about the modern Japan. The newsreel about participation of Japan in various wars is used.