How did marriage and residence work among Southeastern Indigenous peoples?

Among Southeastern Indigenous peoples, kinship was almost universally organized through matrilineal descent, where lineage was traced through the mother. Many societies were further structured into clans, which served as extended families that bound the larger body politic together, provided social control, and facilitated hospitality and the inheritance of ceremonial privileges.1

Marriage customs often involved a symbolic ceremonial exchange, such as the groom providing game and the bride reciprocating with plant food. Following marriage, couples typically established uxorilocal residence, meaning they lived in the wife’s natal household. During this time, the husband was expected to perform bride service, contributing to the economic maintenance of his wife’s family to demonstrate his ability as a provider. After several years, the couple might establish their own independent household.1

While polygyny was permitted in most groups, divorce was frequent and relatively casual. Additionally, the levirate—where a widow married her deceased husband’s brother—was a common practice intended to ensure that women and children remained supported by a male provider.1