Descent tracing in a patrilineal system is typically described as...

• A. Descent traced through the mother's line only
• B. Descent traced through the spouse's line
• C. Descent traced through both parents
• D. Descent traced through the father's line only

Answer: (D)

Patrilineal descent means kinship and social affiliation are defined by the father’s bloodline. In systems described this way, people are considered part of the father’s lineage, and property, status, or clan membership typically passes from father to son along that male line. The mother’s line matters less for tracing lineage, and you often see lineage closure and inheritance concentrated through the male line.

Descent traced through the mother's line would be matrilineal, which isn’t the pattern here. Tracing through both parents would be bilineal or double descent, which is not what patrilineal systems emphasize. Descent traced through the spouse’s line isn’t about the person’s own lineage and isn’t how descent is defined in patrilineal systems.