[ ]Mapping the Familydevolves on “his nearest relative in his own clan,” presumably a member
of his patrilineage. These instances suggest that the word sh’eir indi-
cates “kin” but does not connote specific relatives or types of relatives.
Rabbinic citation of the term is minimal and focuses on the exegesis of
biblical verses. In one instance, sh’eir is interpreted to support the inclu-
sion of the wife in the list of relatives for whom a priest may mourn;^15 in
another, the term is cited to suggest that a father might take precedence
over his son’s other heirs or to prove that a husband inherits his wife’s
property.^16 T he rabbis do not adopt t h is ter m to descr ibe relat ives or k i n-
ship ties.
Overall, the Hebrew Bible acknowledges kinship on various levels,
those of immediate family and extended family, but does not employ
terminology that allows for absolute distinctions to be made between
types of kin. Instead the Bible uses specific terms to describe individual
relatives — for example, father and mother — and terms that indicate
broad groups of individuals related by blood or marriage. The terminol-
ogy does suggest an emphasis on the extended patrilineal family, pre-
sumably because descent and inheritance of land were determined by
patrilineage. This terminology is sometimes employed by the rabbis to
describe family connections among individuals.
Rabbinic sources employ several terms to speak of a household or
a small family unit; these terms acknowledge the central role played
by a male head of household. The Bavli uses the phrase ish u’veito, “a
man and his house[hold],” in discussing the rituals of lighting Hanukah
lamps and in connection with the commandment to sound the shofar
on Rosh Hashana.^17 When explaining the phrase, the Bavli asks if the
phrase refers to “a man and his wife”; elsewhere in the Bavli that phrase,
ish v’ishto, is associated with “dwelling.”^18 This narrow identification
of the house with the wife rather than with all of the members of the
household is reflected in the use of the Hebrew word bayit, “house,” and
its Aramaic equivalent to mean “wife.”^19
A number of conclusions can be drawn from the terminology used
by the rabbis to discuss families. The rabbis understood that individu-
als were often part of extended families comprising all of the descen-
dants of a common male ancestor. An individual might also identify
himself or herself as a member of two kindreds, one paternal and the
other maternal. At the same time, the core family unit discussed in rab-