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Aiel familial terms are those terms used by the Aiel to describe relationships with family. Many of the terms are confusing to wetlanders. Among the Aiel, there is a closer connection to the mother's side of the family than the father's side.

There are rules about talking of an Aiel's family. One example would be mentioning a man's second-father (father-in-law) or a woman's second-mother (mother-in-law) unless they have done so first. Doing this is considered a hostile act, so much so that if you are touched, it is the same as if you held a weapon.[1]

First-sister[]

First-sister is a type of kinship between Aiel women. It means you have the same mother.[2] People who have been near-sisters for a time can become first-sisters by asking a Wise One who then use a form of Bonding on the two women. It is similar to becoming sister-wives, a requirement for sharing a husband.

  1. Alice has two daughters named Beth and Carla.
  2. Beth and Carla are first-sisters.

First-brother[]

First-brother is a type of kinship between Aiel men. It means you have the same mother. You may have the same father or different fathers. Two near-brothers can also bond each other as first-brothers using the same, or similar, ritual near-sisters do, though the success rate is lower.

  1. Alice has two sons named David and Eli.
  2. David and Eli are first-brothers.

Second-sister[]

Second-sister is a type of kinship between Aiel women. It means your mothers are sisters.[2] For a real-world perspective, your second-sister would be your maternal aunt's daughter. This is considered a closer relationship than father-sisters, but not as close as first-sisters or sister-wives.

  1. Alice and Mary are sisters.
    1. Alice's daughter is Beth.
    2. Mary's daughter is Nora.
    3. Beth and Nora are second-sisters.

Second-brother[]

Second-brother is a type of a kinship between Aiel men. It means your mothers are sisters. For a real-world perspective, your second-brother would be your maternal cousin.

  1. Alice and Mary are sisters.
    1. Alice's son is David.
    2. Mary's son is Owen.
    3. David and Owen are second-brothers.

Father-sister[]

Father-sister is a type of a kinship between Aiel women. It means your fathers are brothers.[2] For a real-world perspective, your father-sister would be your paternal cousin. Father-sisters aren't considered as closely related as second-sisters.[2]

  1. Adam and Mark are brothers.
    1. Adam's daughter is Bridget.
    2. Mark's daughter is Nicole.
    3. Bridget and Nicole are father-sisters.

Near-sister[]

Near-sister is a type of kinship between Aiel women. It means being best friends, and considered as close as being first-sisters. Near-sisters can perform a bonding ceremony in front of Wise Ones to become first-sisters, which in the eyes of the Aiel means they are actual sisters.

Near-brother[]

Near-brother is a type of kinship between Aiel men. It means being best friends, and considered as close as being first-brothers. Near-brothers bonding as first-brothers is less common than near-sisters bonding as first-sisters.

Sister-wife[]

Sister-wife is a type of kinship between Aiel women. It means they have the same husband.

Known sister-wives:

Sister-mother[]

Sister-mother is a type of kinship between an Aiel and another woman. It means the sister of your mother. For a real-world perspective, your sister-mother would be your maternal aunt. (E.g. Lian is Aviendha's sister mother)[2]

  1. Alice and Mary are sisters.
    1. Alice's daughter is Beth.
    2. Beth's sister-mother is Mary.

Sister-father[]

Sister-father is a type of kinship between an Aiel and another man. It means the brother of your mother. For a real-world perspective, your sister-father would be your maternal uncle.

  1. Alice (sister) and Jacob (brother) are siblings.
    1. Alice's children are Beth and David.
    2. Beth and David's sister-father is Jacob.

Second-mother[]

Second-mother is a type of kinship between an Aiel and another woman. It means the mother of your spouse. For a real-world perspective, your second-mother would be your mother-in-law.

  1. Alice is married to Steven.
    1. Steven's mother is Tara.
    2. Alice's second-mother is Tara.
  2. Steven is married to Alice.
    1. Alice's mother is Beatrice.
    2. Steven's second-mother is Beatrice.

Second-father[]

Second-father is a type of kinship between an Aiel and another man. It means the father of your spouse. For a real-world perspective, your second-father would be your father-in-law.

  1. Alice is married to Steven.
    1. Steven's father is Tim.
    2. Alice's second-father is Tim.
  2. Steven is married to Alice.
    1. Alice's father is Ben.
    2. Steven's second-father is Ben.

Greatfather[]

Greatfather is a type of kinship between an Aiel and another man. It means the father of your mother. For a real-world perspective, your greatfather would be your maternal grandfather.

Greatmother[]

Greatmother is a type of kinship between an Aiel and another woman. It means the mother of your mother. For a real-world perspective, your greatmother would be your maternal grandmother.

Second-greatfather[]

Second-greatfather is a type of kinship between an Aiel and another man. It means the father of your spouse's mother. For a real-world perspective, your second-greatfather would be your grandfather-in-law.

Second-greatmother[]

Second-greatmother is a type of kinship between an Aiel and another woman. It means the mother of your spouse's mother. For a real-world perspective, your second-greatmother would be your grandmother-in-law.

Notes

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