Family and Kin-a Few Thoughts

Abstract

Italian family history has seen tremendous development over the past two decades, yet research has been unnecessarily restricted in approach and focus. A great deal of attention has been paid to household composition and relations within the household, while too little attention has been paid to relations among kin who are not coresident. Attention is called to several areas of research which have barely begun to be plumbed, yet which have great potential for the future. These include studies of the role of extended kin in family property and income, kin networks of mutual support, the role of fictive kin, the relationship between kinship and political groupings, and the relationship between kinship and social mobility.