Cognatic descent is also referred to as non-unilineal descent and there are two types of cognatic descent: bilateral and ambilineal. Anthropological data suggests that cognatic descent arose in cultur...Cognatic descent is also referred to as non-unilineal descent and there are two types of cognatic descent: bilateral and ambilineal. Anthropological data suggests that cognatic descent arose in cultures where warfare is uncommon and there is a political organization that can organize and fight on behalf of the members. In the illustration below, if EGO chooses the father’s side of the family, then everyone marked in blue would be considered kin.
