Collateral, in kinship, are kin, or lines of kin, that are not in a direct line of descent. Examples of collateral relatives include siblings of parents or grandparents and their descendants (uncles, aunts, and cousins).Michael Rhum. (1997), 'collaterals' in T. Barfields (ed.), The Dictionary of Anthropology, Malden MA: Blackwell Publishing, p.69 Collateral descent is contrasted with lineal descent: those related directly by a line of descent such as the children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc. of an individual. Though both forms are consanguineal (blood relations), collaterals are neither ancestors nor descendants of a given person.Alan Barnard and Jonathan Spencer. (2002), 'collateral', Encyclopedia of Social and Cultural Anthropology, London: Routledge, p.598 In legal terminology, 'Collateral descendant' refers to relatives descended from a sibling of an ancestor, and thus a niece, nephew, or cousin.
See also Lineal descent Bilateral descent Kinship Genealogy Rota system (collateral succession) Agnatic seniority
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