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Clan vs Tribe - What's the difference?

clan | tribe |

Tribe is a synonym of clan.



In anthropology terms the difference between clan and tribe

is that clan is a group of people all descended from a common ancestor, in fact or belief while tribe is a society larger than a band but smaller than a state.

As a verb tribe is

to distribute into tribes or classes; to categorize.

clan

English

(wikipedia clan)

Noun

(en noun)
  • (anthropology) A group of people all descended from a common ancestor, in fact or belief.
  • A traditional social group of families in the Scottish Highlands having a common hereditary chieftain
  • Any association of people behaving clannishly.
  • (video games) A group of players who habitually play on the same team in multiplayer games.
  • A badger colony.

    • Derived terms

    * clannish * matriclan * patriclan

    Descendants

    * Dutch: (l) * German: (l)

    tribe

    English

    (wikipedia tribe)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A socially, ethnically, and politically cohesive group of people.
  • (anthropology) A society larger than a band but smaller than a state.
  • The collective noun for various animals.
  • (taxonomy) A hierarchal rank between family and genus.
  • (stock breeding) A family of animals descended from some particular female progenitor, through the female line.
    • the Duchess tribe of shorthorns

    Derived terms

    * tribal * tribelet

    See also

    * ethnic *

    Verb

    (trib)
  • To distribute into tribes or classes; to categorize.
  • * Archbishop Nicolson
    • Our fowl, fish, and quadruped are well tribed .

    Anagrams

    * English collective nouns