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A clan is a group of people united by kinship and descent. Generally a clan is quite large. Members of a clan share an apical ancestor several generations back (i.e., they share the same great grandparents, great-great grandparents, or an even more distant ancestor). Kin groups who only share the same grandparents are generally called extended families, not clans. Some clans are so large and so old that they merely share a "stipulated" common ancestor; that is, the clan has no evidence of the ancestor, and he or she may be fictional, merely a symbol of the clan's unity. In certain societies this ancestor is not even human; he or she is an animallian totem.

Some clans are patrilineal, meaning its members are related through the male line. Others are matrilineal; its members are related through the female line. Still other clans are bilateral, consisting of all the descendents of the apical ancestor through both the male and female lines; the clans of Scotland are one example. Whether a clan is patrilineal, matrilineal, or bilateral depends on the kinship rules of the culture in which the clan lives.

In different cultures and situations a clan may mean the same thing as other kin-based groups such as tribes and bands. Often, however, the distinguishing factor is that a clan is a smaller part of a larger society such as a tribe, a chiefdom , or a state. Examples include Scottish, Chinese and Japanese clans, which exist as kin groups within Scottish, Chinese, and Japanese society, respectively. Note that tribes and bands can also be components of larger societies; Arab tribes are small groups within Arab society, and Ojibwa bands are smaller parts of the Ojibwa tribe.

However, the Norse clansThe Scandinavian clan or tt was a social group based on common descent or on the formal acceptance into the group at a Ting. In the absence of a police force, the clan was the primary force of security in Norse society as the clansmen were obliged by hono, the ätter, can not be translated with tribe or band, and consequently they are often translated with house or line.

Most clans are exogamousExogamy is the custom of marrying outside a specified group of people to which one belongs. In addition to blood relatives, marriage to members of a specific totem or other group may be forbidden. Different theories have been proposed to account for the o, meaning that its members cannot marry one another. Some clans have an official leader such as a chieftainA chieftain is the leader or head of a group, especially of a clan or tribe. Germanic chieftain. Etymology: Middle English cheftain from Old French chevetain from Late Latin capitaneus from Latin caput head. The Chieftain is also a British tank, first fie, matriarchA matriarch is a mother, head, or other female person in a family who exerts influence over the other family members. The term is usually applied to the oldest female in an extended family, who by virtue of her position has a degree of authority over fami, or patriarchSee Patriarchs (Bible) for details about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob of the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. Originally a patriarch is a man who exercises autocratic authority over an extended family. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are referred to as the thre.