noun
- relationship through male descent or on the father’s side of the family
Usage: legal; anthropological
Examples
- The inheritance laws favored agnation over other forms of kinship.
- In traditional Roman law, agnation determined family succession.
- The anthropologist studied agnation patterns in the tribal society.
- Agnation traced family lineage through the paternal line only.
- The legal system recognized agnation as the primary basis for inheritance rights.