Endogamy refers to marriage:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Within the kin and caste group
Option (1) Outside the kin or caste group — Incorrect. Marriage outside the unit is exogamy (literally, marrying outside), which families claiming high status thought desirable for their daughters.
Option (2) Within the kin and caste group — Correct. Endogamy is marriage within a unit – a kin group, a caste, or a group living in the same locality.
Option (3) Practice of a man having several wives — Incorrect. A man having several wives is polygyny.
Option (4) Practice of women having several husbands — Incorrect. A woman having several husbands is polyandry.
NCERT (2026-27): “2.3 Rules of marriage … At the same time, marrying them into families outside the kin was considered desirable. This system, called exogamy (literally, marrying outside), meant that the lives of young girls and women belonging to families that claimed high status were often carefully regulated to ensure that they were married at the ‘right’ time and to the ‘right’ person. This gave rise to the belief that kanyadana or the gift of a daughter in marriage was an important religious duty of the father.… Types of marriages … Endogamy refers to marriage within a unit – this could be a kin group, caste, or a group living in the same locality. Exogamy refers to marriage outside the unit. Polygyny is the practice of a man having several wives. Polyandry is the practice of a woman having several husbands.” |