The types of families vary from the different angles from which it is looked at.

On the basis of Structure and Size:

Nuclear family – a family unit consisting of a husband and a wife and any number of children living together.

Extended (Joint) family – grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, either all living nearby or within the same household. For example, if a married couple lives with either the husband or wife’s parents the family changes from a nuclear to an extended household.

Reconstituted family – also known as a step family. A family where one or both parents have children from previous marriages living with them.

Single parent family – consists of a parent not living with a partner, who has most of the day-to-day responsibilities for raising the children. The children will live with this single parent for the majority of the time, but they may still have contact with their other parent.

On the basis of Birth:

Family of Orientation: A family of orientation is the family that a child is born into. This may be characterized by blood relations.

Family of Procreation: describes the family that is formed through marriage.

On the Basis of Marriage:

Monogamous Family: This family consists of a husband and his wife. Under this type of family system neither husband nor wife is allowed to have more than one spouse at a time. Both of them are also prohibited to have extra-marital relationships.

Polygamous Family: This type of family is based on polygamy system of marriage. As in polygamy one man marries more than one woman, hence two (or more with a maximum of four) families exist but are supported by one man.

On the basis of Residential Patterns:

Patrilocal family: in which the married couple lives with or near the husband’s house.

Matrilocal family: in which the married couple lives with or near the wife’s house.

Teo-local family: in which the married couple lives apart from the parents of both spouses.

On the basis of Ancestry or Descent:

Patrilineal family: It is where ancestry or descent is traced through the male line, or through the father’s side.

Matrilineal family: It is where ancestry or descent is traced through the female line, or through the mother’s side.

Bilateral family: tracing kinship through both males and females.

On the basis of nature of Relations:

Conjugal Family: a family that consists of a husband, wife and their children. To be more specific, a conjugal family includes husband and wife and their unmarried, minor children. A conjugal family is a type of nuclear family.

Consanguine Family: in addition to the married couple and their children, this family consists of grandparents, aunts, uncles or cousins, all living in the same household. In other words, it consists of blood relatives in addition to the immediate family. Consanguine family is often used as a synonym for extended family.

On the basis of Patterns of Authority:

Patriarchal: It is in which men is the head of the house and authority is vested in him.

Matriarchal: It is in which women is the head of the house and authority is vested in her.

Egalitarian: It is in which men and women share authority.

Tomorrow in sha Allah we will discuss the functions of a family.