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A persistent belief claims that in certain earlier eras of human history, females enjoyed similar status to men, or even dominated, leading to more harmonious and more peaceful societies. Subsequently, male-dominated systems arose, bringing centuries of conflict and subjugation.

The Roots of the Gender System Debate

The idea of matriarchy and male-led societies as diametrically opposed—with a sudden switch between them—originated in the 19th century via Marxist thought, influencing anthropological studies with limited proof. From there, it spread into popular awareness.

Anthropologists, however, tended to be more sceptical. They documented great variation in gender relations across cultures, both modern and historical ones, and some theorized that this diversity was the norm in ancient times too. Proving this was challenging, in part because determining physical sex—not to mention gender—frequently proved tricky in ancient remains. But around 20 years ago, that shifted.

The Revolution in Ancient DNA

This much-touted ancient DNA revolution—the capacity to extract DNA from old remains and study it—enabled that suddenly it became possible to determine the gender of long-dead people and to trace their family connections. The isotopic composition of their skeletal remains—particularly, the ratio of elemental variants found there—indicated whether they had resided in different locations and experienced dietary changes. The picture coming to light due to these new tools indicates that variety in sex roles had been absolutely the norm in ancient eras, and that there was not a clear turning point when one system yielded to its mirror image.

Hypotheses on the Emergence of Patriarchal Systems

One influential theory, in fact attributed to Engels, suggested that humans were equal until farming expanded from the Middle East about ten millennia back. Accompanying the settled lifestyle and accumulation of wealth that farming introduced came the necessity to defend that wealth and to establish rules for its inheritance. As populations expanded, men took over the leading groups that developed to manage these affairs, partly because they were more skilled at warfare, and assets gravitated to the paternal lineage. Men were also more likely to remain in place, with their wives moving to live with them. Female oppression was frequently a consequence of these shifts.

Another theory, put forward by researcher a Lithuanian scholar in the mid-20th century, held that female-oriented societies prevailed for an extended period in Europe—up to five millennia back—when they were toppled by arriving, patriarchal nomads from the steppe.

Evidence of Matrilineal Societies

Matrilinearity (where wealth is inherited through the mother’s side) and female-resident patterns (where women stay together) frequently go together, and each are linked with higher women’s standing and influence. In 2017, American geneticists discovered that for over three centuries during the 10th century, an elite mother-line group inhabited Chaco Canyon, in what is now the southwestern U.S.. Later, this June, Chinese experts reported a female-line farming community that flourished for nearly as long in eastern China, more than 3,000 years earlier. These findings join others, implying that matrilineal societies have existed on all populated landmasses, at least from the arrival of farming forward.

Power and Agency in Ancient Societies

However, even if they possess higher standing, women in mother-line societies may not make decisions. This generally remains the domain of men—specifically of women’s brothers instead of their spouses. And since old genetic material and chemical traces don’t reveal a great deal about female agency, sex-based hierarchies in ancient times continue to be a matter of debate. Indeed, such research has forced researchers to consider what they mean by power. Suppose the wife of a male ruler shaped his entourage via patronage and back channels, and his own policies by counselling, did she hold less influence than him?

Experts know of several instances of pairs sharing power in the bronze age—the period following those migrants came in Europe—and later historical records attest to high-status women influencing decisions in similar manners, continents apart. Maybe they did so in the distant past. Females exerting soft power in patriarchal societies could have predated Homo sapiens. In his recent publication about gender roles, a titled work, ape expert a noted scientist described how an dominant female chimp, a named individual, anointed a replacement to the alpha male—her superior—with a kiss.

Elements Shaping Sex Roles

In recent years another aspect has become clear. While Engels was likely generally right in associating property with patrilinearity, other factors shaped gender relations, too—including how a community makes a living. In February, Chinese and British scientists reported that traditionally matrilineal villages in a highland region have become more gender-neutral over the last 70 years, as they transitioned from an farming-based system to a trade-focused one. Struggle additionally has a role. Although matrilocal and male-resident societies are equally prone to conflict, notes anthropologist a Yale expert, within-group disputes—rather than war against an outside group—prods societies towards male residence, because fighting groups prefer to keep their sons nearby.

Females as Warriors and Authorities

Meanwhile, evidence is accumulating that women engaged in combat, pursued game and served as shamans in the ancient world. Not a single position or role has been closed to them always, everywhere. And even if women leaders were perhaps uncommon, they were not absent. New genetic analyses from an Irish university show that there were no fewer than instances of female-line descent throughout Britain, when ancient groups controlled the land in the iron age. Alongside physical finds for female warriors and ancient descriptions of female tribal chiefs, it looks as if Celtic women could exercise direct as well as soft authority.

Contemporary Matrilineal Societies

Mother-line societies still exist today—a Chinese group are one case, as are the Hopi of Arizona, descendants of those Chaco Canyon clans. Their numbers are dwindling, as national governments assert their male-dominant muscles, but they act as reminders that certain vanished societies tilted more towards sex parity than many of our modern ones, and that all societies have the capacity to change.