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A widespread belief claims that in some bygone periods of human history, females enjoyed equal status to men, or perhaps dominated, resulting in happier and less violent societies. Then, male-dominated systems arose, ushering in ages of strife and subjugation.

The Roots of the Matriarchy vs. Patriarchy Debate

The concept of female-led societies and patriarchy as polar opposites—following a decisive transition between them—was seeded in the 19th century via socialist theory, influencing anthropological studies with limited proof. Thereafter, it spread into public consciousness.

Anthropologists, by contrast, were often less convinced. They documented great diversity in gender relations across cultures, including modern and historical ones, and some suspected that such diversity was the standard in prehistory as well. Proving this proved difficult, partly because identifying physical sex—let alone social gender—was often hard in old skeletons. Then around two decades back, that shifted.

A Revolution in Ancient DNA

The much-touted genomics era—the ability to extract DNA from old remains and study it—enabled that suddenly it became possible to identify the sex of long-dead individuals and to trace their family connections. The isotopic composition of their skeletal remains—specifically, the proportion of isotopes present there—revealed whether they had lived in different locations and undergone dietary changes. The picture emerging thanks to these advanced methods shows that diversity in sex roles was absolutely the rule in prehistory, and that there was no clear watershed when one system yielded to its mirror image.

Hypotheses on the Emergence of Patriarchal Systems

The Marxist theory, actually credited to Engels, proposed that humans were egalitarian until agriculture expanded from the Near East about 10,000 years ago. Accompanying the settled lifestyle and accumulation of wealth that agriculture brought came the need to protect that wealth and to set rules for its succession. As communities grew, men took over the elites that developed to coordinate these matters, partly because they were more skilled at warfare, and assets passed to the male line. Men were also more likely to stay put, with their female mates moving to live with them. Women’s subordination was often a byproduct of these changes.

Another view, put forward by researcher Marija Gimbutas in the 1960s, held that female-oriented societies dominated for an extended period in the continent—up to 5,000 years ago—after which they were toppled by incoming, male-ruled nomads from the plains.

Findings of Female-Line Societies

Female-line descent (where wealth passes down the female line) and female-resident patterns (where women stay together) often go together, and each are linked with greater female status and influence. In recent years, American scientists discovered that for over three centuries around the 10th century, an elite mother-line group lived in Chaco Canyon, in modern-day New Mexico. Later, in a recent study, Asian researchers identified a matrilineal agricultural community that thrived for nearly as long in China’s east, more than 3,000 years earlier. These findings add to previous evidence, implying that female-descended societies have existed on every inhabited landmasses, at least from the arrival of agriculture on.

Influence and Agency in Prehistoric Societies

But, even if they enjoy greater status, women in matrilineal societies don’t necessarily make decisions. That typically stays the domain of men—specifically of women’s brothers rather than their husbands. And since ancient DNA and chemical traces can’t tell you a great deal about female agency, gender power relations in ancient times continue to be a subject of discussion. In fact, this line of work has prompted scholars to consider what they mean by authority. If the female consort of a male ruler shaped his entourage via support and informal networks, and his decisions through advice, did she hold less influence than him?

Archaeologists have identified several instances of couples ruling jointly in the bronze age—the period following those migrants arrived in Europe—and subsequent historical records attest to high-status women influencing policies in similar manners, continents apart. Perhaps they did so in earlier times. Females exerting soft power in patriarchal societies may even have existed before Homo sapiens. In his 2022 book about gender roles, Different, ape expert Frans de Waal recounted how an dominant female chimp, a named individual, anointed a successor to the top male—who outranked her—with a kiss.

Factors Shaping Sex Roles

In recent years something else has emerged. Although the theorist was likely generally correct in associating property with male-line inheritance, other factors shaped gender relations, as well—such as how a community makes a living. Recently, international researchers reported that historically female-line villages in a highland region have grown more gender-neutral over the last 70 years, as they moved from an agricultural economy to a market-oriented one. Conflict also has a role. While matrilocal and male-resident societies are equally warlike, notes anthropologist a Yale expert, within-group disputes—rather than battles against an outside group—prods societies towards patrilocality, because warring clans prefer to keep their sons nearby.

Women as Hunters and Leaders

At the same time, proof is mounting that women engaged in combat, pursued game and served as shamans in the distant past. No role or role has been barred to them always, everywhere. And even if women leaders may have been uncommon, they were not nonexistent. New genetic analyses from an Irish university show that there were at least pockets of matrilinearity throughout the British Isles, when Celtic tribes controlled the land in the metal period. Alongside archaeological evidence for women fighters and ancient descriptions of female tribal chiefs, it appears as if Celtic women could wield direct as well as indirect power.

Modern Female-Line Societies

Mother-line societies persist today—the Mosuo of China are an example, as are the a Native American tribe of Arizona, descendants of those Chaco Canyon clans. Their numbers are declining, as national governments flex their patriarchal muscles, but they act as reminders that certain extinct societies tilted more towards gender equality than numerous of our modern ones, and that all societies have the potential to evolve.