The is the main

household A household consists of two or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...

Japanese family The family is called in Japanese. It's basically composed of a couple as is the family in other societies. The Japanese family is based on the line of descent and adoption. Ancestors and offspring are linked together by an idea of family geneal ...

. It is part of the system of family branching that establishes a multiplied structure to create familial relationships. The head of a household and his successor reside in the ''honke'', while collateral branches establish ''

bunke A is a branch family established by a collateral of the ''honke'' (the line descended through the eldest male) in Japan. See also * Ie (Japanese family system) * Japanese family structure * ''Koseki A or family register is a Japanese family ...

''. The

genealogical Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinsh ...

relationship between ''honke'' and ''bunke'' is determined by the ''ie'' family system. The ''honke'' establishes the new branch family while ''bunke'' is linked to it since both are part of the ''ie''. They can be described in terms of vertical relationships where the branch is subordinated to the main household. This system also determines how the access to resources is ordered. The honke-bunke relationship can be demonstrated in the case of the imperial household, which is said to have descended from its founder Amaterasu-omikami. Her grandson

Ninigi-no-Mikoto is a deity in Japanese mythology. Grandson of the sun goddess Amaterasu, Ninigi is regarded according to Japanese mythology as the great-grandfather of Japan’s first emperor, Emperor Jimmu. The three sacred treasures brought with Ninigi from ...

is the ''honke'' while the other branches of the family or those distantly related members of the household are the ''bunke'' through the branching of the ''ie''. The ''honke''–''bunke'' relationship is also reflected in the relationship between Japanese companies and their subsidiaries. In the 1700s, businesses ran by families followed rules that contained details on mutual relationships between the ''honke'' as the main line and the ''bunke'' or the branch lines.{{Cite book, title=The Development of Japanese Business, 1600-1980: Second Edition, last=Hirschmeier, first=Johannes, last2=Yui, first2=Tsunehiko, date=2018-10-31, publisher=Routledge, isbn=9780429770111, location=Oxon In this hierarchy, which also covered management practices, there are separate branches called ''bekke'', which were set up for employees.

Notes

Japanese family structure