Individuals in traditional Asian societies were generally known by their family or clan and derived their self-identity from it. The family functioned as both a religious and social unit. In China, family gatherings for the purpose of ancestor worship not only steeled family solidarity, but also connected individuals to a group that transcended the boundaries of this world. In India, various family units constituted the jatis, which then combined with others to form the caste. While the caste and jatis formed concentric rings of identity, the family lay at the center. Families also regulated themselves, often resolving disputes.
In China and Japan, family organizations or lineages could organize thousands of people throughout the various branches of a family and could regulate their behavior through family counsels headed by the chief patriarchs of each branch. Many of these lineage organizations actually planned strategies for the future like a corporation. On an individual level, unacceptable behavior could meet the sanction of these family heads, marriages could be arranged to enhance the prestige of the whole clan, and children could have their lives planned out for them. In short, family heads often had tremendous power over the lives of individuals within the clan.
The family also served as a welfare unit. Sometimes great clans or extended family heads established orphanages or endowments to provide subsistence to widows and/or orphans within their family lines. If a poor family came upon hard times, it could always turn to a wealthier branch within the extended family for assistance.
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