Matrilineal
Descent traced through the mother's line: a child belongs to the mother's kin group and inherits property or status through her side, often with a mother's brother — not the father — holding the central authority role. Matrilineal descent is not the same as matriarchy; in most documented matrilineal societies, including the Trobriand Islanders, formal authority is still held predominantly by men, just a different set of men than in patrilineal systems.