ExtFamilie

ExtFamilie is a term used in social science to describe an extended family network that goes beyond the nuclear family, incorporating relatives by blood, marriage, and sometimes chosen family members who play a significant role in a person’s life. It encompasses households and kinship ties that contribute to social, economic, and cultural support across generations.

The name derives from the words extended and family, and while its exact usage varies by culture and research tradition, the core idea remains a network of related individuals who influence one another’s lives beyond the core parent–child unit. In practice, ExtFamilie definitions differ across societies, reflecting local norms around marriage, adoption, guardianship, and community ties.

Functions of ExtFamilie commonly include care and childcare, financial support during hardship, shared housing or resources, and the transmission of values, language, and cultural practices. The network can be formalized through legal kinship, guardianship, and inheritance arrangements, or it can arise through long-standing social bonds recognized as family by those involved.

In research, ExtFamilie is studied through kinship mappings, social capital measures, and patterns of intergenerational exchange. It intersects with topics such as migration, adoption, stepfamilies, and aging populations, highlighting how family resources and obligations extend beyond the immediate household.

Contemporary changes—such as geographic mobility, digital communication, and changing household structures—continue to reshape ExtFamilie boundaries. While these networks often provide resilience and support, they also raise questions about rights, responsibilities, and cultural variation in what counts as family.