quote:
Ancient Jews did not trace descent thrugh the mother - this is a modern idea - the human egg was only discovered in the 19th century.
Irrelevant. "It is a wise man who knows his father", as they say, although few are in doubt as to the identity of their mother.
Lost of societies followed descent through the female line. Lots more also CHANGED to descent through the male line, IMO. This is visible in the rather confused narratives about legitmiate descent in many cultural mythologies.
It is, however, not necessary to scientifically identify the egg in order to construct matrilinear descent. After all, the English claim to the French throne through the hundred years war was premised on matrilineal descent and in opposition to the Salic Law that had explicitly removed the legitimacy of matrilineal inheritence.
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