adelphogamy

Noun

adelphogamy (uncountable)

1. Mating between ants descended from the same queen.
   • But, however true it may be that all of the products of adelphogamy have but a single mother, we cannot ignore the fact that they have divers fathers.1928, August Forel, The Social World of the Ants, page 407
   • But she also asked about the civic organization of our state : whether our queens were adopted or whether we insured the continuity of our dynasty by adelphogamy.1947, Frederick Philip Grove, Consider Her Ways, page 142
2. A form of polyandry in which a woman is married to two or more brothers.
   • Concerning the system of polyandry among the Todas, I gather that a woman may be married to more than one man, provided they are brothers (adelphogamy), and the maximum number of husbands seems to be five.1894, Edgar Thurston, “Anthropology: Todas of the Nilgiris”, in Madras Government Museum Bulletin, volume 4, number 1, page 6
   • While there are obscure (and presumptively vestigial) traces of polyandry or adelphogamy, and while an informal polygyny is practiced by the chiefs and older warriors, the formal matings are between one man and one woman, and appear to be permanent.1898, W. J. McGee, The Seri Indians, page 285
3. Marriage between a brother and a sister.
   • What made Tiye encourage her children to engage in adelphogamy, especially given that Semenkhkara had already become a victim?2024, Martin Bommas, Tutankhamun: A Biography, unnumbered page