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Abstract: This article discusses the dynamics of Ibibio lineage structure. It presents ethnographic evidence that fission of maximal lineages (ekpuk) into minor lineages (ufok) in Ibibioland was principally a function of marriages involving agnatic kin. Such a marriage caused initial disruption in the lineage because it led to the creation of a new minor lineage with a separate ancestral shrine (iso ekpo) from that hitherto worshiped by the inclusive unit. The paradox of Ibibio marriage involving agnatic kin, which this article demonstrates, is that the initial disruption is ameliorated by new but sacred kinship bonds arising from the marriage which reintegrate these lineages as exogamous units at different structural levels. Introduction Lineage segmentation or fission is a widespread phenomenon in African societies. It is often attributed to demographic pressure, which causes a lineage to get too large numerically, subsequently splitting into competing (and cooperating) units. In some cases the fission could occur for such economic reasons as pressure on land (Fox 1967:chaps. 1 and 3). In other cases still, lineages could segment for political reasons, as best illustrated by the Nuer of Sudan and the Tiv of Nigeria (Bohannan and Bohannan 1953; Evans-Pritchard 1940). However, the dominant role of marriage as a determinant of lineage segmentation has remained relatively unexplored. This article concerns itself with two aspects of Ibibio social structure--marriage and lineage segmentation. It addresses the following questions. What specific role does marriage play in the segmentation process in Ibibioland? What constitutes an exogamous unit in Ibibioland and what mechanisms exist to foster the re-integration of the segmentary structures in this society? Methodology The data for this article were drawn primarily from a field survey in Mbiokporo Nsit No. 1, Nsit Ibom Local Government Area (LGA) in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria. However, for comparative purposes, cases collected from other Ibibio communities will be highlighted in the discussion of the data. Because of their greater knowledge of the history of lineage segmentation and its causes, only elders aged 50 and above were interviewed. The snowball sampling technique was used to select these elders in the community. Location of Study Forde and Jones (1950) identified six dialect groups in the Old Calabar Province,(f.1) one of which is the Eastern Ibibio or Ibibio proper. The other...