Matriliny and mother goddess religion

Abstract

This article offers critical reflections on the bipolar conception of human history offered by Afrocentric and eco‐feminist theologians. Such a theory, essentially a re‐affirmation of Bachofen's historical speculations, tends to see an intrinsic relationship between matriliny and mother‐goddess religion—both being associated with an earlier, eden‐like, phase of human history. Using anthropological data, the article provides a critique of these currently fashionable accounts of human pre‐history.