How do you define 'family'

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ChemGal

ChemGal

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And how does the phrase 'starting a family' fit in with that definition?
 
Starting a family --- refers to my spouse and I deciding to have kids....

For me, family is really dependent on the context it is put in
 
"There are all sorts of different families, Katie. Some families have one mommy, some families have one daddy, or two families. Some children live with their uncle or aunt. Some live with their grandparents, and some children live with foster parents. Some live in separate homes and neighborhoods in different areas of the country. They may not see each other for days, weeks, months or even years at a time. But if there's love, dear, those are the ties that bind." - from Mrs. Doubtfire
 
I agree about the context. Sometimes it means the people I live with, sometimes more extended and then there are the non-relatives who are like family.

I don't care for the meaning behind the phrase starting a family though. My husband and I are a family, and if someone asks when we are going to start one, it implies that they don't consider us to be a family already.
 
Right, I would refer to you as a couple, not a family.

(Well, unless I was referring to you as a household / family unit, ie a family ticket, or a family price.)
 
Whereas I think of us as both now. When we were dating we were a couple, but not a family.
I think it takes a minimum of 2 to have a family.
 
wiki defines as adult and children....i get the definition may be changing; however, definitios generally seem to define family as multigenerational.

If I were to say "what is your family doing for Christmas", that might imply immediate family, or a wider family grouping, such as aunts/uncles, grandparents.

If I am a outsider doing an interview, I might say "what breakfast foods does your family prefer" and I would be referring to folks in your household.
 
Pinga said:
wiki defines as adult and children....i get the definition may be changing; however, definitios generally seem to define family as multigenerational.

If I were to say "what is your family doing for Christmas", that might imply immediate family, or a wider family grouping, such as aunts/uncles, grandparents.
Click to expand...

This past Christmas we had a family party. Present were...

1. My oldest sister - her second husband - my sister's two kids - and her second husband's two kids.

2. Me - my wife - my youngest of two stepsons.

3. My middle sister - her husband - and their three children.

4. My brother - his wife - and his mother-in-law (a woman the rest of us all call Grandma).

5. My mom.

Also - my oldest brother-in-law's ex-wife and her current man (boyfriend? husband?) stopped by for a short visit.

Family - it's constantly changing.
 
Pinga, before you had kids did you consider your spouse to be family? If so, what family was he apart of if you 2 weren't considered to be a family?
 
A family is a basic social group comprised of one or more adults with one or more children.

The phrase 'starting a family' is a colloquialism which may involve getting married and procreating or adopting. It is contextual.
 
According to Wikipedia - "In human context, a family (from Latin: familia) is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity (by recognized birth), affinity (by marriage), or co-residence/shared consumption (see Nurture kinship). Members of the immediate family may include a spouse, parent, brother and sister, and son and daughter." (Source - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family)

So - children need not necessarily be involved.

Now me - I went from being a single guy to being a married man with two stepsons - and after six years became a father-in-law and - shortly thereafter - a grandfather.
 
Is a family not 2 or more people who live together. This could also be an old ager and her dog. Here we say our WC2 family. So could it also be virtual?
 
I don't think Mrs. M and I really thought of ourselves as a family until we had Little M. That's not to say we were not one, and were were certainly part of two extended families, but I do not think we really felt like one.
 
CH I would agree, and would even stretch it when not living together in certain instances too. Ie. Chemguy and I were still a family when he was living elsewhere during the work week. My greatgrandparents were still a family when he was in long-term care and she was living independently.

I don't think I would think of a single person and a dog as a family but if that's how they defined their family I wouldn't knock it either.
 
I was just thinking of my grandmother and her little dog Nipper. She talked to him all the time, when she was alone Nipper was company.She looked after him and he followed her around and looked after her.......... Family.
 
It stays for me that the word family is used in different ways in different contexts.

Just like "few" "couple" "some" are terms that have specific meanings they also are used interchangeably by others. My sense is some folks are sensitive about the usage of the word "family" which is too bad.
 
If I heard the term "starting a family" that would imply to me getting a child somehow. Adoption, pregnancy or whatever

If I was becoming a "couple" that implies getting married or living together to me.

But when I was newly married, I did consider my hubby to be my family, but I would never introduce him that way. While I might my kids and hubby. " John, let me introduce my family......"


Context is important for sure
 
I remember working on this "family" definition 30 years ago I think my then boss defined it well " A family is 2 or more people that consider themselves family".
You don't have to share a house-when my ex no longer lived with us he was still part of my children's family, you do not have to be related by blood or marriage, and you don't have to be adult/child.
 
I like crazyheart's statement "If you think you are family, then you are family."
I think of myself, my husband, our son, our daughter and grandchildren as family - and I include my daughter's significant other as part of the family as well. But I also have my family of origin - my parents (deceased), my brother (deceased), and my two sisters (but not their husbands and children). My husband has his family of origin - his brothers.

I also mentally define 'family' in context. When my granddaughter was little, she and my daughter lived with me. We continued to attend church together even when they moved out. I was very hurt when I signed us up to attend a church social event as 'family' and was told that we were not a family because 'we didn't live under one roof'.

I generally think of a couple as being a family. Or a couple with a parent living with them. Or two sisters sharing their home - or two brothers. Or a mother and her adult son - or daughter. And yes, I can well imagine somebody explaining, when asked about their family "There's just me and my cat, Fluffy."

But 'starting a family'? I would think of that as a person, or a couple, deciding to have (or adopt) a baby or child.
 
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