exogamy

[ek-sog-uh-mee]

noun

marriage outside a specific tribe or similar social unit.Compare endogamy.
Biology. the union of gametes of unrelated parents.

Origin of exogamy

First recorded in 1860–65; exo- + -gamy

Related formsex·og·a·mous

[ek-sog-uh-muh s] /ɛkˈsɒg ə məs/, ex·o·gam·ic

[ek-suh-gam-ik] /ˌɛk səˈgæm ɪk/, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for exogamous

Historical Examples of exogamous

In Raigarh the Bhuiyas appear to have no exogamous divisions.
The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India
R. V. Russell
The equivalent Anumolla occurs as an exogamous sept of Kamma.
Castes and Tribes of Southern India
Edgar Thurston
Among the Vallambans these karais are exogamous, and run in the male line.
Castes and Tribes of Southern India
Edgar Thurston
Each of these is further sub-divided into clans (kiriyam), which are exogamous.
Castes and Tribes of Southern India
Edgar Thurston
They recognize no endogamous sub-divisions, but have exogamous septs.
Castes and Tribes of Southern India
Edgar Thurston

British Dictionary definitions for exogamous

exogamy

noun

sociol anthropol the custom or an act of marrying a person belonging to another tribe, clan, or similar social unitCompare endogamy
biology fusion of gametes from parents that are not closely related

Derived Formsexogamous (ɛkˈsɒɡəməs) or exogamic (ˌɛksəʊˈɡæmɪk), adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for exogamous

exogamy

1865, Modern Latin, literally "outside marriage," from exo- + -gamy. Related: Exogamous.

exogamous in Medicine

exogamy

[ĕk-sŏg′ə-mē]

Sexual reproduction by means of conjugation of two gametes of different ancestry, as in certain protozoan species.