Cousin vs Sister: Difference and Comparison

Sister and cousin are two family members that belong to the Contemporary generation and have the same level of understanding. They are family members and a dearest friend.

There can be some age gap between siblings, but the love remains the same. A person can have numerous sisters and cousins to not one of them.

Key Takeaways

  1. Grandparent or more distant ancestor, while a sister is a female sibling who shares the same parents or is related through adoption, stepfamilies, or other family structures.
  2. Cousins can be further classified as first, second, or more distant cousins based on the degree of relatedness, while sisters can be described as full, half, or stepsisters depending on their shared parentage.
  3. Cousins and sisters are part of one’s extended family. Still, sisters have a closer familial bond and grow up together in the same household, while cousins may have more diverse family experiences and connections.

Cousin vs Sister

The difference between cousin and sister is that the sister has common parents and grandparents. On the other hand, cousins do not have common parents, but they can have common grandparents. The parents’ cousins belong to are called uncle and aunt. A person can have two types of cousins, one from the mother’s side and others from the father’s side.

Cousin vs Sister

A cousin is the child of one’s aunt or uncle who has a common line of ancestors. Cousins belong to the same generation but are not a similar family. In many cases, cousins do not even live in similar places.

They visit each other once in a while. Like a sister, a cousin can be close to someone and have no such bond.

Female siblings having similar parents is called a sister and have many traits in common. Two biological sisters might have identical facial features and common interests.

The male sibling is known to be a brother. A person can have numerous sisters to not a single one. Some people have a special bond with their sisters, while some lack this bond.

Comparison Table

Parameters Of ComparisonCousinSister
ParentsA person’s cousin does not have the same parents. A person’s sister has the same parents.
RightCousins are not equally entitled to ancestral property at law.The sister is equally entitled to ancestral property at law.
MarriageIn some religions, people are allowed to marry their cousins, for instance, Muslims.By the rule of society, a person is not allowed to marry his sister. It is considered to be a sin.
BondA person is not related to his cousin directly or by blood. There are uncles and an aunt in between. A person is related to his sister directly by blood. It is the rule that siblings have the same parents.
Other termsDepending on the bond, a person can call his cousin by twinnie, Chicka, FMF, sista, and many more. Depending on the bond, a person can call his sister by sissy, sis, missy, and many more.

What is Cousin?

A cousin is a relative whose recent common ancestor was grandparents. A cousin is officially referred to as the first cousin.

People are separated in some way from the most common ancestor, yet they can be long-distant cousins. The first cousin has a standard pair of grandparents, while the second cousin has the common great-grandparents.

To understand the proper analogy of a cousin, a person is suggested to analyze his family tree.

There is a separate term to call a female cousin in the English language known as ‘cousiness,’ yet it is a gender-neutral term that can be used to denote both male and female.

Some religions allow people to establish a physical relationship between cousins by getting married, while in some countries, this action is highly prohibited.

The relationship between cousins is described by two terms: degrees and removal.

The term degree monitors the dissociation of generations that is from a recent common ancestor to the parents of the cousin being concerned.

Removal monitors the differences between generations or ancestors between cousins.

A cousin with no removal is considered to be complete or the first cousin. Cousins are like siblings who can become fast friends.

It is observed that people are closed with their cousins from their mother’s side than the father’s side.

cousin

What is Sister?

Sister is not gender-neutral because it refers to a woman or girl having the same parents.

A person can have a step-sister and twin-sister—sisters share one of the parents, either mother or father, and both of them.

Sister is now an equal claimant in the ancestral property. This can sometimes be a significant reason for disputes among siblings, and it can not put a price on the care and love given by the sister.

She can have an identical appearance and similar facial features. The word sister has been derived from the Old Norse term systir. The roots of systir go back to the Proto-Germanic word swestēr.

Many cultures have promoted the idea that male siblings are responsible for protecting their sisters from external threats—these threats include social abuse, harassment, bullies, etc.

Older sisters are playing the role of a mother towards their younger siblings. Sisters have gentle natures and love their siblings equally, while they can get more easily jealous than a brother.

Having a sister can make a person feel more positive emotions.

It has been shown that people who have a sister are less lonelier and have great strength to fight any fear.

It is a natural instinct of a woman that they adore other people, and that’s a perk of having a sister. There will be no shortage of unconditional love.

sister

Main Differences Between Cousin and Sister

  1. A person can have a twin sister or step-sister if one of his parents gets remarried. On the other hand, there is no such term as having a step-cousin.
  2. The sister’s parents are called mother and father because the sister is a sibling. On the other hand, the cousins’ parents are called uncle and aunt.
  3. A person spends a large amount of his life with his sister. They go to a similar school. On the other hand, people spend a certain amount of time with their cousins because they don’t live together.
  4. People are not authorized to marry their own sisters. It is not acceptable by society or religion. On the other hand, some religions permit people to marry their cousins.
  5. A sister gets equal portions of the property left behind by their forefathers. On the other hand, there is no such facility provided for cousins.
Cousin vs Sister – Difference Between Cousin and Sister
References
  1. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=5fKcDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT15&dq=cousins&ots=uKmQKHdCi9&sig=VJX0eH7WFNIPvUiTNKjw-cXFI9Y
  2. https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.9783/9781512801514/html

Last Updated : 26 July, 2023

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