Ancient text: What's the difference between an uncle and a brother-in-law?
In the ancient text, the eldest uncle and brother-in-law referred to the brothers of the father, but their status and relationship were slightly different. The eldest uncle referred to his father's cousin or cousin who was ranked first among his father's brothers. This was because in ancient times, there was a strict order of kinship within the family. The eldest uncle usually had a higher status and more power in the family. Under normal circumstances, the eldest uncle would take on important roles in the family, such as making arrangements for sacrifices, traveling, and other matters. The brother-in-law referred to his father's internal brother, which was the second or third brother in his father's family. Unlike his eldest uncle, his brother-in-law was not his father's biological brother, but was chosen from the other brothers. His status and relationship with his brother-in-law were relatively distant. Matters related to brother-in-law were usually handled by other brothers or other members of the family. It should be noted that in the ancient text, there were other forms of address such as cousin, cousin, and so on. The meaning and usage of these forms of address would also be different.