Extended family is the most common type of family unit structure in The Gambia. An extended family is a tribe, and a tribe is made up of different villages. Traditionally, Gambian families tend to be large and up to three generations live together in one home. The family lineage is passed through the father.
The father is usually the Head of the house, while the wife maintains the home and family. The general nuclear family is as follows: the head, the temporary head, the spouse, the children, the son's children, the daughter's children, the head's parents, brother/sister, nephews and nieces.
The leader of a Gambian village is a chief. This chief is called the Alkalo. He is the oldest male of the founding family of the village. His duties and responsibilities include tax collections, governmental and non-governmental organizations, and acting as a liason between villages.
One of the central areas of the village is called the Banataba. This is where the men in the village would sit to make decisions on the village's problems.
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