氏族|しぞくshizoku[1]atamadaka (head-high)

1. no-adjectiveclan; family

• SynonymクランNeutralLoanword for clan, used mainly for gaming teams and Scottish clans; colloquial.
• Synonym一族いちぞくNeutralPeople of one bloodline, usable for past and present alike, as in 「平家一族」; common in speech, while 「氏族」 leans to ancient social organization.
• Synonym族ぞくNeutralWide-ranging suffix: tribes and ethnic groups, but also groups like 「暴走族」; much broader in use than 「氏族」.
• Related一門いちもんNeutralOne family line or house, and also the followers of a school or sect; the focus is on the people of the house.
• Related血族けつぞくWrittenWritten term for blood relatives; stresses the blood tie and does not carry the sense of ancient social organization.
• Related親族しんぞくNeutralLegal term for relatives tied by blood or marriage; 「氏族」 is a common-descent group and excludes in-laws.
• Related家系かけいNeutralFamily lineage; stresses the transmission of the bloodline rather than the group of people itself.
• Related閥族ばつぞくWrittenWritten word for families of standing or clans that form a faction, with political overtones; 「氏族」 stresses common ancestry.
• Related宗族そうぞくWrittenWritten term for a clan, stressing the patrilineal family; close in meaning to 「氏族」.
• Related血縁集団けつえんしゅうだんWrittenAcademic term for a group bound by blood ties; describes the kin group itself.

Use 「氏族」 for an ancient blood-based social group, as in 「氏族社会」 or 「氏族制度」. For a family line say 「一族」 or 「一門」, for relatives 「親族」, for lineage 「家系」, and for game or Scottish clans 「クラン」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 同おなじ祖先そせんを持もつ（と認みとめあう）人ひと達たちの血族けつぞく的てきな集団しゅうだん。氏し。