in patriarchal societies, women usually have to assimilate themselves into their husband's status. however, this does not affect female descendants of muhammad, since it is seen as a sacred blood relation. thus, the heraldic title can be given to an individual through his or hers mother's line in accordance to ottoman naqib al-ashrafs. even the zaynabids, the descendants of lady zainab, the daughter of ali ibn abi talib can also be titled "sayyid" or "sharif", according to the egyptian imam al suyuti. in tajikistan matrilineal descendants are also honored. the fact why there is no total consensus indicating sayyids and abandoning individuals of maternal descent, may be to limit the number, because of financial reasons, such as khums or governmental support especially for sayyids.