Kinship system of the nomadic people has attracted the attention of scientists and the travelers for a long time. In this article the kinship system of the Tuva people who live in the upstream of Yenisey River is studied. At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries exogamy norms have been preserved in the marriage and the clearness of kinship relations shows that the matrilineal norms were well developed. During the period of cattle-breeding way of life matriarchal traditions have been preserved. Woman’s activity in household is thought to be one of the stability factors in the development of cattle breeding