Naelathe are very Concerned about familiy. Though their families are very loose by our standards, Naelathe are deeply attached to all of their parents and siblings. Part of this is because births are so rare, but is also in part due to the honor tied up in the War.

Naelathe are polygamous, practicing both polygyny and polyandry. Multiple spouses are not a sign of social position nor are they a result of economic necessity. Romantic love is the most common and only truly socially acceptable reason for bonding. Such groupings are expected to be temporary; Naelathe often compare love to the cycle of Seasons. The average length of a romantic relationship is approximately 75 to 100 years, allowing the group, should it include members of opposite sexes, to raise a child to maturity.  Naelathe do not distinguish between relations and half-relations.

 Naelathen children are expected to spend at least ten years between leaving home and their first marriage. In general apprenticeships begin at around 20, after the Elf leaves his parents' home. It is not considered proper in Naelathen society to take one's own child as an apprentice, nor are children expected to follow in their parents' trade or trades, though they occassionally do. Apprenticeship forms an important part of Naelathen society. Apprentices live with their teachers as if they were part of the family, taking a position somewhere betwee child and concubine. As with Greek society, these relationships are almost always sexual.