Most of us are raised in societies that grew up on patriarchal principles. However, in the remote areas of southern China, an ethnic group still lives today and its functioning is based on matriarchy. There are no words in her language for murder, war or rape ...
Mosuo is an ethnic group living in the Chinese provinces of Junnan and Sichuan, including the area around Lake Lugu Hu. Although many anthropologists classify this community as Naxi due to linguistic affinity, these communities differ from a cultural point of view.
Mosuos are considered descendants of the ancient people of the Tibetan plateau - Qiang. The earliest records of them come from the Han and Tang dynasties. The existence of this group is also mentioned in the records from the period of the invasions of Genghis Khan's grandson, Kublai Khan, into southern China in the 13th century.
Members of the Mosuo community are characterized by a matrilineal system of kinship and inheritance, which in practice meant that children stayed at their mother's house after birth and rather never left it . The traditional house usually consisted of several generations, headed by a woman distinguished by knowledge and skills .
Usually it was a mother whose children had already reached adulthood, or a grandmother. Family ties in this community were extremely strong, and moving out were very rare and, by definition, they were not determined by entering into a marriage. Why? Because the Mosuos practiced a special tradition of "walking marriage".
Walking marriages
The so-called "walking marriages" are one of the hallmarks of the Mosuo community. These were not formal relationships, and their operation was based solely on the night visits to the house of the woman who had previously expressed interest in the man in question . Thus, in principle, these were relationships based on a common physical attraction and feelings. How did they look in practice?
According to tradition, the girl was considered ready for sexual relations between the ages of 13 and 14 . Then it received access to the so-called the flower chamber within her homestead. It is a separate room where she could invite her chosen one after dark. However, after spending the night together, the man was obliged to return to his family home.
There were several customs related to these nocturnal wanderings, and one of the most important was that the lover would wear ... a hat:
Mosuo men always go to their partners in large hats. If a woman decides to end the relationship, she does so without further ado - the lover finds the door closed. If, on the other hand, he finds a pair of men's shoes or a hat hanging on the door at the door of the chamber, it means that his partner is spending the night with someone else.
According to tradition, the girl was considered ready for sexual relations between the ages of 13 and 14.
In theory, therefore, "walking marriages" were not exclusive relationships, and children born of these relationships were never officially assigned to one father. Of course, it was known who the child's dad was, but he did not play a special role in her upbringing. Why? Since each man was in charge of the offspring kept under the roof he lived under, they were mostly his sisters' children.
Mosuo had a tradition of raising offspring together. In each home, all the little ones were treated as "common good" for which the whole family cares. Besides, this idea did not only refer to the offspring. Such social construction also allowed for the maintenance of the principle of joint family property. All material goods and money belonged to the family clan and - due to maintaining informal relationships - almost never left it. Thus, it guaranteed the life of the entire family, including the elderly, sick and disabled.
Difficult relationship with the communist authorities and the "revival" of Mosuo
Although the People's Republic of China was proclaimed in 1949, the communist authorities did not gain control of the Mosuo land on Lake Lugu Hu until 1956.
The revolution that came with the new government did not favor ethnic minorities. Old traditions and customs were considered harmful, as were the intellectual and financial elites . Local rulers were expelled from their homes, imposing a new way of life and work, and efforts were made to subordinate communities to new laws and obligations. The authorities also tried to put an end to the Mosuo culture - including, in particular, "walking marriages", forcing community members to register marriages. However, time has shown that eradicating morals is not so easy.
The areas inhabited by Mosuo were hard to reach.
The areas inhabited by Mosuo were hard to reach. Until the 1980s, the route from Lijiang took up to a week - depending on whether it was done on foot or on horseback. In 1982, a road was finally brought to this region that allowed car traffic to go through. However, the boom on the Mosuo was yet to come.
In 1997, singer Yang Erche Namu released a biography entitled "Leaving Mother Lake", in which she described in a rather controversial way the customs of the native Mosuo community and the reasons that forced her to run away from home. The book contributed to a sudden outbreak of interest in this social group.
Mosuo villages have almost been transformed into tourist attractions, which come to crowds every year hungry for spicy stories about the "kingdom of women" . Mosuo festivals take place in the vicinity of Lake Lugu Hu, music videos are filmed with the participation of well-dressed local women, and from time to time, with appropriate government approvals, foreign journalists and travelers describe the magic of living in the Mosuo community.
The 20th century brought many changes to small ethnic groups, some of which changed their traditions, customs and lifestyle. The same happened to the members of the Mosuo. Some of them chose to leave their family homes and start living elsewhere, departing from family practices and rules. However, those who stayed continue to uphold the culture of their ancestors, creating a society that stands out clearly from the traditions and laws we know. Interestingly, researchers of this ethnic group jump into how their lifestyle influenced the formation of the Mosuo language, in which there are no words for murder, war, or rape.