What is the relationship between the Naxi and Mosuo people?
Naxi and Mosuo culture are extremely different. The two largest differences between the cultures are the cultural structure of the two groups. Mosuo society is women run where as Naxi society is male run. The Coming of Age Ceremony, preformed by the Mosuo people, is also the most important ritual in Mosuo society.
Where do the Mosuo people live?
For nearly 2,000 years, the Mosuo (pronounced MWO-swo) have lived in the Yunnan and Sechuan provinces of southwest China, practicing matriarchal traditions. One of China’s 56 designated ethnic minorities, the Mosuo population of 56,000 people is tiny compared with China’s overall population of 1.3 billion.
What is the taboo that the Mosuo practice?
Mosuo culture, both before and after Liberation, allows a high degree of sexual autonomy to both men and women. Because most house- holds contain grown siblings, there are strong taboos against talking about sex or sexual partners in front of family members of the opposite sex.
What are the typical marriage patterns for the Mosuo people and how do those patterns reflect the concept of a walking marriage?
Instead of a civil marriage, the Mosuo have “walking marriages” (“Zouhun” in Chinese), an ongoing sexual relationship based on mutual affection [3]. Men usually visit their lovers at night in the woman’s house, and return to their own maternal family in the early morning [4].
Which type of descent characterizes the Mosuo of China?
The Mosuo are a small ethnic group living around China’s Lugu Lake in the provinces of Sichuan and Yunnan. Most Mosuo people celebrate a matrilineal culture, tracing lineage through the female side of the family.
Is there a culture that doesn’t have marriage?
THE BASICS. The Mosuo people of south west China do not marry and fathers do not live with, or support, children. Their mating system is called “walking marriage” where the man and woman do not live together even though they sleep together.
Do matriarchal societies have marriage?
The common belief in this culture is that the mother is the most important person in society. Women rule the domestic realm of life. And while marriage is feasible in the Minangkabau society, partners must have separate sleeping quarters.
Who lives in a Mosuo household?
Typical Mosuo home Mosuo matrilineality is largely based on the woman’s role as head of the household. The Mosuo generally live in large extended families with many generations under one roof. Children in a household are taken care of by their mother’s family. Their only male influences are their mother’s brothers.
What is the purpose of the Mosuo family life?
Mosuo culture and female sexual freedom The traditional Mosuo family and kinship affords women an equality and agency over their sexual and procreative lives that is rare in most cultures. Romantic and sexual unions are governed solely by the woman and man involved.
What is a walking marriage and why does it make sense for Mosuo society?
“All on-going sexual relationships in Mosuo culture are called “walking marriages.” These bonds are “based on mutual affection.” “When a Mosuo woman or man expresses interest in a potential partner, it is the woman who may give the man permission to visit her.
