Kingdom of Women | panicola blog

A beautiful documentary on the one of the last matriarchal societies in the world -the Mosuo people of South West China.
Women are the head of the household
Children are raised in their mother’s homes
Uncles play father
Walking Marriage – a woman can take as many lovers as she likes and the man visits his lover’s house at night, arriving after dark and leaving before dawn. The relationship is only made public once children come along. But even then, couples never live together. Adult men and women remain living in their mother’s home, while children and property always remain with the mother.

It was a hot day and I was driving up to Dave Evan’s airbnb house in Newport with Floppy while this was on air
There’s a beautiful, slightly melancholic song played during the documentary – excerpt here:

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/360/kingdom-of-women/5151924

Kingdom of Women

Sunday 22 December 2013 10:05AM

Imagine if your brother raised your children and your husband visited a few times a week.
This is the ancient cultural practice of the Mosuo people – one of the last surviving matriarchal societies in the world.

IMAGE: MUSUO WOMAN DU ZHI MA, 68, POSES IN FRONT COLORFUL MUSUO TEXTILES AT HER HOME IN LUOSHUI VILLAGE ON THE EDGE OF LUGU LAKE. (DAVE TACON)

In Mosuo society, women are head of the household. Children are raised in the mother’s home and uncles play father to their sisters’ children. In the Mosuo’s dialect there is no word for husband or father.

IMAGE: THE MOSUO GIRLS DRESS IN ELABORATE COSTUMES FOR THE FIRE DANCE. IF A BOY IS INTERESTED IN A GIRL HE TAPS HER ON THE HAND DURING THE DANCE. (DAVE TACON)

IMAGE: MOSUO VILLAGERS PERFORM A FIRE DANCE FOR TOURISTS.(DAVE TACON)

They also practise ‘walking marriage’, a woman can take as many lovers as she likes and the man visits his lover’s house at night, arriving after dark and leaving before dawn. The relationship is only made public once children come along. But even then, couples never live together. Adult men and women remain living in their mother’s home, while children and property always remain with the mother.

Aya Si Geng Ma the head of a Mosuo household

IMAGE: AYA SI GENG MA, 69, THE HEAD OF A MOSUO HOUSEHOLD OF ELEVEN IN LUOSHUI VILLAGE ON THE EDGE OF LUGU LAKE, CARRIES FOOD SCRAPS TO BE FED TO PIGS IN THE COURTYARD OF HER FAMILES HOME. THE REGION AROUND LUGU LAKE IS HOME TO THE MATRIARCHIAL MUSUO ETHNIC MINORITY WHO PRACTICE TIBETAN BUDDHISM. MOSUO WOMEN ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR MUCH OF THEIR HOUSEHOLD’S MANUAL LABOR. (DAVE TACON)

Young Mosuo men enjoy beer and a card game

IMAGE: YOUNG MOSUO MEN ENJOY BEER AND A CARD CALLED CALLED ‘FIGHTING THE LANDLORD’ AT A VILLAGE NEAR LUGU LAKE.(DAVE TACON)

In this program, journalist Erin O’Dwyer takes us into a Mosuo village, in a remote and mountainous region of China’s Yunnan province. We meet the young Mosuo men and women who still practise walking marriage, and the elderly grandmother-matriarchs who guard and protect the Mosuos’ ancient way of life.

IMAGE: LA CHUO ZHU MA, 27, IN TRADITIONAL DRESS BEFORE A FIRE DANCE IN XIAOLUOSHUI, A VILLAGE ON THE EDGE OF LUGU LAKE. EACH NIGHT, AROUND 400 TOURISTS ARE CHARGED 30 CNY (AROUND $5) TO ATTEND THESE SPECTACLES. PROFITS ARE EVENLY DISTRIBUTED THROUGHOUT THE SURROUNDING VILLAGES. (DAVE TACON)

Translations by Hanmei Li and Ana Zhao.

Credits

Producer: Erin O’Dwyer
Sound Engineer: Timothy Nicastri
Actor: Anthony Wong

Credits

from the office of dr paul nicolarakis