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(#3) Women Are The Heads Of The Households, With Men Not Usually Involved In Raising Their Own Children
Mosuo women are responsible for the running of the house, including cooking, cleaning, and childcare. In Mosuo culture, children are usually raised by their mother, grandmother (the head of the house), aunts and uncles. There actually is no word for "aunt" in their language, since all of the women of the family play a mothering role to the children.
Although the fathers are traditionally not expected to play a large role in their kids's lives, they do participate. Some fathers watch their own little ones while the women work, and participate throughout their lives. But most of the time, men are more heavily involved in the raising of their sisters' children. No child is ever "fatherless," they simply share many father figures.
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(#5) Households Can Hold Dozens Of People, None Of Whom Are Married To Each Other
The household structure of Mosuo families differs significantly from the Western nuclear family. Grandmothers are the family leaders, with all of their children and grandchildren living together in one large home. Once they are old enough, young women are given their own room in the house, so that they can host suitors in privacy. Young men can move away, but many stay at home and help care for the younger members of the family. As large as the family may be, all of the members are related by blood, and never through marriage.
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(#4) There Are Some Key Western Concepts Missing From Their Language
The language of the Mosuo people, which is an oral tradition with no written form, does not include the words for husband, jealousy, rape, or murder. The absence of these words is very telling when it comes to their culture — there is a high level of respect among members of the community. Relationships between men and women are conducted with mutual respect and dignity, and crime is very minimal.
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(#2) They Practice 'Walking Marriages,' Often Misunderstood As 'Free Love'
While other parts of Chinese society put social status first when choosing a partner, the Mosuo set being in love as their top priority. Their tradition of "walking marriages" is often misunderstood by Chinese tourists, who simply see it as "free love."
The marriages are not marriages in the traditional sense. They are an agreement made between two people who are in love, and if they are no longer in love they part peacefully. The "walking" comes from the tradition of couples living separately. Men live either with their families or alone, and visit their wife's home at her discretion only for meals, sex, and to sleep.
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(#11) The Village Is Located In An Isolated Yet Beautiful Part Of The Himalyan Foothills
The location of the Mosuo villages is said to be breathtaking. The community is situated on a high plateau in the Himalayan foothills, located between the provinces of Yunnan and Sichuan. It is said to be the same region "where the legend of Shangri-La was born." The 40,000 members of the Mosuo community live in villages that cling to the edge of Lugu Lake, where they have been for over 1,000 years.
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(#7) Women Are The Leaders Of The Family On Paper As Well As In Practice
When it comes to leadership in their homes, Mosuo women are the head of the household both in practice and on paper. Unlike in many other parts of the world, women are considered intellectually superior to men. They are the ones who own property, control inheritance rights, and make all domestic decisions for their family. However, in public life men hold a large number of political positions — and this is because they find it easier to have male members of the Mosuo community deal with the mostly male leaders of the rest of China.
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China has 56 ethnic groups, and almost every ethnic group has its own unique culture and customs, language or script. The Mosuo people have lived on the banks of the beautiful Lugu Lake in Lijiang City for generations, they still retain the ethnic culture of the matriarchal society. This small village is entirely run by women and has its own national language but no writing. Walking marriage is the most representative marriage custom of the Mosuo people.
Until now, the family form of matriarchy still remains on the shore of Lugu Lake, the Mosuo people are called the mysterious daughter country. This is one of the most mysterious and interesting Mosuo cultures that Chinese and foreign scholars and tourists find. The generator will help to know more about this Chinese village.
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