One of a kind

The Mosuo, a people in the Southern region of China that inhabit an area of the Himalayas, constitute one of the few matriarchies in the entire world - especially notable in a country as strongly patriarchal as China. Also inconsistent with Chinese norms of emphasis on family over the individual, is the Mosuo's structure of family and married life. In Mosuo villages, the marriages among them are based entirely upon mutual attraction and affection - a woman chooses a man to visit her room for the night, and may continue inviting the same man for as long as they both choose to continue involvement with one another. However, as soon as either tire of the relationship, the woman either stops opening her door, or the man stops coming to visit, and it is understood that they are to continue on their separate ways. In this construction they call a "traveling marriage," there is no obligation or expectation of a lifelong union, though more often than not, couples do settle down after having children. However, even then, the couples live apart and the men are only to visit after the sun has set, then return home to the rest of their families early in the morning. In their own homes, many generations dwell communally, sharing the responsibility of caring for the family, with the oldest living female at its head. Men in the Mosuo families are not responsible for raising their own children, but rather the children of their sisters. In this manner, since the only elements in Mosuo romances are the man and woman involved, they are able to base their commitments entirely on love and focus exclusively on one another within their relationships, free to act as capriciously as their whims may eventually tempt them without concern over any custody or property disputes. Again, since marriage is traditionally regarded as a group concern within Asian cultures, the Mosuo's way of life is extraordinarily unique to their villages.

Outside influence

However, the survival of their 2000 year old cultural tradition has been at stake in recent years, since the once secluded 40,000 member tribe began opening their land to tourists just over fifteen years ago. The very unique qualities that have drawn tourism to their villages, are slowly, albeit inadvertently, being threatened by the very outsiders who travel for afar to admire and observe their way of life. Along with their interests, these visitors bring their influence - and now 40 percent of the Mosuo population practice forms of marriage that, for them, are vastly nontraditional. And compounding these changes are advancements in technology and transportation that enable more impoverished villagers to commute to outside cities for work. As a result of so much sudden outside influence, younger Mosuo villagers have begun venturing into more modern practices, leaving only an approximate 60 percent of their population currently practicing walking marriages. Now 20 percent of their population cohabits, and 20 percent enter into formal marriages.

Misguided tourists

Upon initially learning about the structure of the Mosuo's walking marriages, many outsiders are prone to misunderstand its nature. Some tourists have actually visited under the impression that the culture's approach to relationships and sexuality is simply rooted in promiscuity, making it an ideal vacation spot for a one-night stand or an affair. Even though this notion is generally unfounded, there now exists a red light district to attract tourists with just that purpose in mind. However, according to the villagers, traditionally love has very much has its place within their walking marriages which are simply not bound by law or religion in their society. While Mosuo women and men may theoretically have more than one partner at a time if they choose, most do not. Although couples live apart, they traditionally make mutual promises that there will be no betrayal. It is generally understood that once either party is ready to pursue a different partner, their own ties must be broken first - making the structure of their relationships comparable to what we understand better as serial monogamy. However, partner changes are not especially frequent; and in fact, many partnerships do last a lifetime.