A Brief Discussion of the Marriage History of the Mosuo People
This article examines the marriage customs and history of the Mosuo people, who live around Lugu Lake at the junction of Yunnan, Sichuan, and Tibet. Descendants possibly linked to Mongol soldiers, the Mosuo were officially classified as Naxi (Yunnan) or Mongolian (Sichuan/Tibet) due to lacking a distinct script, though their cultural center remains Yongning township near Lugu Lake. The article details their matriarchal clan structure, in which grandmothers hold household authority, and describes the traditional "Azhu" walking marriage (zouhun), where couples never cohabit and men visit women's private "flower rooms" at night, leaving before dawn. Though non-monogamous unions do not occur, couples do not undergo formal wedding ceremonies or registration, and children are raised by the mother's family, though fathers contribute support. The author notes that this traditional marriage system is gradually evolving toward modern marriage practices as society develops.
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