China's renowned Lugu Lake is to be considered for world heritage
status for its cultural and natural aspects by the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (
UNESCO).
Lugu Lake is located in the Yi Autonomous County of Ninglang
between Yunnan
and
Sichuan provinces in southwest China. It is famous around the
world for its beautiful scenery and the maintenance of the unique
matriarchal system observed by the indigenous Mosuo
people.
Mosuo means "yak herders" in Chinese and the people are a branch of
the Naxi
ethnic minority. They preserve the "marriage-by-visit"
tradition, where married couples live in separate homes with the
husband only visiting his wife in her family home at night. The
system is closely related to their unique matriarchal family
system.
Under the Mosuo courting system, when a man and a woman meet each
other and fall in love, the man will ask a matchmaker to send tea,
candy and garments to his sweetheart's home. In return, the young
woman's mother will give the man linen trousers that her daughter
has made herself, and send the man's gift of candies to her
neighbors. After that, the man and the woman will begin their
"marriage-by-visit" life.
If
one of the couple finds that something between them has changed and
suggests stopping their contact, they will stop their
"marriage-by-visit" life and resume their search for new partners.
Chinese experts described the phenomenon as a well-preserved
anachronism in international marital history.
Relevant departments in Ninglang County are making necessary
preparations for the application for world heritage status to
UNESCO.
(Xinhua News
Agency March 14, 2002)