Matriarchies?

Who really knows the meaning of a matriarch anymore? What kind of society is classified as matrifocal? Do they still exist? The answer is most simply no. Matriarchies and matrifocal societies no longer exist in our world today. The Greek word "mater" meaning "mother" and another Greek word "archein" meaning "to rule" come together to form the word matriarch. The government by mothers, or government and power in the hands of women. Another word that goes along with these includes matricentric, meaning to have a mother as the head of the family or household. The latest known societies to have matriarchal societies would be in Asia and Africa. Some patriarchal societies may be seen to have a female queen or some matriarchal parts to their society. One of these cases would be when Elizabeth I was the queen of England. Often times today, historians discredit matriarchal societies or even sometimes act like they never even occurred. Prime examples of matrifocality include the Nair community in Kerala and the Bunt community in Tulunada, South India. In the 21st century, no true matriarchies are known but some societies in the Amazon still practice parts of matricality.

One of the last most matriarchal societies still existing today is known as the Mosuo's which can be found in the Xiaolianghshan Mountains in the Yunnan and Sichuan Provinces of South East China. The Mosuo people are closely related to the Tibetans because of their close geographical location. In this society, the main pillar of the family is the mother. One of the only things that is forbidden in the society is incest. The women have no signs of jealousy and they are found to be the center of the culture. Although they are known as the Mosuo people to others, they know themselves as the Na people. Women do all the housework and make any big business decisions. Although the women are the center of the culture and rule the family, this society can not truly be seen as completely matriarchal because of the fact that it is over archingly ruled by men. Besides their rule as king, men have no responsibilities, no jobs, and they rest all day in order to reserve their strength for night time visits to their women.

Although it may be fun to boss the men around in my life, I can not decide whether it would be worth it to be in charge of everything to have a matriarchal society. I appreciate my roles in our culture and I appreciate the things that men contribute. The conclusion I have come to is that our culture has done us well so far so lets keep it that way for now.