Polyandry is a marital arrangement in which a woman has several husbands. In Tibet, those husbands are often brothers; "fraternal polyandry". Concern over which children are fathered by which brother falls on the wife alone. She may or may not say who the father is because she does not wish to create conflict in the family or is unsure who the biological father is.[1] Historically the social system compelled marriage within a social class.
When the People's Republic of China annexed Tibet, political systems in many regions of Tibet remained unchanged until, between 1959 and 1960, political reforms changed the land ownership and taxation systems.[2]
Since 1981, the Tibet Autonomous Region government no longer permits new polyandric marriages under family law. Even though it is currently illegal, after collective farming was phased out and the farmed land reverted in the form of long-term leases to individual families, polyandry in Tibet is de facto the norm in rural areas.[citation needed]
As elucidated further below, the primary reason for polyandrous marriage among Tibetans appears to be economic: to prevent land, herds, and other assets from being divided and/or to increase the amount of labor available to support the family.
The Tibetan social organization under Lhasa control from the 17th century on was quasi-feudal, in that arable land was divided and owned by aristocratic families, religious organizations, and the central government and the population was subject to those district divisions. The population was further divided into social classes:
These wealthier family units hereditarily owned estates leased from their district authority, complete with land titles. In Goldstein's research about the Gyantse district specifically, he found them owning typically from 20 acres (81,000m2) to 300 acres (1.2km2) of land each. Their primary civil responsibility was to pay taxes (tre-ba and khral-pa means "taxpayer"), and to supply corve services that included both human and animal labor to their district authority.[5] According to Goldstein, the entire family structure and marriage system were subordinated to serve the land and corporate family unit.
The family structure and marriage system of tre-ba were characterized by two fundamental principles:
A "stem family" is one in which a married child is inextricably linked to his natal family in a common household. The "mono-marital principle" dictates that for each and every generation, one and only one marriage is permitted collectively among all the male siblings, and the children born out of this marriage are members of the family unit who have full legal rights.
The family organization was based on these two patterns to avoid the partitioning of their estates. A generation with two or more conjugal families was seen as unstable because it could produce serious conflicts that could divide their corporate family land. As a matter of fact, Tibetan inheritance rules of family land, mainly based on agnatic links, did provide for each generation to partition the land between brothers, but this was ignored to prevent the estate unit from being threatened. Polygamous marriage, therefore arose as a solution to this potential threat.
To elucidate, consider a family with two or more sons. Tibetan inheritance rules gave all males of the family, the right to claim a part of the family estate, so if each son took a different bride, there would be different conjugal families, and this would lead to the partitioning of the land among the different sons' families. To avoid this situation, the solution was a fraternal polyandrous marriage, where the brothers would share a bride. Bi-fraternal polyandrous marriages were more common than tri-fraternal or quadri-fraternal polyandry, because the latter forms of marriage were often characterized by severe familial tensions (reference missing). Different mechanisms were employed to reduce the number of sons within a household, such as making one son a celibate monk, or sending away a son to become an adoptive bridegroom to a family without male children.
Another kind of marriage, although uncommon, is the "polygynous marriage". In a family where all the children were female, sisterly polygynous marriage represented the most common choice. In traditional inheritance rules, only males had rights over the land, but where there were no males to inherit them, the daughters had the right over the corporations land. To maintain the familial estate unit, the daughters would share a bridegroom who will move matrilocally (as opposed to the patrilocal principle where the brides move into the husband's family) and become a member of his wife's family.
Bigenerational polygamy was present as an application of the mono-marital principle. Consider a family in which the mother died before the son was married. If the widower remarried another woman, two conjugal families would have been created, leading to the eventual partition of the estate. Bigenerational polyandry, whereby the father shared a wife with his son, was therefore the solution to avoid this problem. Conversely, when a woman with no male offspring was widowed, she would share a husband with her daughter ("bigenerational polygyny"), thus avoiding land partitioning (reference missing).
In these mono-marital stem families, the family head, who had a dominant role in the family, was called trong bey abo (or simply abo). The abo who managed the property and resources of the family unit, was always a male, and almost invariably the oldest male of the elder generation in power. Sometimes, a younger brother would assume the abo role when the eldest male retired.
In taxpayer families, polyandrous and monogamist marriage were the more common forms of marriage, while much less widespread was the polygynous marriage. Bigenerational forms of polyandry were, however, very rare.
The householder class (du-jung or dud-chung-ba[5]) comprised peasants who held only small plots of land that were legally and literally "individual" possessions. Land inheritance rules were different from taxpayer families, determined by the district authority and not strictly hereditary to the family unit.
The householder family structure unlike the taxpayer families lacked the single marriage per generation requirement to avoid land parceling. When a son married he often established a new household and split off from the original family unit. If taxpayer sons married that created succession for the family corporation and bound them to the estate for patrimonial and land reasons. Householder marriages did not incur that responsibility, and they generally married for love and were more often monogamist. The small number of polyandry cases within the householder class were limited to only the wealthier families.
The landless peasants (mi-bo) were not obligated to and did not have any heritable rights to land. Like the householders, they tended to have less polyandry than the taxpayer families.
As has been seen, fraternal polyandry was a form of marriage that was prevalent among the tre-ba class. Traditionally, marriages were arranged by the parents, often when the children were still very young. As tre-ba marriages were decided for patrimonial reasons, the brides' and bridegrooms' personal preferences were of no consequence. In polyandrous conjugal family, the eldest brother was, more often than not, the dominant person in the household. All the other brothers, however, shared the work equally, and had the right to sexual relations with their common wife, who had to treat them equally.
All children were treated equally, and a "father" was not allowed to show any favoritism, even if he knew who his biological children really were, as biological paternity was not regarded as important. Similarly, the children considered all their uncles as their fathers, and a child avoided treating members of the elder generation differently, even if they knew who their biological father was. The children would usually only address the eldest surviving husband as "father".[7]
Divorce was quite simple. If one of the brothers in a polyandrous marriage felt displeased, he only had to leave the household. Polyandrous marriages were often characterized by tensions and clashes for a variety of different reasons. For example, conflicts might arise because a younger brother wanted to contest the authority of his eldest brother; sometimes, sexual favoritism might occur, generating tension among the male partners in the marriage, especially so when there were significant age differences among the brothers.
Polyandry declined rapidly in the first decade after the establishment of Tibet Autonomous Region, and was banned during the Cultural Revolution as part of the "Four Olds". However, it regained popularity in the 1980s as the policies relaxed and the people's commune system broke down. A 1988 survey by the Tibet University throughout Tibet found that 13.3% of families were polyandric, and 1.7% were polygynous.[8] Currently, polyandry is present in all Tibetan areas, but particularly common in some rural regions of Tsang and Kham that are faced with extreme living conditions.[9] A 2008 study of several villages in Xigaze and Qamdo prefectures found that 20-50% of the families were polyandric, with the majority having two husbands. For some remote settlements, the number was as high as 90%.[10] Polyandry is very rare among urban residents or non-agricultural households. Representatives of an American charity working in Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, from 1997 to 2010 observed polyandry still being practiced there.[11]
A regulation issued by government of Tibet Autonomous Region in 1981 approved all polygamous marriages before the date of implementation, but not those formed after the date, with no prosecution for violating the regulation. In practice, such a family would be registered as a monogamous family between the wife and the eldest husband.[12]
See the original post:
Polyandry in Tibet - Wikipedia
- Milestones and palace intrigue: Rise and fall of Thai Royal Noble Consort - The Straits Times [Last Updated On: December 27th, 2019] [Originally Added On: December 27th, 2019]
- 'Sister Wives' Star Meri Brown Spends Her Birthday With Mariah And Audrey - TV Shows Ace [Last Updated On: January 18th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 18th, 2020]
- Meet the individuals who shaped Utah as state celebrates 150 years of women's suffrage - KSL.com [Last Updated On: January 18th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 18th, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': Kody Brown's Polygamy Show Moved to 10:00pm - Is TLC Series Headed for Cancellation? - Soap Dirt [Last Updated On: January 18th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 18th, 2020]
- Mexican president visits La Mora and learns of the Mormon history there - Salt Lake Tribune [Last Updated On: January 18th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 18th, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': Christine Brown Reveals This 1 Aspect of Polygamy That Can Feel Like 'Mind Games' - Showbiz Cheat Sheet [Last Updated On: January 18th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 18th, 2020]
- 'I have two wives; you need to be rich to be polygamous' McDan CEO - Pulse Ghana [Last Updated On: February 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 27th, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': Fans Wonder Why the Brown Wives Seemed To Reject Meri Brown's Offer - Showbiz Cheat Sheet [Last Updated On: February 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 27th, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': Kody Brown Says Polygamy Fits With Only One of His Wives' Personalities; Fans Guess Which One - Showbiz Cheat Sheet [Last Updated On: February 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 27th, 2020]
- 'Mormon Land': Theocracy, secret polygamy, female dissent, and Nauvoo's place in the nation's past and a religion's present - Salt Lake Tribune [Last Updated On: February 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 27th, 2020]
- Utah senators unanimously pass bill to decriminalize polygamy [Last Updated On: February 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 27th, 2020]
- Polygamy bill passes House panel after hearing that asks whether bill will help victims or perpetrators - Salt Lake Tribune [Last Updated On: February 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 27th, 2020]
- How Polygamy Works | HowStuffWorks [Last Updated On: February 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 27th, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': Kody Brown Blames Meri Over Big House Dissent - Where Do They Live At The Moment? - TV Shows Ace [Last Updated On: March 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 5th, 2020]
- Simphiwe Dana apologises to Musa Mseleku for 'insulting comments and Mnakwethu hate' - TimesLIVE [Last Updated On: March 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 5th, 2020]
- Asentus Akuku 'Danger': The Polygamist With 130 Wives And Over 200 Children - Guardian [Last Updated On: March 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 5th, 2020]
- Polygamy is about to be decriminalised in Utah. Is it good news for women? - The Guardian [Last Updated On: March 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 5th, 2020]
- Elective abortion ban, other bills signed by Gov. Gary Herbert - Deseret News [Last Updated On: April 7th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 7th, 2020]
- Kody Brown Reveals If Sister Wives Will Move Back To Utah - International Business Times [Last Updated On: April 7th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 7th, 2020]
- Tiger King and Americas captive tiger problem - The Jakarta Post - Jakarta Post [Last Updated On: April 7th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 7th, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': Robyn Brown Thinks Polygamy Is Preventing Her From Buying a Home - Showbiz Cheat Sheet [Last Updated On: April 7th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 7th, 2020]
- 'Tiger King' Star Joshua Dial Says He Has PTSD From Witnessing Travis Maldonado's Tragic Death: 'I Have Nightmares About It' - Showbiz Cheat Sheet [Last Updated On: April 11th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 11th, 2020]
- Tiger King Joe Exotic's five husbands: All you need to know from tragedy to polygamy - OK! magazine [Last Updated On: April 11th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 11th, 2020]
- Polygamy - Mormon Newsroom [Last Updated On: April 11th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 11th, 2020]
- The Manifesto and the End of Plural Marriage [Last Updated On: April 11th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 11th, 2020]
- "Tiger King" and America's captive tiger problem - Salon [Last Updated On: April 11th, 2020] [Originally Added On: April 11th, 2020]
- '90 Day Fiance' Lisa Hamme Says She's Open to Allowing Usman Umar to Practice Polygamy! - All About The Tea [Last Updated On: May 4th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 4th, 2020]
- How Nordic NGOs turn a blind eye to what is happening in the Tindouf camps - The North Africa Post [Last Updated On: May 4th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 4th, 2020]
- Slam the Brakes on Rampant Islamophobia - NewsClick [Last Updated On: May 4th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 4th, 2020]
- 90 Day Fianc: Usman Thinks Polygamy Is the Only Answer to Having Children with Lisa - Screen Rant [Last Updated On: May 4th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 4th, 2020]
- How Not to Be a Tiger King - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 4th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 4th, 2020]
- Missing 'Sister Wives'? Here Are Other Polygamy Shows & Movies - TV Shows Ace [Last Updated On: May 4th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 4th, 2020]
- My wife pushed me to marry another woman - Pastor Habil Were - Breaking NEWS in KENYA for Today Right Now & Kenyan News | TUKO [Last Updated On: May 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 24th, 2020]
- Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo - Church Of Jesus ... [Last Updated On: May 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 24th, 2020]
- Polygamy (Plural Marriage) | LDS Church Perspective on ... [Last Updated On: May 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 24th, 2020]
- GEORGE: Reviewing the life of Gen. Grant - Valdosta Daily Times [Last Updated On: June 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 6th, 2020]
- Robert Kirby: Another Mormon reformation? Is anything worthy of doing once worthy of doing again? - Salt Lake Tribune [Last Updated On: June 6th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 6th, 2020]
- National Loving Day isnt just a random sweet holiday. Heres the deeper story, and why youll want to celebrate. - KSAT San Antonio [Last Updated On: June 17th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 17th, 2020]
- For the 20th Straight Year, Americans Say Abortion is 'Morally Wrong,' Gallup Shows - Christianheadlines.com [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Cape Coral woman accused of killing mother claims to be former cult member - Wink News [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Sister Wives star Christine Browns loved ones urge her to leave Kody and family - The Sun [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Sister Wives Meri Brown disses Kody by thanking her own dad and NOT her husband on Fathers Day amid mar - The Sun [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- Sister Wives Meri Brown cuddles with her boys and takes solo walk after snubbing husband Kody on Fathers D - The Sun [Last Updated On: June 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 24th, 2020]
- 10 Years After Her Hit Novel Debuted, Lola Shoneyin Knows the Netflix Series Will Resonate - Observer [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- The Lance Allred Story - Part 1: Breaking the legally-deaf barrier in the NBA - NGSC Sports LLC [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Throuple have two babies in months | Chronicle - Chronicle [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Sister Wives star Meri Brown says she has the opportunity to be loved after split from husband Kody - The Sun [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Explosives training was de rigueur for children in the '60s - The Herald-News [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Oumou Sangar: People dont need to speak your language to understand what youre trying to say - The Independent [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Sister Wives Meri Brown shades husband Kody again by posting you just have to care after suspected split - The Sun [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Sister Wives Meri Brown says worrying doesnt get you anywhere as she starts new life without husband Kody - The Sun [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Escaping Polygamy: Where are They Now? Escaping Polygamy Cast Update 2020 - The Cinemaholic [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Sister Wives Meri Brown says she tries to do better but blows it 10 times out of 12 as marriage to Kody c - The Sun [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- Peter Johnston: Getting to 'Black Lives Matter' in the LDS Church - Salt Lake Tribune [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': The One Thing The Brown Family Has Taught Fans About Polygamy - Showbiz Cheat Sheet [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2020]
- One phone call, two versions of the discussion - Middle East Monitor [Last Updated On: July 31st, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 31st, 2020]
- Anti-LGBTQ Congressman says it's possible to give yourself COVID-19 by wearing a facemask - LGBTQ Nation [Last Updated On: July 31st, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 31st, 2020]
- Bizarre: 'World's most identical twins' want to get pregnant at the same time with the same man [WATCH] - Times Now [Last Updated On: July 31st, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 31st, 2020]
- What happened to Kody Browns son-in-law Tony Padron from Sister Wives? - The Sun [Last Updated On: July 31st, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 31st, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': Is Nonstop Fighting Causing Kody Brown to Lose Interest in Polygamy? - Showbiz Cheat Sheet [Last Updated On: July 31st, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 31st, 2020]
- Freethought Caucus in U.S. House reflects the rise, and political potential, of the 'nones' - GetReligion [Last Updated On: August 26th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 26th, 2020]
- The G.O.P.s official stance in 2020 is that it is for whatever Trump says. - The New York Times [Last Updated On: August 26th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 26th, 2020]
- Why the G.O.P. Punted on a New Party Platform for the 2020 R.N.C. - The New York Times [Last Updated On: August 26th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 26th, 2020]
- Historic female voter honored by with gravestone correction - The Herald Journal [Last Updated On: October 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 12th, 2020]
- 'A Date With Asmau': Scholars to Dissect The place of Islam in Today's Entertainment - THISDAY Newspapers [Last Updated On: October 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 12th, 2020]
- 1 man, 2 wives: Alan Tam says his polygamy made the women in his life suffer - AsiaOne [Last Updated On: October 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 12th, 2020]
- Commentary: Goodbye to those days, when women were 'pieces of meat for men to slice' - CNA [Last Updated On: October 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 12th, 2020]
- 'Sister Wives': What Kody Brown Didn't Reveal About the Show - Soap Dirt [Last Updated On: October 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 12th, 2020]
- Polygamous pastor proudly shows off his 2 wives, many children - Legit [Last Updated On: October 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 12th, 2020]
- Suidooster stars about the polygamy storyline: 'There's going to be a lot of fireworks' - News24 [Last Updated On: October 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 12th, 2020]
- The Islamist beheading in Paris should be a wake-up to the rest of Europe - Telegraph.co.uk [Last Updated On: October 22nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 22nd, 2020]
- The Science Of Halala, Haraam And The Namak Haraam - Outlook India [Last Updated On: October 22nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 22nd, 2020]
- Five Short Films from Five Arab Nations: 'Chronicles of Her' Spotlights the Plight of Arab Women - CairoScene [Last Updated On: December 8th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 8th, 2020]
- Sister Wives Kody Brown admits polygamous family is unpopular as AZ neighbors slam clan wishing they weren - The Sun [Last Updated On: December 8th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 8th, 2020]
- Polygamy is rare around the world and mostly confined to a few regions - Pew Research Center [Last Updated On: December 8th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 8th, 2020]
- IN MEMES | Tweeps think 'Mnakwethu Happily Ever?' is totes scripted - TimesLIVE [Last Updated On: January 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 15th, 2021]
- What made Hindu and Muslim women take up prostitution? The British really wanted to know - ThePrint [Last Updated On: January 15th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 15th, 2021]
- Review: A Dowry of Blood by ST Gibson - The Nerd Daily [Last Updated On: February 4th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 4th, 2021]
- Bravos The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City Was a Parallel Surprise - The Ringer [Last Updated On: February 4th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 4th, 2021]
- I Love You, But Youre Going To Hell Is Abusive B*llshit - Scary Mommy [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2021]