The Bijagos are a people who dwell in small villages, or tabancas, formed by houses of mud and straw. In this society, the women choose their husbands and have the final say in divorces; they are the owners of the homes they live in and which they themselves construct; they run the family and organise labor; they are also in charge of relations with the spirit world. While differences exist from one island to the next, in general they manage the economy and the social wellbeing.
The Bijago people celebrate the birth of a female as especially momentous. Every woman, for her ability to become a mother, is afforded the highest respect and prestige. They are also the intermediaries between the living and the spirits.
At ceremonies, they are in charge of running everything: they cook using large pots, play music, dance and serve wine to the men, who merely stand witness to the events that transpire.
The girls choose their husbands by placing a large plate of food at the house of their choice. If the young man is willing to accept her proposal, he eats the food. After doing so, the future husband goes to live with the girl in the hut which she will raise, and the couple is then married…until she drags her husband’s belongings out the front door, thus indicating she does not want to live with him any longer.
[Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons.]