The Role of Spousal Separation on Norms Related to Gender and Sexuality among Himba Pastoralists
The gender-specific labor demands of arid pastoralism often lead to spousal separation. Men typically respond in one of two ways: engage in mate guarding tactics, or loosen restrictions on female sexuality. Among Himba pastoralists in northwest Namibia, the latter strategy is dominant. Rooted in a h...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-05-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/10/5/174 |
| _version_ | 1797533750684286976 |
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| author | Brooke Scelza Sean Prall Kathrine Starkweather |
| author_facet | Brooke Scelza Sean Prall Kathrine Starkweather |
| author_sort | Brooke Scelza |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The gender-specific labor demands of arid pastoralism often lead to spousal separation. Men typically respond in one of two ways: engage in mate guarding tactics, or loosen restrictions on female sexuality. Among Himba pastoralists in northwest Namibia, the latter strategy is dominant. Rooted in a history of matriliny, Himba have strong norms promoting female sexual autonomy. We propose that these conditions, combined with a stochastic resource base, have led to women utilizing a combination of formal and informal partnerships to meet their needs and the needs of their children. Aspects of Himba socioecology also increase the costs of mate guarding for men and lower the costs of extra-pair paternity, further bolstering a concurrency strategy. Using a mix of quantitative and qualitative data, we show how spousal separation, female autonomy, and concurrency are linked, and suggest that in this harsh environment having a mix of formal and informal romantic partners may be less costly and more beneficial than a system of monogamous marriage. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:20:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6ccef8d8ce9a4a718592c835e70c9f66 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0760 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:20:00Z |
| publishDate | 2021-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-6ccef8d8ce9a4a718592c835e70c9f662023-11-21T20:08:07ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602021-05-0110517410.3390/socsci10050174The Role of Spousal Separation on Norms Related to Gender and Sexuality among Himba PastoralistsBrooke Scelza0Sean Prall1Kathrine Starkweather2Department of Anthropology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USADepartment of Anthropology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USADepartment of Anthropology, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL 60607, USAThe gender-specific labor demands of arid pastoralism often lead to spousal separation. Men typically respond in one of two ways: engage in mate guarding tactics, or loosen restrictions on female sexuality. Among Himba pastoralists in northwest Namibia, the latter strategy is dominant. Rooted in a history of matriliny, Himba have strong norms promoting female sexual autonomy. We propose that these conditions, combined with a stochastic resource base, have led to women utilizing a combination of formal and informal partnerships to meet their needs and the needs of their children. Aspects of Himba socioecology also increase the costs of mate guarding for men and lower the costs of extra-pair paternity, further bolstering a concurrency strategy. Using a mix of quantitative and qualitative data, we show how spousal separation, female autonomy, and concurrency are linked, and suggest that in this harsh environment having a mix of formal and informal romantic partners may be less costly and more beneficial than a system of monogamous marriage.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/10/5/174spousal separationfemale autonomymultiple mating |
| spellingShingle | Brooke Scelza Sean Prall Kathrine Starkweather The Role of Spousal Separation on Norms Related to Gender and Sexuality among Himba Pastoralists Social Sciences spousal separation female autonomy multiple mating |
| title | The Role of Spousal Separation on Norms Related to Gender and Sexuality among Himba Pastoralists |
| title_full | The Role of Spousal Separation on Norms Related to Gender and Sexuality among Himba Pastoralists |
| title_fullStr | The Role of Spousal Separation on Norms Related to Gender and Sexuality among Himba Pastoralists |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Role of Spousal Separation on Norms Related to Gender and Sexuality among Himba Pastoralists |
| title_short | The Role of Spousal Separation on Norms Related to Gender and Sexuality among Himba Pastoralists |
| title_sort | role of spousal separation on norms related to gender and sexuality among himba pastoralists |
| topic | spousal separation female autonomy multiple mating |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/10/5/174 |
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