Jolique.com has an interesting article about Albanian women who become head of their households, and the sacrifices they have to make…
A sworn virgin is called such because she swears葉akes a vow under the law of the Kanun葉o become a man. From the day she takes this vow (which is sometimes at a very early age), she becomes a man: she dresses like one, acts like one, walks like one, works like one, talks like one, and her family and community treat her as one. She is referred to as he. He will never marry and will remain celibate all of his life.
As a man, the sworn virgin becomes the family’s representative in the community. Although some descriptions of sworn virgins refer to them as women who have had to sacrifice their gender, on the contrary, it is not a sacrifice at all, but rather an avenue of opportunity. It’s an important position, and one treated with tremendous respect.
Opportunity is not without its responsibility, however, and one of the responsibilities of a man is to defend the family in the case of a bloodfeud. Women do not fight in bloodfeuds, nor are they potential targets. Thus, where no men exist in a given household, this duty falls to the sworn virgin. Were Lule’s family to be engaged in a bloodfeud with another family, she would become a target for attack.
Read the whole article here
Comments on this entry are closed.