Tribe Allows Women to Have "Casual Relations" Before Marriage

For centuries, the nomadic Tuareg tribe has traversed the Sahara Desert, scattering from Libya to Algeria, Niger, and Mali in Africa, according to Every Culture.

The men of the tribe are referred to as “the blue people of the Sahara” due to the dye from their distinctive turbans staining their faces, giving them a mysterious allure. Overall, the nomadic Tuareg evoke images of nostalgia and romance, as noted by the Daily Mail.

However, behind this ancient lifestyle lies a culture that is quite “progressive,” even capable of making some Westerners blush.

Tuareg men must cover their faces while women do not.

Tuareg women, who number around 1 million, are allowed multiple partners, retain all property after divorce, and are respected by their sons-in-law.

Even more surprisingly, although the tribe follows Islam, they have some customs that many Muslims do not accept. For instance, women are not required to cover their faces; it is the men who must do so.

Photographer Henrietta Butler, who has been captivated by the Tuareg tribe since she traveled with them across the desert in 2001, once asked why women do not cover their faces in Tuareg culture. The answer was quite simple.

“Women are very beautiful. We want to see their faces,” a Tuareg man replied to Butler.

Women’s Sexual Freedom

The fact that women do not cover their faces is certainly not the only thing that sets the Tuareg apart from Muslim communities in the Middle East or other cultures worldwide.

Before marriage, women are free to have as many lovers as they wish.

“They (the family) pretend not to know,” Butler explained. “Young girls have the same freedom as boys.”

Tuareg men can visit the tent of a young girl, sneaking in while their camel waits quietly outside.

Before marriage, women are free to have as many lovers as they wish.

Inside the tent, they will spend the night together while the girl’s family (also living in the large tent with separate spaces) pretends not to notice.

If the girl wants to welcome another man into the tent the next day, she can do so without judgment.

However, the Tuareg also have certain rules that no one dares to break. Privacy is crucial for this ancient tribe. Men must always leave a woman’s tent before sunrise.

“The Tuareg are very discreet. Everything is done with maximum modesty and respect,” Butler said.

Thanks to their relaxed customs regarding sexuality, girls often marry later than those in tribes with stricter traditions. Few girls in the Tuareg marry by the age of 20.

To express their affection for a girl, Tuareg men, who have their own language, often compose poetry. In return, girls also write poems to send to their lovers.

“Women also write poetry to praise their men,” Butler said. “There is romance and idolization here.”

The Tuareg population is currently around 1 million.

Women in Power

Unlike many other cultures, Tuareg women do not lose their power after marriage.

Visitors to the Tuareg camps often underestimate the strength of women in the tents, thinking their only role is cooking and caring for children.

However, in reality, women own the entire tent and the livestock – invaluable resources for the Tuareg in the Sahara Desert.

Journalist Peter Gwin reported that a nomad once told him: “Livestock is everything to the Tuareg. We drink milk, eat meat, use their hides, and sell them. When an animal dies, a Tuareg dies.”

In Tuareg culture, many marriages end in divorce. When this happens, the wife keeps both the livestock and the tent. Furthermore, the wife is often the one who decides to divorce.

After a divorce, the wife keeps both livestock, the tent, and the children.

Tuareg couples have clear agreements before marriage. In fact, men are forced to return to their mothers’ homes after a divorce, taking only the camels with them. Meanwhile, the wife retains everything she brought into the marriage, including the children.

The tent of the mother is “the root of the community,” a place where everyone returns when in need, Butler explains.

Divorce is never considered shameful in Tuareg culture. Families often throw parties for their daughters to announce that she has returned to a single status.

However, this is not a matriarchal society where women are responsible for everything.

Butler explains that men are still the ones who “sit down and discuss politics.” Women can be advisors. They are often consulted by their sons or husbands and quietly “pull the strings behind the scenes.”

Women’s opinions are highly respected in Tuareg culture.

There is one tradition that is even stranger: men are not allowed to eat in front of older women in the family or women with whom they do not have sexual relations, especially their mothers-in-law.

“I didn’t realize this until I had dinner with a Tuareg woman and her son-in-law,” Butler recalled. “We all sat down to dinner, and the man turned his back. She said the poor man was very scared to be eating with his mother-in-law.”

Preserving Identity

Today, there are some cultural changes occurring within the Tuareg tribe. Photographer Butler has noticed that more women are wearing face veils. They say they wear veils for fashion, not religious reasons. However, Butler is not entirely convinced.

Andy Morgan, the manager of the Tuareg band Tinariwen, mentioned in 2013 that some Tuareg people view “their culture as outdated and irrelevant to the modern world.”

“They want the Tuareg to learn Arabic or the language of the broader Muslim community… They believe that some aspects of Tuareg culture, particularly music and dance, are vulgar and un-Islamic. They oppose the sexual freedom and social power of Tuareg women,” Morgan said.

The Tuareg take great pride in their customs and traditions.

However, there is still hope that the Tuareg, a tribe that has existed for over 1,000 years, will preserve their unique traditions.

Overall, the Tuareg still believe that their culture is the most suitable.

“They think they are superior to other races,” Butler said. “They are very proud. They certainly see themselves as superior to us. Perhaps they view other cultures as somewhat foolish and primitive.”