Why did chaste women in Guam pay money to men to gain the “necessary” experience? (6 photos)

Now Guam has the status of an unincorporated organized territory of the United States and this island is still riddled with traces of the integration of different cultures.





Among them are the Chamorro aborigines, who for many centuries, by law, had a rather unusual ancient tradition of chaste women paying specially trained men to gain this experience.

But why?

The Chamorro people and their rules of conduct for boys and girls



In the Chamorro tribe, until the age of 4-6, boys and girls grew up and played together.

But between the ages of 4 and 6, boys went to live in hale nua (single dormitories), where they had to live with older men who taught the boys how to fish, grow plants, cook, fight, honor gods and spirits, and work.

And young women moved to live with adult women, who taught girls to weave, make clothes from feathers and fibers, participate in childbirth, etc.

It is noteworthy that in the matrilineal Chamorro society, women played a very important role. Perhaps even a more active role than men...



Pre-colonial Micronesian societies in general were often organized along matrilineal lines: women owned and controlled the land, which was the anchor of the family, and men went fishing. Guam was no exception.

It is also unusual that all the feminine activities of Chamorro women, such as singing and dancing, were primarily aimed at seducing men. But the most unusual thing is that it was quite an honor for young Chamorro girls to be experienced by the time they got married.

And sometimes it is necessary!

Why did many women with “no experience” pay specially trained men to gain this experience?



The thing is that, according to the ancient laws of the Chamorro people, a chaste woman who got married could lose the status of an official wife if her newly-made husband found out that she “did not have enough experience.” In exchange, he could ask her to return his dowry (land, jewelry, etc.), which he gave to her family in order to take her as his wife.

Among the Chamorro people, a woman was considered an excellent wife only if she was able to please her man. Because of this, men tried to look for young but experienced women, and young girls tried to gain as much of this experience as possible at a young age.

Some media claim that similar traditions exist among the Chammoro people even in our time.



However, after marriage, the husband had to be content with one wife, and the wife with one husband.

Because of these unusual traditions, it became fashionable among "inexperienced" Chamorro women (often due to their unattractiveness) who were planning to get married soon to hire special men who would walk around the villages and offer young brides the necessary experience.

These men were paid in various styles of necklaces called alas and salape, which were made from seashells and tortoiseshell.



As is common throughout much of Oceania, these forms of body adornment also served as currency and often signaled wealth and prestige.