menstruation Menstruation (also known as a period, among other colloquial terms) is the regular discharge of blood and mucosal tissue from the inner lining of the uterus through the vagina. The menstrual cycle is characterized by the rise and fall of ...

hut is a place of seclusion or isolation used by certain cultures with strong menstrual taboos. The same or a similar structure may be used for

childbirth Childbirth, also known as labour and delivery, is the ending of pregnancy where one or more babies exits the internal environment of the mother via vaginal delivery or caesarean section. In 2019, there were about 140.11 million births glob ...

and

postpartum confinement Postpartum confinement is a traditional practice following childbirth. Those who follow these customs typically begin immediately after the birth, and the seclusion or special treatment lasts for a culturally variable length: typically for one mo ...

, based on beliefs around

ritual impurity Ritual purification is the ritual prescribed by a religion by which a person is considered to be free of ''uncleanliness'', especially prior to the worship of a deity, and ritual purity is a state of ritual cleanliness. Ritual purification may ...

. These huts are usually built near the family home, have small doors, and are often dilapidated, with poor sanitation and ventilation, and no windows. The Nepali version, the ''

Chhaupadi Chhaupadi ( ne, छाउपडी ) is a form of menstrual taboo which prohibits women and girls from participating in normal family activities while menstruating, as they are considered "impure". Chhaupadi is said to be practiced primarily in th ...

'', is probably the best-known example, but cultural attitudes towards menstruation around the world mean that these huts exist, or existed until recently, in other places as well. The use of menstrual huts continues to be the cause of death, from exposure, dehydration, snake bite, smoke inhalation, and so on. The use of these huts is illegal in some places.

Cultures

Use in Ethiopia among Jewish women

Menstruation huts in Ethiopia hold a special place, as Jewish women try to continue this custom. In Ethiopia, they refer to these menstruation huts as ''margam gojo''s. Within the ''margam gojo''s, there are few utensils, some pieces of equipment, and some basic furniture. The stones are placed in a circular shape around the menstruation hut at a radius of one and a half meters; these stones help distinguish between perceived impure and pure spaces. Menstruation blood is thought to be impure as Jewish Ethiopians believe the failure to give birth is manifested in the blood. If anyone were to come into contact with the woman during their menstruation, they would too have to stay in the hut. Therefore to avoid contact, the family of the women in the ''margam gojo''s will leave food outside the door. If her blood is to touch food or drink, it would be thrown out. This is why women wear leather belts under their shirts with fabric tied to them to prevent any dripping. The same idea is conveyed in that a Jewish woman cannot go to or cross rivers during menstruation lest she drip and contaminate the river. Once a woman has finished menstruating, another woman will watch her immerge in the river. There, the woman who has just finished menstruating will wash herself and the clothes she wore in the ''margam gojo''. After she and her clothes are clean, she will then change into pure clothes that have been retrieved from her home. The only time that a Jewish woman ceases going to the ''margam gojo'' is when she starts menopause, as it puts an end to the impurity because the woman becomes more similar to a man. In Judaism, when a woman becomes ''

niddah Niddah (or nidah; he, נִדָּה), in traditional Judaism, describes a woman who has experienced a uterine discharge of blood (most commonly during menstruation), or a woman who has menstruated and not yet completed the associated requirem ...

'' (cast out during menstruation), she may remain in a niddah hut for some of the time. These huts are absent in Israel, but exist in the Ethiopian highlands. The women must stay in the hut, usually located on the margins of the village, for seven days. Women there report negative as well as positive views on the practice. Some describe fear, cold, and lack of food, while others enjoy the social interaction, relaxation, and rest. While in these huts, the women can not cook, apart from coffee and the roasting of grain. Others may bring food to them, but while doing so they take care in avoiding physical contact.

Chhaupadi in Nepal

According to the tradition of ''

chhaupadi Chhaupadi ( ne, छाउपडी ) is a form of menstrual taboo which prohibits women and girls from participating in normal family activities while menstruating, as they are considered "impure". Chhaupadi is said to be practiced primarily in th ...

'', Hindu women in western Nepal reside in a small hut, called a ''Chhau Goth'', for 5 days during menstruation. However, the tradition requires those menstruating for the first time to stay in the hut for at least 14 days. In some communities, these huts may also be used by pregnant women to deliver babies. The huts may be made of mud and stones and may have roofs made of grass. Normally, they do not have windows, and the women sleep on straw on the floor covering themselves with a thin blanket. In a Nepali survey around 2017, one district with around 49,000 households had over 500 of these huts. Although the practice of using menstruation huts was made illegal in 2005 by Nepal's supreme court, the first arrest under this legislation did not take place until 2019.

Others

Yap Yap ( yap, Waqaab) traditionally refers to an island group located in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, a part of Yap State. The name "Yap" in recent years has come to also refer to the state within the Federated States of Micr ...

(part of Micronesia), after giving birth, women and their newborn babies spend time in a menstruation hut while the father has a holiday. The Yurok women of California lived in menstruation huts built near the main house. The

Páez people The Páez people, also known as the Nasa, are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Native American people who live in the southwestern highlands of Colombia, especially in the Cauca Department, but also the Caquetá Department lowlands and Tierra ...

of the southwestern highlands of

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the ...

were known to use menstruation huts.

References

External links