5 wild traditions that crippled women around the world

It seems that the creepy traditions applicable to women have a place only in the Middle Ages, but in remote corners of the world, they continue to live and flourish.

The history is rich in frightening rituals and strange traditions. Fortunately, most of them are a thing of the past, as we can see, some of the brutal and dangerous customs practice by some peoples to this day

We have compiled 5 of the most frightening ethnic customs from around the world, applicable exclusively to the women

Neck stretching

The Padaung tribe from Myanmar is well known to tourists for its female “giraffe”. From about five years of age, copper spirals in the form of rings are worn around each girl’s neck – one ring for each year of life. By the time of marriage, the number of rings reaches 20-25 pieces, and the total weight of such “jewelry” is 4-5 kg. Thanks to such decorations, the woman’s neck is stretched, making her look like a giraffe.

Notes that the long neck of Padaungs consider a symbol of beauty and well-being, so women put rings for the rest of their lives. It is impossible to remove rings without special exercises – over time, some neck muscles atrophy and the absence of rings can cause serious injury. Women of “giraffes” have long turned into a kind of brand – tourists from all over the world come to see them.

Virgin and Bacha Posh

The phenomenon was widespread in Montenegro, Kosovo, and Albania. In families with no heirs, one of the daughters forcibly assigns to the heir son’s role. The virgin girl was forbidden to do women’s work and communicate with other girls; from childhood, she lived like a man: she could smoke and drink alcohol, plow the land, use weapons, and receive the right to vote on behalf of her family. Becoming a Virgin, the girl automatically took a vow of celibacy. Officially, the last Virgin was Stana Cerovic, a girl from Montenegro who died in 2016.

A similar practice exists today in Afghanistan and Pakistan, called Bacha-Posh. Such girls wear men’s clothes; they are allowed to appear in public places unaccompanied by men and play with boys. Unlike virgins, Bacha-Posh, at the age of 17-20, “returns” to a female image and gets married. But having learned the taste of freedom, many girls no longer want to return to such a life.

Forced feeding

Leblouh is a barbaric ritual in several African countries such as Nigeria, Mauritania, niger, Uganda, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia (specifically Jewish people).

Its essence lies in the forced fattening of girls to a considerable size to successfully marry. Feeding begins at the age of 5-6 years. A family often fattens girls, and wealthy parents send their daughters to special “camps” where they forcibly force them to eat fatty, high-calorie foods. For refusing to eat, girls are beaten and forced to eat. A 15-year-old girl can weigh 90-100 kg with such a diet, which is not the limit.

Bandaging the legs

It believes that leg bandaging appeared in China in the 10th century when one emperor drew attention to this concubine’s graceful legs. The legs tightly bandage so that the toes are literally “pressed” into the foot.

Traditionally, the bandaging procedure began at the age of four, when the girl’s foot did not fully form. In some cases, necrosis specifically seeks the necrosis of the fingers. The 7-7.5 cm long lotus foot was considered ideal.

As noted, bandaging was “canceled” only in 1949, and in 1999 the last pair of lotus shoes sew at a shoe factory, which transferred to the ethnographic museum.

Chastity belt

The first official mention of a chastity belt appears in the 15th century in the German treatise “Bellifortis,” which describes a heavy iron belt used by Florentine women. There is a version that this device initially used to protect women from rape.

The heyday of the chastity belt came in the Victorian era. Creepy belts became fashionable: they used to prevent adultery attempts, put on young ladies and young men to prohibit sxual intercourse and msturbation.

The use of such devices often caused inflammation and severe injury. Although this tradition is a thing of the past, even today, some workshops produce similar accessories.