Women in Maya Society - Common Women

Common Women

Maya women were important for many reasons. They were not seen as passive subordinates; instead they had important roles to play in society. Some of the most basic roles played by women were those of weaver and cultivator/harvester.

Maya women were important because they could create new life by giving birth. Some scholars have suggested that the male practice of piercing their genitals during ritual self sacrifice was a recreation of the process of menstruation in women.

While women were not warriors, their husbands success in battle were believed to be affected by the women’s actions at home. Before Maya men went into battle, their wives would often let blood to ensure his success. While her husband was at war, a Maya woman was required to perform certain tasks, including sweeping the house in a particular manner, to please the gods enough to grant him success. Women were also held to strict standards in regards to sexuality. Boys and girls were separated, with females staying with their mothers. Young males lived in the men’s house, where prostitutes were often present. Girls were raised to be chaste and were severely punished by their mothers for lapses.

Marriage was viewed not as a love match, but as a potential social or political alliance. Marriages were arranged by families, and were particularly taboo between two people with the same patrilineal name.

Maya standards of beauty included filing their front teeth with elaborate patterns, being scarred and/or tattooed from the waist up after marriage, and crossed eyes, which parents developed by hanging beads in front of their babies' noses.