Their Nephews, Down, Down!: Matrilineage Endurance against the Postcolonial State and Islamic Reform in Northern Mozambique.

After independence in 1975, Mozambique adopted a modernist socialist strategy. Among many things, this included an active campaign to dismantle traditional practices like the initiation rites, and the traditional leadership structures. Initiation rites, to which the pia-mwene (female clan leaders) are intimately connected, authorizing and supervising over them, have also been at odds with the Islamic reform, which consider them as heathen practices. Despite these strong opposing forces, matriliny and its practices, including initiation rites, have shown resilience, but also adaptation. Among coastal Makhuwa and Mwani peoples, in Cabo Delgado, female initiation rites are done in two phases: one for social instruction, at puberty, and one for sexual education, preceding marriage. This satisfies the imperative of arusi (purity/virginity), which
is also central in the Islamic preachings. Muslims in the interior, including in neighbouring Niassa and Nampula provinces), only perform the rites once, with all the content. This also shows a differentiated impact by the state and Islamic reform.