A Study On The Marriage And Family Issues Of Women In The Shanshan Kingdom From The 3rd To The 5th Centuries

The period from the Han to Jin dynasty,Shan-shan was one of the major oasis kingdoms in the western region,and was located in the main road of the silk road,which was a necessary place for economic and cultural exchanges between the east and the west.Shan-shan maintained close contacts with the central plains dynasty for a long time,however,There was very little record of traditional historical records in Shan-shan,and most of them focused on recording their relationship with the central plains,and the record of the internal situation of Shan-shan kingdom was very brief.Fortunately,since the beginning of the 20th century various archaeological discoveries have been made in Shan-shan kingdom,especially a large number of Kharosthi documents unearthed and interpretation of the book,which not only makes up for the deficiency of the historical records,also provides the rich materials for us to study Shan-shan society.Kharosthi documents showed the social landscape of Shan-shan kingdom in the third to fifth century,which contents involved all aspects of society,including politics,economy,culture,military,law and religion,etc.In particular,the contents of the marriage and family of women in Shan-shan state showed the high social status of Shan-shan women during this period.The marriage forms of Shan-shan state mainly included paid marriage,exchange marriage,polygamy and a unique phenomenon of marriage--the monk takes a wife.In addition,The special phenomena of elopement,divorce,remarriage and remarriage through women’s marriage,which reflected the women during this period had a certain active role in the marriage,actively seeking marriage autonomy,At the same time,it also indicated the gradual awakening of the consciousness of women’s ideology and the increasing liberation of individuality,and revealed the spirit of daring to pursue the freedom and equality of marriage.In addition,due to the increasing status of women in Shan-shan in the third and fifth centuries,and the protection of women’s rights in the laws of Shan-shan,women were no longer completely subordinate in their families.They were engaged in the family affairs of grazing,planting,brewing and weaving,at the same time,and also devoted to the social economic activities.Through the employment of grazing,human trafficking,land sale and other forms of economic activities,they not only possessed a certain amount of wealth,but also gained a relatively independent economic status in family life.Shan-shan women enjoyed great rights while undertaking family obligations.They had the right to inherit property in the family,adopt children’s rights,pass the right of children and divorce.Comparing the similarities and differences of the women’s marriage and family between in Shan-shan state and central plains in the three to five centuries,it can be found that there are similarities and differences,and the differences are more than the same.Investigate its reason,On the one hand,Shan-shan state was influenced by the Chinese ideology and culture in the long-term communication with the central plains dynasty,which made some aspects of marriage and family similar to the central plains.but on the other hand,Shan-shan itself had a distinct regional features and ethnic characteristics,which also made the marriage and family system more special.