Wayuu People:

Encierro, a traditional practice among the Wayuu, involves isolating girls in a special hut or room for weeks or months after their first period. This seclusion serves purposes such as spiritual and physical cleansing, learning feminine roles and rituals, receiving guidance on menstrual hygiene, and crafting traditional textiles symbolizing their entry into womanhood. Similar practices exist in other indigenous communities:

Brazil:

- Yanomami: Girls undergo seclusion and engage in rituals like body painting, singing, and dancing.

- Matis: Girls receive symbolic gifts and instructions on menstruation-related taboos.

- Xavante: Girls partake in scarification rituals and learn about herbal remedies for menstrual discomfort.

North America:

- Hopi: Girls undergo sand paintings and learn about menstrual taboos and ceremonies.

- Navajo: Girls participate in a four-day ceremony with singing, prayer, and fasting.

Africa:

- Masai: Girls undergo seclusion and learn about sexual practices and childbirth.

- Zulu: Girls partake in a ceremony involving a special feast and dancing.

Research on menarche rites by anthropologists explores their cultural significance, symbolic meaning, role in socialization, impact on emotional well-being, and influence on sexual health education. Resources for further exploration include works such as "Rites of Passage" by Arnold van Gennep, "Female Ritual: Renewal and Initiation" by Barbara Tedlock, "Menstrual Harmony: Breaking the Silence and Celebrating the Power of the Moon" by Luna Wolf, and "The Red Web: Weaving a Spider Woman's Tale" by Louise Erdrich. It's essential to recognize the diversity within and between groups, consulting sources like Wayuu community leaders, elders, and researchers for a nuanced understanding of specific traditions and perspectives.

Isolating a female child during first menstruation was common in many Asian contexts in the past; it is still practiced in many communities, especially among the indigenous peoples.

In Sri Lanka, in the past, its indigenous community, the Vedda people, not only isolated a menstruating female during the first period, but also during subsequent menstruation. Often, the space provided, which was a hut made of sticks and leaves, left a female vulnerable to dangers during night time.

The same was true of the country's majority Sinhalese - even in some aristocratic families, the manor house had a separate space for menstruating females, to which they were confined for several days, up to early twentieth century.

Both these communities isolate a girl-child during puberty even at present.

Chandana Dissanayake Many thanks! Do you know what they did when secluded?

Among the Vedda people in the past, the secluded female did practically nothing until her body was free of indisposition. A female relative (mother, sister) would bring her meals, but would not keep company during the night in the shelter mentioned earlier, thus exposing her to dangers to do with wild animals.

The situation was relatively better among the Sinhalese, who would provide a space within the house for the girl who attained age. There, she would be accompanied usually by a sister (they would play games), and her mother would see to her needs and help her cope with the new situation. This is to be witnessed even now.

Among the aristocratic families mentioned earlier, indisposed females of all ages were able to relax in a comfortable space within the manor. However, they were debarred from taking part in household activities until their bodies were free of the "noxious influence."

The taboo of thus refraining from household activities during menstruation was commonly believed in at the time by the Sinhalese of all walks of life, partly due to religious beliefs. Laymen's interpretation of religion had it that an unclean female, who cooks meals for others, would be punished in hell for the crime.

Today, a much more realistic/practical stance is maintained by all these communities. Yet, puberty rites are observed by them, and the isolation of a girl-child during puberty continues.

Among the Dine (Navajo), the ceremony is called Kin'aal'da and employs special "tools" such as a scratching stick, also isolation from others.