Marianismo

The Latin American and Spanish ideal of women being restrained, modest, nurturing and virtuous. In this ideal, women are expected to have sexual intercourse only with their husbands, and are thus expected to be sexually abstinent before marriage. They are also expected to be passive in response to their husbands' demands after marriage.

The term "Marianismo" comes from the Virgin Mary, whose life women are encouraged to emulate as a model of "proper" femininity.

See also Machismo.