The Paraguay Dueling Myth: Blood Donors and Legal Fights

If you've spent any time on trivia websites or social media, you've probably encountered this gem: dueling is totally legal in Paraguay, as long as both sword-wielding combatants are registered blood donors. It sounds absurd enough to be true, right? The kind of delightfully weird law that makes you wonder what's in the water down there.

Except there's one small problem: it's completely made up.

Paraguay Says "Not True, Please Stop"

The Paraguayan Embassy has explicitly denied this claim, going so far as to contact organizations that published it. When the Mississippi Library Commission included this "fact" in their materials, Paraguayan officials reached out to inform them there was absolutely no truth to it. The New York Public Library confirmed the myth cannot cite any real law because, well, it's a complete fallacy.

Like virtually every country on Earth, Paraguay outlaws dueling through standard criminal statutes prohibiting assault and homicide. No blood donor loophole. No bizarre exemptions. Just regular laws that say "don't stab people."

So Where Did This Come From?

The myth likely stems from a case of international mistaken identity. In 1967, Time magazine noted that dueling was legal in Uruguay—Paraguay's neighbor. And that was actually true: Uruguay didn't criminalize dueling between 1920 and 1992.

Somewhere along the telephone game of internet facts, Uruguay became Paraguay. Then someone apparently thought the story needed more pizzazz and threw in the blood donor requirement. Why blood donors specifically? Your guess is as good as anyone's. Maybe it sounded like the kind of quirky public health incentive a government might create? "Donate blood, earn the right to settle disputes with swords"?

Why the Myth Won't Die

This false fact has achieved internet immortality. It appears on:

• Countless trivia websites and "weird laws" lists
• Social media accounts dedicated to "amazing facts"
• Pub quiz questions around the world
• Even Wikipedia's dueling article at various points

The problem? Not a single source can link to an actual Paraguayan statute. They all cite each other in an endless circular reference of wrongness. It's like a game of telephone where everyone's just repeating what the last person said, and no one bothers to check the original source because there isn't one.

Part of the myth's staying power is that it hits the sweet spot of believability. It's weird enough to be memorable, but not so outlandish that it triggers immediate skepticism. Blood donation is a good cause, Paraguay is unfamiliar enough to most people that they can't immediately fact-check it, and history is full of genuinely strange laws that did exist.

The Real Legacy of Dueling

While Paraguay never had this law, the history of dueling is genuinely fascinating. Dueling was widely practiced among European and American elites well into the 19th century as a way to settle disputes "honorably." Alexander Hamilton famously died in a duel with Aaron Burr in 1804. European nations gradually criminalized the practice throughout the 1800s, though informal duels continued.

Uruguay's tolerance of dueling until 1992 made it one of the last holdouts. But even there, you couldn't just challenge someone to pistols at dawn—there were strict formal procedures, and actual duels were rare by the late 20th century.

So if you're planning a trip to Paraguay and were hoping to settle old scores with your nemesis, you'll have to find another approach. Might we suggest talking it out? Or at the very least, scheduling your duel somewhere that doesn't require international travel based on internet myths.