Check Out The Hamar Tribe Of Ethiopia And The Beauty Beads And Cowry Shell Style

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The Hamar (also spelled Hamer) are anOmotic community inhabiting southwestern Ethiopia. They live in Hamer woreda (or district), a fertile part of the Omo River valley, in the Debub Omo Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region(SNNPR). They are largely pastoralists, so their culture places a high value on cattle Culture

 

The fashion style of the Hamar is very much endowed in cowry shells and beaded necklaces very much like the earlier days of West africa. In fact before cowry shells became fashion in West Africa they were used as currency. Eventually evolving into traditional fashion for the stylish and or the wealthy.

The Hamar tribe are also known for their unique custom of “bull jumping,” which initiates a boy into manhood. First, female relatives dance and invite whipping from men who have recently been initiated; this shows their support of the initiate, and their scars give them a right to demand his help in time of need. The boy must run back and forth twice across the backs of a row of bulls or castrated steers, and is ridiculed if he fails.

Ethiopia

Culture