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March 12, 2005
cattle songs and big guns
at the end of this week, i'm off to do a job in Ethiopia. i'll be near the Omo River, with the Nyangatom tribe. knowing nothing about the region or its people, i started doing a little on-line research.
the information i've been reading presents these people, also known as the Bume/Bumi, as "semi-nomadic agro-pastoralists" who "are famous for their oratory gifts and their cattle songs." they also seem to have a fondness for honey. due to their relative isolation, they are considered near-Stone Age in many aspects of their lifestyle.
then i ran across this photo. clearly, there seems to also be a fondness for large automatic weapons which are NOT very Stone Age. i suppose the glib references to "being known as great warriors" make more sense now.
i'll keep reading, but now i'm starting to think i should bring some honey.
Posted by hadashi at March 12, 2005 10:27 PM
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