Throughout our 2-month street journey by Namibia, we had been fortunate sufficient to go to the Himba tribe, an indigenous tribe residing in North-Western Namibia and Southern Angola. The Himba Village was one of many finest locations in Namibia we visited throughout our street journey. Attending to know indigenous individuals who have been residing within the area for hundreds of years is an enriching expertise that each traveler will profit from. We discovered an genuine Himba Village within the Kunene River area.
Driving from Namibia to Victoria Falls we began seeing small villages consisting of round form huts and other people with purple ochre-colored pores and skin and complicated hairstyles. We had been within the Kunene area and my dream of assembly the Himba folks of Namibia was about to change into true. We didn’t do any analysis on the place to seek out this pastoral tribe of Northern Namibia we simply determined to observe the street and see the place it leads us. Driving with none specific plan we noticed an indication subsequent to the street saying Ovahimba Dwelling Museum and with out considering twice we adopted it.
The place to seek out the Himba tribe?
Yow will discover Himba folks within the North of Namibia, within the Kunene area. Within the sixteenth century, some teams of the Herero tribe looking for higher pasture lands in Southern Africa crossed to Namibia. The primary folks of the semi-nomadic tribe got here right here from Angola and unfold round Kaokoland (the outdated identify of the Kunene area). As usually occurs after a while as a result of new environments and influences from totally different cultures the tribe’s customs and way of life modified so much and result in the formation of a brand new tribe.
Himba tribe location map
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What’s the origin of the tribe?
The identify “Ovahimba” within the language of the Ngambwe (one other indigenous group) means “beggar” and refers back to the tough occasions the members of the Himba tribe went by, together with extreme drought adopted by the huge lack of livestock.
These days there are about 50 000 members of the Himba tribe residing in Namibia. Although there are various small Himba villages within the Kunene area just a few of them nonetheless protect their conventional methods of residing. In recent times most of the tribes are underneath the sturdy affect of the fashionable world primarily by way of altering their food regimen and consuming junk meals.
When is one of the best time to go to Namibia?
Himba Tribe attention-grabbing details
All members of the tribe paint their complete physique with the ochre pigment to maintain it moist, and mushy and to guard it from the solar radiation. The pigment serves as a pure physique lotion/sunscreen in addition to an insect repellent. It’s believed to forestall hair progress. The combination, a mix of butterfat and ochre, is known as otjize paste.
Himba folks use solely 4 names to explain totally different colours and shades. They use zuzu for darkish shades of inexperienced, blue, purple, and purple; vapa for white and yellow; buru for some shades of inexperienced and blue; and dambu for some shades of inexperienced, purple, and brown.
Himbas’ food regimen primarily consists of cornmeal porridge, milk, eggs, seasonal fruit/herbs, and occasional meat.
The normal Himba society has a polygamy system. A Himba man can have as much as 3 wives.
The common life expectancy within the Himba neighborhood is 80-85 years, and a few members of the tribe as much as 100 years.
The Himba language is a spoken language solely.
Tribe’s ladies don’t wash with cleaning soap and water. For private hygiene, they take a every day smoke bathtub in smoke with many alternative herbs.
Most Himba ladies nonetheless put on conventional apparel manufactured from animal skins.
The flowery hairstyles and handmade jewellery play a big position within the tribal construction. They point out an individual’s age and social standing.
Himba faith and believes
Himbas are animists they apply ancestor worship. The supreme god is Makuru. Tribe members talk with their spirits utilizing ancestral fireplace and Makuru who in his flip connects them with the ancestors of the villagers. Makuru doesn’t have any energy to affect one’s life it’s the ancestral spirits that members of the Himba household ask for assist or recommendation.
Himba tribe construction
The Himba is semi-nomadic folks they stay in large homesteads with their prolonged household. The Himba tribe is a patriarchal clan primarily based on a bilateral descent which signifies that every member of the tribe belongs to 2 clans; one on his/her mom’s facet and one on her/his father’s facet. The clan is normally led by the eldest male. Himba apply polygamy. Himba males have a mean of two wives. A Himba lady has her personal hut the place she lives along with her kids. Conserving shut household ties helps Himba tribes to protect their conventional lifestyle.
The peculiar coiffure of the Himba
Distinctive hairstyles have greater than an ornamental goal in Himba tradition. Primarily based on a coiffure of an individual they will say how outdated he/she is, what’s her/his social standing, if he/she is married, has kids, and so on. It’s nearly like an ID doc in Western society. For Himba, their hair is an extension of their physique. All Himba tribe members begin their lives with daring heads.
Younger women and boys have two thick braids on the rear of the top. Twin girls and boys have solely a single braid every. As a lady reaches puberty her coiffure begins altering first her hair is organized right into a headdress to partially cowl her face. A younger lady who has been married for over a 12 months or has kids wears the Erembe coiffure which consists of many braids usually embellished with an ornate headpiece made o goat hair, jewellery, and so on.
Younger boys proceed to put on a braided hair plait until they get married. A married younger man wears a head wrap with unbraided hair.
Himba boys change into younger males once they get married whereas women are thought-about younger ladies solely after having a toddler.
A standard Himba Village
A standard Himba hut is kind of fundamental. It has a fire within the center. Dried cow dung is usually used for making a fireplace. Across the fireplace on the bottom, there are various cow skins which might be used for sitting and sleeping on. No beds or mattresses all people together with kids sleeps on these factor cow skins. Males use a picket holder as a pillow. A number of pots and baskets are used for cooking and amassing crops. All their pots, jags, and cups they make themselves from clay or carve out of wooden. Their clothes is self-made as effectively. They primarily use cow and goat pores and skin.
The Sacred Fireplace (Okuruwo) within the centre of the village has specific significance and is an emblem of the Himba lifestyle. The fireplace keeper (normally the oldest and probably the most revered man of the tribe) takes care of the holy fireplace and makes certain it at all times smolders. It’s the place the place all non secular rituals happen. The straight line from the chief’s hut previous the sacred fireplace to the cattle enclosure throughout the village borders is known as a holy line. It could actually’t be crossed by a stranger who hasn’t acquired an invite to go to the village.
Visiting the Himba tribe in Opuwo
The Ovahimba Dwelling Village Museum is situated 40km north of Opuwo, the closest city, on the way in which to Epupa Falls. It’s an ideal tenting spot and an excellent alternative to fulfill Himba folks and study their conventional customs and life-style. Even when usually are not planning to camp there it’s positively value making a cease only for the museum itself. The museum is open for guests every day from 8am to 6pm.
Discover one of the best campsites to your Namibia journey
What makes the Ovahimba Dwelling Museum particular?
To start with, there are only a few conservation or cultural tasks in Africa which might be run by native folks. That is one in all them. Rimunikavi Tjipurua is a younger native man from Mamachanja village who began this mission a few years in the past on his uncle’s land.
Second, a really private method. It’s not a spot the place large tour buses come and cease for photographs. You get an actual likelihood to be taught in regards to the Himba conventional life-style with an area information who belongs to the Himba tradition.
Third, the situation of the campsite is gorgeous; greenish hills, large baobab bushes, lookout factors, rock work, and so on. All these in a really calm peaceable place.
What are you able to do and see on the Himba Village?
Go to the village, see conventional Himba dancing, get some data on medication crops, purchase hand-made souvenirs, and do a guided stroll.
Do a brief hike to the highest of the hill and see bushmen rock work and a large baobab.
Watch the celebrities, the evening sky right here is improbable.
Hen watching, many alternative birds (hornbills, eagles, and so on.) flying round.
Ovahimba Dwelling Museum
There are many Expertise Himba life actions you are able to do right here, I’ll point out a few of them; the normal lifetime of a Himba village, bushwalk, physique portray, singing, dancing, and so on. For extra data on totally different Himba excursions and costs go HERE.
Omungunda campsite
The campsite is situated proper subsequent to the village so that you see Ovahimba strolling round even with out doing a tour. For now, the campsite has solely fundamental amenities however Rimunikavi is planning to improve it quickly; set up photo voltaic panels for electrical energy and scorching water. We completely preferred the place, right here you get an actual expertise with Himba folks.
Campsite amenities
Sizzling water bathe – No
Flushing bathrooms – Sure
Electrical energy – No
Energy retailers – No
Operating water – Sure
Wi-Fi – No
BBQ amenities – Sure
Different Native tribes of Namibia
There are a number of different native tribes in Namibia. When you’ve got time you’ll be able to go to a few of them to be taught extra in regards to the tribal and language range of the nation.
the Owambo, occupy the Northern areas between the Kunene and Okavango rivers, 700 000 folks, the most important group in Namibia, about 45% of the entire inhabitants.
the Herero, stay within the North of Namibia; Kunene area, with a present inhabitants of 250 000.
the Damara, primarily stay in Damaraland, present inhabitants 90 000.
the Kavango, stay in Caprivi (Kavango area) between the Chobe and Zambezi rivers, present inhabitants 140 000, shut family to Ovahimba.
the Nama, stay principally within the South of Namibia, close to Keetmanshoop, present inhabitants 90 000.
the Bushmen (San), occupy the distant East a part of Namibia, 27 000.
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The gorgeous half of Stingy Nomads, liable for all our land adventures (climbing, climbing, strolling the Camino) and following them write-ups. Alya loves strolling since she was a toddler, she prefers to stroll 1000 km with a backpack reasonably than to do a ten 000 km street journey (really any street journey). Alya is an enormous fan of Latin America, the Spanish language, and dancing. Each time we go away she desperately misses our canine Chile.
