Hamar people: Difference between revisions

Hamer
Total population
	46,532
Regions with significant populations
	South Ethiopia Regional State
Languages
	Hamer
Religion
	Animism

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The Hamar people (also spelled Hamer) are a 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 former South Ethiopia Regional State (SERS). They are largely pastoralists, so their culture places a high value on cattle.

Demographics

The 2007 national census reported 46,532 people in this ethnic group, of whom 10,000 were urban inhabitants. The vast majority (99.13%) live in the SNNPR.^[1]

According to the Ethiopian national census of 1994, there were 42,838 Hamer language speakers, and 42,448 self-identified Hamer people, representing approximately 0.1% of the total Ethiopian population.^[2]

Culture

The Hamar are 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 say on whom they marry.

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.^[3]

The men of the tribe will often style their hair with clay, creating a sculpture of sorts that is styled with various pigments, mostly red and white, and in smoothing the clay they create very small protruding tube in which they house ostrich feathers from their hunts.

The Assistant Administrator of Hamer Bena, Ato Imnet Gashab, has commented that only seven tribal members have ever completed secondary education.

Mingi, in the religion of the Hamar and related tribes, is the state of being impure or "ritually polluted".^[4] A person, often a child, who was considered mingi is killed by forced permanent separation from the tribe by being left alone in the jungle or by drowning in the river.^[5]

References

^ 2007 Ethiopian census, first draft Archived 4 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Ethiopian Central Statistical Agency (accessed 6 May 2009)
^ Hudson, Grover. 75 Ethiopian Languages: 19 Cushitic, 20 Nilosaharan, 23 Omotic, 12 Semitic, and 1 Unclassified, 2005.
^ Wharton, Jane (22 February 2015). "The making of a man: Inside a bull jumping ceremony with Ethiopia's Hamer tribe". Express (London). Retrieved 8 March 2016.
^ Do the Hamar have a Concept of Honor?, Ivo Strecker, University of Mainz, "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "The Hamar and Karo Tribes: The Search for Mingi". Films Media Group. Retrieved 20 November 2019.

Films

1973 – Rivers of Sand by Robert Gardner color, 83 min
1994 – Sweet Sorghum: An Ethnographer's Daughter Remembers Life in Hamar, Southern Ethiopia: a film by Ivo Strecker and Jean Lydall and their daughter Kaira Strecker. A production of IWF. Watertown, Massachusetts: Documentary Educational Resources, [released c. 1997]. VHS. Presenter/narrator, Kaira Strecker; producer, Rolf Husmann.
1996 release – "The Hamar Trilogy." A series of three films by Joanna Head and Jean Lydell; distributed by Filmakers Library, NYC. Titles in the series are: The Women Who Smile, Two Girls Go Hunting and Our Way of Loving.
2001 – Duka's Dilemma: A Visit to Hamar, Southern Ethiopia. A film by Jean Lydall and Kaira Strecker. Watertown, Massachusetts: Documentary Educational Resources, released in 2004. DVD. Camera, sound, and editing, Kaira Strecker; anthropology and production, Jean Lydall.
2001 – The Last Warriors: The Hamar and Karo Tribes: Searching for Mingi. A Trans Media production; Southern Star. Princeton, New Jersey: Films for the Humanities & Sciences. VHS. From The Last Warriors: Seven Tribes on the Verge of Extinction. Series producer/executive producer, Michael Willesee Jr.; writer/director, Ben Ulm. ISBN 0-7365-3606-X.

Discography

2003 – Nyabole: Hamar – Southern Ethiopia. CD. Museum collection Berlin series. Recorded between 1770 and 1776 and originally published on LP 1768. Mainz, Germany: Wergo.

External links

Media related to Hamar people at Wikimedia Commons

The Hamar People of the Omo Valley, also known as the Hamer People
Hamer page from BBC
People of Africa
Discovery channel
Video of Hamer village market – YouTube
Video of bull jumping – YouTube
Photos taken of members of the Hamar tribe, February 2010
Hamer and people of Omo Valley (Photos from Jean Buet) Archived 22 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine

[2007-census-1] 2007 Ethiopian census, first draft Archived 4 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Ethiopian Central Statistical Agency (accessed 6 May 2009)

[2] Hudson, Grover. 75 Ethiopian Languages: 19 Cushitic, 20 Nilosaharan, 23 Omotic, 12 Semitic, and 1 Unclassified, 2005.

[3] Wharton, Jane (22 February 2015). "The making of a man: Inside a bull jumping ceremony with Ethiopia's Hamer tribe". Express (London). Retrieved 8 March 2016.

[4] Do the Hamar have a Concept of Honor?, Ivo Strecker, University of Mainz, "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[5] "The Hamar and Karo Tribes: The Search for Mingi". Films Media Group. Retrieved 20 November 2019.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{short description|Omotic language-speaking ethnic group in southwestern Ethiopia}}
-{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2013}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
 {{infobox ethnic group|
 |group=Hamer
 |image=[[File:Dmitri-Markine-Hamer.jpg|Hamer women, 2012|250px]]
 |population= 46,532
+|popplace= {{flag|South Ethiopia Regional State}}
-|popplace=[[Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region|southwestern Ethiopia]]
-|rels=
+|rels = [[Animism]]
 |langs=[[Hamer language|Hamer]]
 |related=
 }}
-The '''Hamar''' (also spelled '''Hamer''') are an [[Omotic languages|Omotic]] community inhabiting southwestern [[Ethiopia]]. They live in [[Hamer (woreda)|Hamer]] [[woreda]] (or district), a fertile part of the [[Omo River (Ethiopia)|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.
+The '''Hamar people''' (also spelled '''Hamer''') are a community inhabiting southwestern [[Ethiopia]]. They live in [[Hamer (woreda)|Hamer]] [[woreda]] (or district), a fertile part of the [[Omo River (Ethiopia)|Omo River]] valley, in the [[Debub Omo Zone]] of the former [[South Ethiopia Regional State]] (SERS).  They are largely pastoralists, so their culture places a high value on cattle.
 ==Demographics==
-The 2007 national census reported 46,532 people in this ethnic group, of whom 957 were urban inhabitants. The vast majority (99.13%) live in the SNNPR.<ref name=2007-census>[http://www.csa.gov.et/pdf/Cen2007_firstdraft.pdf 2007 Ethiopian census, first draft], Ethiopian Central Statistical Agency (accessed 6 May 2009)</ref>
+The 2007 national census reported 46,532 people in this ethnic group, of whom 10,000 were urban inhabitants. The vast majority (99.13%) live in the SNNPR.<ref name=2007-census>[http://www.csa.gov.et/pdf/Cen2007_firstdraft.pdf 2007 Ethiopian census, first draft] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120604045256/http://www.csa.gov.et/pdf/Cen2007_firstdraft.pdf |date=4 June 2012 }}, Ethiopian Central Statistical Agency (accessed 6 May 2009)</ref>
 According to the Ethiopian national census of 1994, there were 42,838 Hamer language speakers, and 42,448 self-identified Hamer people, representing approximately 0.1% of the total Ethiopian population.<ref>Hudson, Grover. ''75 Ethiopian Languages: 19 Cushitic, 20 Nilosaharan, 23 Omotic, 12 Semitic, and 1 Unclassified'', 2005.</ref>
@@ Line 18: / Line 19: @@
 ==Culture==
 [[File:Hamer bull jumping (6) (29167685366).jpg|thumb|Bull-jumping ceremony]]
-The Hamar are 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. <ref>{{cite news|last1=Wharton|first1=Jane|title=The making of a man: Inside a bull jumping ceremony with Ethiopia's Hamer tribe|url=http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/559757/Hamer-tribe-bull-jumping-ceremony-Omo-Valley-Ethiopia|accessdate=8 March 2016|publisher=Express (London)|date=22 February 2015}}</ref>
+The Hamar are 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 say on whom they marry.
+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.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Wharton|first1=Jane|title=The making of a man: Inside a bull jumping ceremony with Ethiopia's Hamer tribe|url=http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/559757/Hamer-tribe-bull-jumping-ceremony-Omo-Valley-Ethiopia|access-date=8 March 2016|publisher=Express (London)|date=22 February 2015}}</ref>
-The Assistant Administrator of Hamer Bena, Ato Imnet Gashab, has commented that only seven tribal members have ever completed secondary education.
-{{Main|Mingi}}
-[[File:Hamer decoration.JPG|thumb|right|Hamer decoration]]
-[[File:Will you marry me?.JPG|thumb|right|Collars for hamer married women]]
-''[[Mingi]]'', in the religion of the Hamar and related tribes, is the state of being impure or "ritually polluted".<ref>''Do the Hamar have a Concept of Honor?'', Ivo Strecker, University of Mainz, {{cite web |url=http://www.uni-mainz.de/Organisationen/SORC/fileadmin/texts/Do%20the%20Hamar%20have%20a%20Concept%20of%20Honor.pdf |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2010-02-19 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725090010/http://www.uni-mainz.de/Organisationen/SORC/fileadmin/texts/Do%20the%20Hamar%20have%20a%20Concept%20of%20Honor.pdf |archivedate=25 July 2011 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> A person, often a child, who was considered ''mingi'' is killed by forced permanent separation from the tribe by being left alone in the jungle or by drowning in the river.<ref>''The Hamar and Karo Tribes: The Search for Mingi'' http://ffh.films.com/id/1572/The_Hamar_and_Karo_Tribes_The_Search_for_Mingi.htm</ref>
+The men of the tribe will often style their hair with clay, creating a sculpture of sorts that is styled with various pigments, mostly red and white, and in smoothing the clay they create very small protruding tube in which they house ostrich feathers from their hunts.
-{{Commons|Hamar people}}
+The Assistant Administrator of [[Hamer Bena]], Ato Imnet Gashab, has commented that only seven tribal members have ever completed secondary education.
+[[File:Hamer decoration.JPG|thumb|right|Hamer decoration]]
+[[File:Will you marry me?.JPG|thumb|right|Collars for Hamer married women]]
+''[[Mingi]]'', in the religion of the Hamar and related tribes, is the state of being impure or "ritually polluted".<ref>''Do the Hamar have a Concept of Honor?'', Ivo Strecker, University of Mainz, {{cite web |url=http://www.uni-mainz.de/Organisationen/SORC/fileadmin/texts/Do%20the%20Hamar%20have%20a%20Concept%20of%20Honor.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2010-02-19 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725090010/http://www.uni-mainz.de/Organisationen/SORC/fileadmin/texts/Do%20the%20Hamar%20have%20a%20Concept%20of%20Honor.pdf |archive-date=25 July 2011 }}</ref> A person, often a child, who was considered ''[[mingi]]'' is killed by forced permanent separation from the tribe by being left alone in the jungle or by drowning in the river.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://films.com/title/11795|title=The Hamar and Karo Tribes: The Search for Mingi|website=Films Media Group|access-date=20 November 2019}}</ref>
 ==See also==
@@ Line 32: / Line 34: @@
 ==References==
-{{reflist}}
+{{Reflist}}
 ==Further reading==
-*Lydall, Jean, and Ivo Strecker (1979). ''The Hamar of Southern Ethiopia''. In three volumes: v. 1.: Work journal; v. 2: Baldambe explains; v. 3: Conversations in Dambaiti. Arbeiten aus dem Institut fur Volkerkunde der Universitat zu Göttingen, Bd. 12-14. Hohenschaftlarn: Klaus Renner Verlag. {{ISBN|3-87673-063-5}} (v. 1); {{ISBN|3-87673-064-3}} (v. 2); {{ISBN|3-87673-065-1}} (v. 3).
+*Lydall, Jean, and Ivo Strecker (1979). ''The Hamar of Southern Ethiopia''. In three volumes: v. 1.: Work journal; v. 2: Baldambe explains; v. 3: Conversations in Dambaiti. Arbeiten aus dem Institut fur Volkerkunde der Universitat zu Göttingen, Bd. 12–14. Hohenschaftlarn: Klaus Renner Verlag. {{ISBN|3-87673-063-5}} (v. 1); {{ISBN|3-87673-064-3}} (v. 2); {{ISBN|3-87673-065-1}} (v. 3).
 *[[Gianni Giansanti|Giansanti, Gianni]] (2004). ''Vanishing Africa''. Text and photographs by Gianni Giansanti; ethnographic introductions by Paolo Novaresio. Translated from Italian. With audio CD. Vercelli, Italy: White Star. {{ISBN|88-544-0006-8}}.
 *Strecker, Ivo A. (1988). ''The Social Practice of Symbolization: An Anthropological Analysis''. Monographs on Social Anthropology, no. 60. London; Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey: Athlone Press. {{ISBN|0-485-19557-7}}.
 ==Films==
-*1973 - ''[[Rivers of Sand]]'' by [[Robert Gardner (anthropologist)|Robert Gardner]] color, 83 min
+*1973 – ''[[Rivers of Sand]]'' by [[Robert Gardner (anthropologist)|Robert Gardner]] color, 83 min
-*1994 - ''Sweet Sorghum: An Ethnographer's Daughter Remembers Life in Hamar, Southern Ethiopia'': a film by Ivo Strecker and Jean Lydall and their daughter Kaira Strecker. A production of IWF. Watertown, Massachusetts: Documentary Educational Resources, [released c. 1997]. VHS. Presenter/narrator, Kaira Strecker; producer, Rolf Husmann.
+*1994 – ''Sweet Sorghum: An Ethnographer's Daughter Remembers Life in Hamar, Southern Ethiopia'': a film by Ivo Strecker and Jean Lydall and their daughter Kaira Strecker. A production of IWF. Watertown, Massachusetts: Documentary Educational Resources, [released c. 1997]. VHS. Presenter/narrator, Kaira Strecker; producer, Rolf Husmann.
-*1996 release - "The Hamar Trilogy." A series of three films by Joanna Head and Jean Lydell; distributed by Filmakers Library, NYC. Titles in the series are: ''The Women Who Smile, Two Girls Go Hunting'' and ''Our Way of Loving''.
+*1996 release – "The Hamar Trilogy." A series of three films by Joanna Head and Jean Lydell; distributed by Filmakers Library, NYC. Titles in the series are: ''The Women Who Smile, Two Girls Go Hunting'' and ''Our Way of Loving''.
-*2001 - ''Duka's Dilemma: A Visit to Hamar, Southern Ethiopia''. A film by Jean Lydall and Kaira Strecker. Watertown, Massachusetts: Documentary Educational Resources, released in 2004. DVD. Camera, sound, and editing, Kaira Strecker; anthropology and production, Jean Lydall.
+*2001 – ''Duka's Dilemma: A Visit to Hamar, Southern Ethiopia''. A film by Jean Lydall and Kaira Strecker. Watertown, Massachusetts: Documentary Educational Resources, released in 2004. DVD. Camera, sound, and editing, Kaira Strecker; anthropology and production, Jean Lydall.
-*2001 - ''The Last Warriors: The Hamar and Karo Tribes: Searching for Mingi''. A Trans Media production; Southern Star. Princeton, New Jersey: Films for the Humanities & Sciences. VHS. From The Last Warriors: Seven Tribes on the Verge of Extinction. Series producer/executive producer, Michael Willesee, Jr.; writer/director, Ben Ulm. {{ISBN|0-7365-3606-X}}.
+*2001 – ''The Last Warriors: The Hamar and Karo Tribes: Searching for Mingi''. A Trans Media production; Southern Star. Princeton, New Jersey: Films for the Humanities & Sciences. VHS. From The Last Warriors: Seven Tribes on the Verge of Extinction. Series producer/executive producer, Michael Willesee Jr.; writer/director, Ben Ulm. {{ISBN|0-7365-3606-X}}.
 ==Discography==
-*2003 - ''Nyabole: Hamar – Southern Ethiopia''. CD. Museum collection Berlin series. Recorded between 1970 and 1976 and originally published on LP 1978. Mainz, Germany: Wergo.
+*2003 – ''Nyabole: Hamar – Southern Ethiopia''. CD. Museum collection Berlin series. Recorded between 1770 and 1776 and originally published on LP 1768. Mainz, Germany: Wergo.
+==External links==
-==Sources and external link==
+{{commons category-inline}}
+*[https://www.excelman.com/en/galerie/afrique/ethiopie-hamar/ethiopie-hamar.html The Hamar People of the Omo Valley, also known as the Hamer People]
 *[http://www.bbc.co.uk/tribe/tribes/hamar/index.shtml Hamer page] from BBC
 *[http://www.africanholocaust.net/peopleofafrica.htm People of Africa]
 *[https://web.archive.org/web/20060624150332/http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/goingtribal/episodes/episodes.html?clik=fanmain_leftnav Discovery channel]
+*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X1__14KGso Video of Hamer village market] – [[YouTube]]
-*[http://home.planet.nl/~romei017/ethiopianet-peoples-section-hamar.htm Hamar page]
-*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X1__14KGso Video of Hamer village market] - [[YouTube]]
+*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ct-BDbfxLJE Video of bull jumping] – [[YouTube]]
-*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ct-BDbfxLJE Video of bull jumping] - [[YouTube]]
 *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110723182436/http://www.lindawolf.net/hamartribe/ Photos taken of members of the Hamar tribe, February 2010]
-*[http://www.photo.buet.us/galerie.php?galerie=ET_Omo Hamer and people of Omo Valley (Photos from Jean Buet) ]
+*[http://www.photo.buet.us/galerie.php?galerie=ET_Omo Hamer and people of Omo Valley (Photos from Jean Buet) ] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222180650/http://photo.buet.us/galerie.php?galerie=ET_Omo |date=22 December 2014 }}
 {{Ethnic groups in Ethiopia}}
 {{Authority control}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Hamer People}}
 [[Category:Ethnic groups in Ethiopia]]

Authority control databases
National	Vereinigte Staaten Frankreich BnF data Israel
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