I believe you might have heard of the Nuer people. Nuer people residing in western Ethiopia are traditionally pastoralist people known for their far-reaching connection to cattle, which play a big role in their culture, economy, and social structure.
Cattle are a symbol of wealth and social status, and they are the primary sources of food by providing milk, meat, and blood.
Cattle are exchanged between the husband and wife’s lineage as part of the marriage process. This practice has been in shape and even today. It’s still the same as before — the old age.
- While they are historically pastoralists, Nuer’s modern civilization has been shaped by various factors, including socioeconomic and political changes.
Despite those factors and the demands of a rapidly changing world, the Nuer people continue to navigate the balance of their traditional ways of life.
Herding and Growth: Childhood memory.
In Nuer culture, females are not allowed to go look after the cattle. It’s a male duty, but it doesn’t mean that a female would not look after their cattle if there’s no male born in their house.
Amongst my sisters, I was the only man in my father’s house at that time, and I was the older one among my cousins.
- Since my sisters could…
