With a hundred million inhabitants, Ethiopia is the second most populous country in the Africa and one of the emerging powers of the continent.
Travelling to Ethiopia is to be transported to a place where some of the tribes most impressive on earth, both visually and historically. Lush green landscapes mingle with inhospitable terrain, a fascinating place with a legendary history.
There are approximately 15 ethnic groups in Ethiopia, some endangered, who have remained faithful to their customs and traditions for centuries.
These are five of the most surprising ethnic groups in the world. Ethiopia;
1. HAMER
The Hamer are one of the tribes most hospitable and open in all of Omo Valley. They often adorn their bodies with markings and ornaments such as bracelets and necklaces.
Women wear elaborate hairstyles shaped with clay and butter.
2. MURSI
The Mursi ethnic group lives in huts and eludes the river Omo because of the tsetse fly. They believe everything is alive and maintain a deeply respectful relationship with their environment.
In public women wear large discs on the lower lip, which increases her beauty in the eyes of future suitors. The larger the plate, the greater her prospects of a good marriage.
3. BORANA
The Borana ethnic group are located south of the Oromo region, in Sidamo province. They are a Semi-nomadic people, although recently they have increasingly turned to farming. Today, approximately 200,000 people identify as Borana.
Around 90% of the Borana are Muslim, and almost all the remaining 10% are Christian.
4. SURMA
Like the Mursi, the Surma women wear lip plates. They are a semi-nomadic ethnic group , whose body painting is highly elaborate, is estimated to have 45,000 members.
They usually practise herding and farming, and sometimes hunt.
It is considered one of the most remote, authentic and spectacular ethnic groups in Ethiopia.
5. KARO
The territory of the Karo is to the southeast of Omo River. They paint their bodies and add flowers and plant ornaments characteristic of this ethnic group.
Body decoration represents their social position or some achievement, and often serves to highlight their beauty.
The few thousand remaining individuals live in small villages along the Omo River. They share a common past with the Hamer, with whom they share a language.
If in the of Ethiopia the roots of Christian tradition emerge, the south is closely linked to the origins of humanity. The fifteen tribes who live in that area inhabit a symbolic universe where every object, ornament and scar is full of meaning.
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The north is the land of Christians who have left their ancient monuments as testimony.
In the south, in sub-Saharan Africa, culturally diverse peoples live alongside one another along the Omo River.
