Mursi (people)
The Mursi (own name Mun ) are an ethnic group in southwest Ethiopia with 7,480 (2007). Relatives. They live in the lower Omo river valley in the " region of the southern nations, nationalities and peoples "; their area is partly in the Mago National Park .
The Mursi language is one of the Surmic languages , a subgroup of the East Sudan languages within the Nilo-Saharan language family .
economy
The Mursi are traditionally nomadic hoe farmers and cattle breeders. The most important crop is sorghum , and they also grow corn, beans and chickpeas. In October and November, planting is done on the banks of the Omo and Mago rivers after the water levels there. Harvesting takes place in January and February, and the riverside arable land is the most important resource for the Mursi agriculture. After the main rainy season begins, land is planted further away from the rivers in March and April, where harvesting takes place in June and July. However, rainfall can vary greatly in terms of quantity and location, which increases the risk of crop failures. In such cases, the cattle offer a certain security, as they provide milk, meat and blood as protein-rich food and can be exchanged for grain from the highlands. In the Mursi culture, cattle are of great importance.
In the course of the construction of a gigantic sugar cane plantation in the Omo Valley (250,000 hectares ) laid out by the authoritarian ruling Ethiopian government with ambitious goals under Chinese leadership , the tribal population is housed in huts; each family is only allowed five cattle.
Body modifications
The Mursi are known for the lip plates of women, called dhebi by the Mursi . To use these, girls have their lower lip cut open at the end of puberty and two of the lower incisors knocked out. The clay plates are shaped and fired by the girls themselves. Larger and larger specimens are used to gradually stretch the lower lip. The earlobes are often decorated in the same way.
It is often said that the size of the lip plate is related to the amount of the bride price and thus the status of the woman. What speaks against this assumption, however, is that most marriages and thus also the amount of the bride price to be paid, which the groom's family has to pay, are agreed in advance. In fact, it seems more of a growing up rite .
Nowadays the tradition is also a source of money, because Mursi women can be photographed with their lip plates by tourists for a fee. In everyday life, a Mursi woman rarely wears the lip plate. It will be appreciated if the woman carries her plate while serving the coffee.
Photo tourism is controversial, as the tourist groups often go to the Mursi villages, quickly take some photos and pay for those who are photographed, and then continue their journey without going into detail about the Mursi and their culture. Some Mursi and foreign critics regard this as degrading. The income from tourism makes it possible on the one hand to buy grain in times of drought or to pay for the health care of the cattle, on the other hand it is now also used to buy alcohol.
Today, some girls who live in areas that are more strongly influenced by the outside world or who have been able to attend one of the few schools in the region to date no longer want to wear lip plates. Others prefer plates with a hole in the middle that are easier to carry.
Other, extensive body decorations are also common, which consist of geometrically attached scars ( scarification ). In the case of men, especially during rituals and when tourists are present, white paintings are found.
Research and Films
- GEO 12/2006: The body artists in the Omo Valley
- David Turton: a lot of literature and ethnological films
- Shauna LaTosky: is currently doing research on site
- Rudolf Kuzner: Africa's Forgotten Peoples - The Mursi and Hamar in Southern Ethiopia
See also
Web links
- University of Oxford Department of International Development: Mursi Online (Engl.)
- Body modification among the Mursi
- Survival International over the Mursi
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ethnologue: Mursi - A Language from Ethiopia. Accessed March 5, 2019 .
- ↑ Mursi Online: Making a living
- ↑ deutschlandradiokultur.de , Weltzeit , April 28, 2016, Josepha Elmar: Nomads should settle down (April 30, 2016)
- ↑ Mursi Online: Lip-plates
- ↑ Focus issue No. 2 from January 1, 2003, Ethnology: Visit of the picture eater
- ↑ GEO 12/2006: The body artists in the Omo valley