Cultural Traditions and Ceremonies

Authentic portrayals of ethnic communities and their ceremonial traditions, showcasing unique costumes and cultural heritage.

Hamar men paint themselves with white chalk and ochre and decorate their hair with feathers and leaves prior to a bull -jumping ceremony, a rite of passage to manhood.

Kenya, Masai Mara National Reserve. Portrait of a Maasai woman in traditional costume.

Young Karo girls enjoy watching a dance. Before dances and ceremonial occasions, they decorate themselves elaborately using local white chalk, pulverised rock and other natural pigments.

Hamar men paint themselves with white chalk and ochre and decorate their hair with feathers and leaves prior to a bull -jumping ceremony, a rite of passage to manhood.

Ethiopia: Lower Omo River Basin, near Turmi and Dilabino, Hamar bull-jumping ceremony, Hamar men ladeling ceremonial coffee (Editorial Usage Only)

Africa, Ethiopia, A young Amhara shepherd keeps well-wrapped up against the cold mountain air on the western scarp of the Abyssinian Rift. Gooch Meda scarp rises to over 11, 000 feet above sea level.

A Nyagatom woman wears numerous strands of beads made from wood.The Nyagatom are one of the largest tribes and arguably the most warlike people living along the Omo River in Southwest Ethiopia.

A young Mursi woman with a lip plate, but with ther ear plates removed, in Ethiopia's Omo river region, Africa.

A young Dassanech boy shows off his distinctive painted clay hairdo. The central panel consists of tightly packed coils of sisal thread extracted from grain sacks that allow the scalp to breathe underneath the clay. Much the largest of the tribes in the Omo Valley numbering around 50,000, the Dassanech (also known as the Galeb, Changila or Merille) are Nilotic pastoralists and agriculturalists.

A portrait of a young woman in the Hamer Village in the remote Omo Valley of Ethiopia.

A Hamar woman being whipped. During a Hamar Jumping of the Bull ceremony, female friends and relatives of the initiate are willingly whipped with pliable sticks to show their solidarity and love for him. They do not flinch or show any sign of pain.

Kenya, Portrait of traditionally dressed Turkana woman on Lake Turkana; Loyangalani

A Karo woman carries her baby on her hip at their temporary camp on the bank of the Karo River. Meat from a slaughtered animal hangs drying on a pole outside her hut.

Hamar tribe, children in traditional clothing, Hamar Village, South Omo, Ethiopia

A Hamar woman of Southwest Ethiopia. The phallic protrusion of her necklace denotes that she is her husband's first wife.

Song is an art form ingrained in Turkana culture. At the end of a dance session, the participants invariably enjoy the Song of the Bulls.

Ethiopia: Lower Omo River Basin, Dimika, Hamar tribal region, Hamar woman wearing necklace sof first wife and cowrie shells (Editorial Usage Only)

The braided and ochred hair of a Dassanech girl, Ethiopia

A young Dassanech boy shows off his distinctive painted clay hairdo. It consists of tightly packed coils of sisal thread extracted from grain sacks that allow the scalp to breathe underneath the clay.

masai woman; kenya.

Young Hamar woman, Hamar people, Omo valley, southern Ethiopia, bead necklaces

masai warrior ( a moran ) wearing an ostrich feather headdress, kenya.

Himba woman sits on the floor and makes jewelry. You can clearly see that the middle teeth - by tradition - have been removed

Ethiopia, Lower Omo Valley, Tumi, 'Hamerjumping Of The Bulls Initiation Ceremony, Hamer Man'

Two young Pokot girls wearing traditional ornaments that denote their unmarried status. Their broad belts are made with the metacarpus and metatarsal bones of dik-dik interspersed with beads. Kenya

Ethiopia, Lower Omo Valley, Key Afer, close-up of a Hamer woman traditional outfits and red hair.

Hamer woman. Keske. Ethiopia, Africa.

Kenya, Portrait of young Samburu man in traditional dress; South Horr

South Ethiopia, Omo region, young woman of the Hammer people, wears a lot of jewellery and her hair is dyed with a mixture of ochre clay and fat, Ethiopia, Africa

Rear view of an Turkana tribewoman, with multiple earrings and elaborate bead collar, Lake Turkana, Northern Kenya, Africa.

Young woman wearing red clay in her hair and earrings, portrait, at the markets in Dimeka, Ethiopia, Africa

Africa, Ethiopia, Murle Region. Portrait of a Bumi girl. (Editorial Usage Only)

NAMIBIA, SKELETON COAST, HARTMANN VALLEY, NOMADIC HIMBA PEOPLE CAMP, PORTRAIT OF MAN

A large gathering of people at Dimeka, the largest market in the Hamar country of Southwest Ethiopia. People travel there great distances on foot to attend the weekly commercial and social event.

Togo, Nadoba, portrait

Woman in Traditional Dress- Kenya

Tribal woman from Omo Valley

Young Maasai girls decorate their faces with ochre and clay in preparation for a dance.

Kenya, Masai Mara. Safari guide, Salaash Ole Morompi, demonstrates getting moisture from bark off a whistling acacia (MR)

Karo people with body paintings participating in a tribal dance ceremony, Omo river valley, Southern Ethiopia, Africa

NAMIBIA, NAMIB DESERT, KUNENE RIVER AREA, HIMBA WOMAN, PORTRAIT

Dani man wearing kotekas (penis gourd) in the village, Baliem Valley, Wamena, Papua, Indonesia (Large format sizes available)

Masai woman, Kenya

Africa, Kenya, Maasai Mara. Three Maasai woman in traditional attire. (Editorial Usage Only)

Dani tribesmen, Baliem Valley, Irian Jaya, Indonesia.

Portrait of a woman at the Monday Market in Djenne, Mali

Boy in ritual make-up and traditional clothing during a sing-sing, Goroka Show, Goroka, Eastern Highlands, Papua New Guinea

Portrait of Masai people Meru National Park Kenya

A Himba youth with his hair styled in a long plait, known as ondatu. Once married, he will split the ondatu into two plaits and keep them covered.

Maasai woman Narygunkishon, and child (girl) Gunasai Masai Mara, Kenya

Huli tribe member wearing wig in the Tari Valley area of Papua New Guinea s Southern Highlands; Tigibi, Southern Highlands, Papua New Guinea

War Dance by young warriors (the Moran) of the Samburu tribe, Kenya, Africa. 1981.

Nyangatom girl with beaded necklaces, Omo River Valley, Ethiopia, Bume, Buma, Bumi, Africa

Zulu woman making pottery dishes, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa

Close up portrait of woman of the Hamar tribe in traditional dress, Omo Valley, Southern Ethiopia, East Africa

A young Afar girl at Filwoha in the Awash National Park. Filwoha in the Afar language means 'hot water'. The beautiful springs rise from deep underground at about 96.8 degrees

Africa, Namibia, Kaokoland, Himba woman

A young Karo girl decorates her friends face. A small Omotic tribe related to the Hamar, who live along the banks of the Omo River in southwestern Ethiopia.

Hamar women dance, sing and blow small tin trumpets during a Jumping of the Bull ceremony. The semi nomadic Hamar of Southwest Ethiopia embrace an age grade system that includes several rites of passage for young men.

Africa, Ethiopia, Southern Omo Valley, Mursi Tribe. Mursi woman without her lip plate carrying a large jug.

Namibia - Kung Bushman / San in the Kalahari Desert. In the rainy season with green vegetation. Intu Afrika Kalahari Game Reserve, Namibia.

Women from the Samburu tribe, Rift Valley, Northern Kenya, East Africa, Africa

Africa, Namibia, Opuwo. Portrait of Himba woman.

Educational bushwalk with Ju/'Hoansi-San people in traditional dress, at the Living Museum of the Ju/'Hoansi-San, Grashoek, Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia, Africa.

Africa, Tanzania, A Datoga woman relaxes outside her thatched house. The traditional attire of Datoga women includes tanned and decorated leather dresses and coiled brass armulets and necklaces.

Papua New Guinea young girls in traditional dress with paint, headdress A66C

Africa, Gabon, Estuaire Region, Libreville Capital, Bwiti Ceremonies, Women Play Bitsanza (Tree Fruits Called 'Ongo') And Sing Until Dawn

Hamer women with scars from being whipped. Keske. Ethiopia, Africa.

Kenya, Samburu District. A Samburu woman, wearing intricate beaded necklaces, leans against her mud hut towards the end of the day.

Scar face as a mark of beauty woman from the Jiye tribe, Eastern Equatoria State, South Sudan, Africa

A Karo woman paints her daughter's face with white chalk. The mother has styled her hair with mud and ochre.

Sudan, Tribal People, Young Dinka Woman Ladelling The Oil Produced From Shea Butter Fruit After Roasting And Boiling Which Is Used For Cooking And Body Decoration.

Kenya, Mara North Conservancy. Maasai under an acacia tree on the plains of the Maasai Mara.

Group of Mursi women and children in their village. Omo Delta, Ethiopia, Africa.

A !Kung woman sings and claps her hands to the rhythm of her menfolk. The !Kung are San hunter-gatherers, often referred to as Bushmen.

A group of women and children wit in a circle, discussing recent events, in a Bume tribal village, in Ethiopia's Omo region (MR)

Portrait of a smiling young man, a Hadzabe Hunter-gatherer, near Lake Eyasi; Tanzania

Ethiopia, Asiynta Village, Afar Region. A young Afar girl of the Darhimela clan. Her eyebrows and the bridge of her nose have been lightly tattooed.

Traditional semi-nude Longido girls with large ear ornaments in Tanzania ca. 1936.

Africa, Ethiopia, Omo region. A young woman with typical Bume tribe neck adornment. (MR)

Man, Mokhotlong District, A14, Lesotho, Sotho, Basotho, Africa

Mali, Mopti. A Fulani man wearing a traditional hat. The Fulani are predominantly pastoral people scattered over many parts of West Africa.

Mother and baby of the Hamer tribe, the woman´s hair is treated with ochre, water and resin then twisted into tresses called goscha, Lower Omo Valley,...

Ethiopia, Children, Carrying, Danakil Tribeswoman Carrying Baby On Her Back In Sling Decorated With Cowrie Shells Used For Barter.

Africa, Swaziland, Swazi Cultural Village. Close-up of tribe woman in costume (MR)

Happy kids outside mud hut, Uganda, East Africa, Africa

Young Himba going back to the village with fire wood Namibia

Africa, Kenya, Amboseli National Park, Masai villager

A Samburu woman resplendent in her beaded necklaces and numerous bracelets makes best use of a large rainwater pond to wash herself. Water is scarce in much of Samburuland.

Herero women and Himba woman (center) in traditional dress, near Uis, Namibia, Africa.

Himba Baby is carried by his mother on her back, back view

Dimeka, Ethiopia, village Lower Omo Valley, of young Hamar guys portrait.

Malawi, Tribal People, Yau Tribe, Yau Woman Blowing A Water Buck Horn While Carrying A Load On Her Head Standing In The Fields

Mursi woman displays lip plate, Omo River, Ethiopia

Maasai woman, Masai Mara, Kenya, page, Africa

A Maasai tribesman on Paje Beach wearing colourful native dress, Paje, Zanzibar, Tanzania, East Africa, Africa

Karo tribesman dancing in the circle, both with feet off the ground, Omo Delta, Ethiopia, Africa.

A Hamar woman in her tribe's village in the Omo region of Ethiopia, African. (MR)

A young boy from the N!!S hunter-gatherer band. The N!!S are a part of the San people, often referred to as Bushmen.

Smiling hill tribe boy with hand woven hat, Simien Mountains, Ethiopia, Africa

Young Man In Samburu Tribe; Kenya

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