AMAZING FACTS, OVAHIMBA PEOPLE

Ovahimba People, Namibia

The Ovahima people is found in Northern Namibia. An interesting fact is that they never bath or wash themselves with water at all. They have a very interesting cleaning ritual, which takes a couple of hours. They start cleaning themselves very early in the morning by burning wild herbs and sit in the smoke. They also clean their leather clothes with the smoke.

The Ovahimba have kept to their culture despite persistent pressure that came along with the advent of civilization. 

Their skins rubbed with red ochre, have the appearance of having been forgotten by the rest of the world, but this is only as a result of their extreme isolation and conservative way of life. They derive originally from the Herero nation, collecting in the mountainous regions of the Kaokoland.
 

Long spells of drought forced them to live off the land, collecting wild friut and digging out roots. The Nama raided the majority of the little livestock that remained and most of the Himba fled across the border into Angola. The Himba in later years, hearing that the war between German forces and the Herero nation had ended, moved back into Kaokoland where they remain today.

Many of the younger generation have accepted some of the changes and are being educated in the Namibian national system, and will in time, abandon many of their older customs and traditions. However, most of the older generation still cling to their traditions and when their children return from school or visits to town, strongly encourage them to dress or undress, according to traditional style, and to live like a true Himba.