A graceful gait, an elegant long-limbed stance, or this spontaneous pose under the photographer's gaze - all exude poise and dignity amid the bustle and commotion of a weekly market in Ethiopia's lower Omo Valley. Lalo, a young Hamar woman of marrying age, vogued this spontaneous pose at the market in a small frontier town in the remote Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region of southwestern Ethiopia. Shot near the end of a long dry season regularly exceeding 40°C in the shade.
Elegantly adorned with a traditional cowrie-shell collar, seeded necklaces, copper bracelets, and glass-beaded goatskin clothing. The hairstyle consists of short tightly twisted strands rubbed in a mixture of fresh cow butterfat, ground red ochre, and tree resin gathered from the lower Omo River Basin.
The Hamar are semi-nomadic herders and farmers who live in small settlements or hamlets scattered across the hills, plains, wooded riverines, and dry thorny bush terrain in the lower Omo River Valley, near Ethiopia's border with northern Kenya and South Sudan.
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Peoples of the Omo Valley
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A graceful gait, an elegant long-limbed stance, or this spontaneous pose under the photographer's gaze - all exude poise and dignity the amid the bustle of a weekly market in Ethiopia's lower Omo Valley.
Omalle, a young married Hamar woman, vogued this pose against a painted wall at the marketplace in Turmi, a small multi-ethnic frontier town in the remote Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region of southwestern Ethiopia. Shot directly under the midday sun near the end of a long dry season regularly exceeding 40°C in the shade.
Elegantly adorned with a traditional cowrie-shell collar, seeded necklaces, copper bracelets, glass-beaded goatskin clothing and iron marital torques. The upper torque with phallic protrusion is wrapped in leather, signifying first-wife status. The torques are worn for life.
The hairstyle consists of long, tightly twisted strands rubbed in a mixture of fresh cow butterfat, ground red ochre and tree resin gathered from the lower Omo River Basin. The ubiquitous chewing stick favoured by peoples of the lower Omo Valley serves as a natural toothbrush and dental floss all in one.
Other editions of this photograph include the Lonely Planet cover photograph for Ethiopia & Djibouti , 6th edition, 2017; and an article on the chewing stick in AfroStyleMag, Issue 7, 2012.
David Schweitzer/Getty Images © expl#308
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Peoples of the Omo Valley
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Cover photograph
Lonely Planet, Ethiopia & Djibouti, 6th edition, 2017.
David Schweitzer/Getty Images ©
Ethiopia’s lower Omo Valley, East Africa. Elegantly adorned with copper bracelets and glass-beaded goatskin clothing, juxtaposed against a freshly painted wall in Turmi - a small multi-ethnic frontier town in the remote Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region of Ethiopia.
Lonely Planet | Rethinking Portraiture | National Geographic
Peoples of the Omo Valley
Tags: Lonely Planet Hamar Omo Ethiopia East Africa Turmi market aesthetics adornment elegant poise dignity tribe bracelets beadwork portrait beauty ethic jewellery HumanInterest Street Documentary fashion DavidSchweitzer DocumentaryPhotography StreetPhotography VisualAnthropology PhotoJournalism DocumentaryPortrait StreetPortrait VanishingCultures Djibouti africa indigenous travel outdoor people art
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An elderly Hamar woman with cane at the weekly market in Turmi, a small multi-ethnic frontier town in the remote Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region of Ethiopia, East Africa. Adorned with seeded necklaces, brass bracelets, and goatskin clothing.
The Hamar are semi-nomadic herders and farmers who live in small settlements or hamlets scattered across the hills, plains, wooded riverines, and dry thorny bush terrain in Ethiopia's lower Omo Valley, near the border with northern Kenya and South Sudan. explore#133
© National Geographic Yourshot (Editor's Favourite, August 2018). Story and assignment: “Rethinking Portraiture.”
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Peoples of the Omo Valley
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Hamar communal dance inside a small Hamar hamlet in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region of Ethiopia, East Africa. Elegantly adorned with glass-beaded goatskin clothing, copper bracelets, and small decorative keys.
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