My name is Degu Ashenafi. I was born in traditional Hamer village; The Hamer are one of the 8 tribes in Ethiopia’s lower Omo Valley. We Hamer number about 50,000 people and we inhabit the area near the small town of Turmi. I was named Degu by my parents; the name means generous in the Hamer language. The Hamer are polygamous, and my father had 2 wives, together there are 9 children in our family. My father’s 2 wives became friends, and I had a happy childhood with my siblings and friends.

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I am not certain of my exact age, as when I was born records were not kept, but I am in my mid-20s. I had a happy childhood, along with my siblings our responsibilities were to follow the cattle as they went into the bush looking for food and water. This was the typical childhood of most Hamer children, and it was a very happy time.

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When I was about 14 years old, I encountered my first white man, a tourist come to visit our village. I was so scared; I had never seen a person like him and thought that he came to kidnap me. Later other white tourists came to visit our village and I became bolder, I realized they came to do no harm and were friendly. I wanted to get to know these people, and some of them brought pens to give as gifts to us. I would say my name, “Degu’ and point to my arm and have them write my name on my skin. Later I would ask them to write other words, and this way began to teach myself English. My mother noted that I seemed to have a talent to learn English, so she sent me to the local school. I loved school and learning and became the top student in my class.

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I also enjoyed meeting the few tourists that came to our village. The Omo Valley is very remote, and few tourists visited, buy those that did came to observe our way of life, which is to this day very traditional. Our villages are made from wood and other materials we gather from the bush. As the weather is warm, we wear few clothes, and all are made from animal skin and other materials we make from what we gather from the surrounding area. Hamer and other Omo tribes use paint to decorate our bodies, scarification to adorn ourselves and use flowers, feathers and other items we find to decorate ourselves. Tourists find this interesting, and this is one of the main reasons why tourists come to visit. I will add that we are also very friendly and welcoming of tourists, and this has given us a good reputation, as we are both interesting to observe, and friendly to interact with. As I became more fluent in English I loved to talk with tourists and many of them told me I would be a great guide, as I was able to tell them so many interesting facts about Hamer people. This gave me the idea this could be my profession, and I am grateful for this advice. I am now a professional guide; I speak 5 languages and I love introducing visitors to my tribe and to the other tribes of the Omo Valley.

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It would be my pleasure to have you join me in the Omo Valley and I would love to introduce you to my Hamer tribe, to the neighboring tribes, and to the beautiful landscape and scenery of the Omo Valley. Please contact me with any questions you have about a visit to the Omo Valley. I can arrange all your journey here and look forward to introducing you to my special part of the world.

 

Sincerely,

Degu Ashenafi​.​