An interesting culture is preserved by the people of the Owahimba and Owazimwa tribes in the Omusati and Kunene regions of northern Namibia. They have not succumbed to Western influence and agitation, although they are spreading almost everywhere.
The total population in this part of the country is over 50,000 people. Women milk cows daily, take care of children and have many other duties. Men, on the other hand, go hunting and sometimes do not return for an extended period of time. An indicator of the wealth of these nomads is how many livestock they have. The practice of offering a wife to a guest is not maintained anywhere except in the Kunene and Omusati regions of northern Namibia. The people are polygamous and girls are married as soon as they reach puberty. They resist the attributes of modern life, writes Vesti.bg.
You can’t ignore the red skin they have. The red color seen on their skin is called otjize paste (a combination of butterfat, omuzumba scrub and ocher) and its function is to protect their skin from the sun and insect bites. They are also guided by the belief that the color red means “earth and blood”. Instead of bathing, women take a smoke bath and apply aromatic resins to their skin. Give honor where it’s due: This saying is applied differently in this tribe. When a visitor knocks on the door, the man shows his approval and pleasure to see his guest by giving him the Okujepisa Omukazendu attitude. This practice literally means that his wife is given to the guest to spend the night while the man sleeps in another room. In case there is no room available, her husband will sleep outside.
This handed down tradition has its “benefits” in the community: it reduces jealousy and promotes relationships. The woman has little or no say in decision making. In the first place is obedience to the demands of her husband. She has the option to refuse to sleep with him, but must sleep in the same room as the guest. The woman also has the right to give her friends to her husband when they visit her, but this rarely happens.
Although the whole world may attack their cultural practices which they have maintained for a long time, the people are proud of their way of life. It is a culture that many may consider quite unconventional, but one that the Owahimba and Owazimba are extremely proud of. Some decide to call it “wife swapping”. Over the years, it has sparked fierce debates in the country.
Back in 2014, a Namibian lawmaker tried to enshrine this cultural practice in law. In a country with one of the highest rates of HIV infection in the world, this raised many questions. But the Owahimba and Owazimba tribes defend their cultural practice, saying it strengthens their friendships and prevents promiscuity.
“It’s a culture that gives us unity and a sense of community,” said Kazeongere Tjeundo, an MP and vice-chairman of the opposition Democratic Alliance of Turnale in Namibia.
