Hamer bull jumping ceremony South Omo Valley

The most important event in Hamer ssociety is the Bull Jumping Ceremony, the culmination of a three day long initiation rite. In the late afternoon of the third day, after the women have been beaten to show their love of the jumper, 6 to 8 bulls are lined up in a row (it used to be up to 30 bulls!). The initiate, stark naked and sporting a demented unkempt Afro hairstyle, has to leap onto the back of the first bull, then from one bull to the next, until he reaches the end of the row. He must then turn around and repeat the performance in the opposite direction, then a third and fourth time, before he has proved his worth to everybody's satisfaction. Should he succeed, then he may take a wife.

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Travel & Events

Tags:

• South Omo Valley
• Ethiopia
• East Africa
• bull jumping
• Hamer initiation