Hamer (Hamar) people walking along road, Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a young Hamer woman with goscha (ochre and resin hair tresses), Hamer Tribe, Lower Omo Valley, Southern Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Hamer woman with goscha (ochre and resin hair tresses), Hamer Tribe, Lower Omo Valley, southern area, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Karo tribesman with facial decoration in chalk imitating the spotted plumage of the guinea fowl, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Karo tribesman with facial decoration in chalk imitating the spotted plumage of the guinea fowl, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Mursi woman with clay lip plate, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portait of a Mursi girl with clay lip plate, and hairstyle that indicates she is going through puberty,The Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Mursi woman with clay lip plate, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Mursi woman with clay lip plate, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Mursi tribesman, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Women of the Hamer tribe, their hair treated with ochre, water and resin and twisted into tresses known as goscha, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Three Karo tribesmen with face and body decoration in chalk, imitating the spotted plumage of the guinea fowl, Omo river, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Karo tribesmen with face and body painting imitating the spotted plumage of the guinea fowl, Omo river, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer tribe, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Children of the Hamer tribe with face and body paint, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer tribe, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a woman of the Hamer tribe, her hair treated with ochre, water and resin and twisted into tresses known as goscha, Lower Omo Valley, Southern Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a girl of the Galeb tribe, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Mursi woman with clay lip plate, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Mursi woman with clay lip plate, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Mursi woman with clay lip plate, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Mursi woman with clay lip plate, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Karo girl, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of three Karo tribesmen with faces and bodies painted with chalk imitating the spotted plumage of the guinea fowl, Omo river, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Karo tribesman, with face and body painted with chalk to represent the spotted plumage of the guinea fowl, Omo river, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Karo tribesman with facial decoration imitating the spotted plumage of the guinea fowl, Omo River, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer tribesman, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Hamer tribesman with ornate hairstyle of ochre and resin, Hamer Tribe, Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer (Hamar) people walking back from bull jumping ceremony,Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Mother and baby of the Hamer tribe, the woman's hair is treated with ochre, water and resin then twisted into tresses called goscha, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Close-up of earrings worn by a member of the Hamer Tribe, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

A group of Hamer women with goscha (ochre and resin hair tresses), Hamer Tribe, Lower Omo Valley, southern area, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of three young women of the Hamer tribe, their hair treated with ochre, water and resin and twisted into tresses known as goscha, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

People of the Hamer tribe, the woman's hair treated with ochre, water and resin and twisted into tresses known as goscha, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Omo River, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer tribe, Lower Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Mursi tribesmen with face and body decoration, Mursi Hills, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Detail of a semi automatic weapon in the Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer tribe, Lower Omo Valley, Southern Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

Tribesman of the Hamer Tribe, subsistence agro-pastoralists, Lower Omo Valley, Turmi, Southern Ethiopia, East Africa, Africa

Portrait of a Karo tribeswoman, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Typical landscape with termite mounds, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Termite mound, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Two Hamer (Hamar) girls wearing traditional goat skin dress decorated with cowie shells, Dombo Village, Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Face painting with a mixture of clay, oils and plant pigments in preparation for the Hamer (Hamar) jumping of the bulls initiation ceremony, Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a Hamer (Hamar) child at Evangadi dancing (night dance), Dombo Village, Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Karo people with body painting, made from mixing animal pigments with clay, dancing, Kolcho village, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Banna woman wearing a necklace known as a bignere, a metal band with a phallic protuberance to signify she is a first wife, at the weekly market, Key Afir, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Banna woman at weekly market, Key Afir, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Kolcho village, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Karo man with body painting, made from mixing animal pigments with clay, Kolcho village, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Woman painting her daughter's face, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Portrait of a woman with face painting, Mago National Park, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Ritual dancing round cows and bulls before the initiate jumps, Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony of the Hamer (Hamar) people, Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Tourist with Hamer (Hamar) children, Dombo village, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Ritual dancing round cows and bulls before the initiate jumps, Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony of the Hamer (Hamar) people, Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Ritual dancing round cows and bulls before the initiate jumps, Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony of the Hamer (Hamar) people, Turmi, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Ari girl, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Karo people with body painting, made from mixing animal pigments with clay, dancing, Kolcho village, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Karo man with body painting, made from mixing animal pigments with clay, at dancing performance, Kolcho village, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Karo man with body painting, made from mixing animal pigments with clay, at dancing performance, Kolcho village, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Women sing and dance before the bull jumping, Hamer Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Face painting with a mixture of clay, oils and plant pigments, Hamer Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Women sing and dance before the bull jumping, Hamer Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer man, Hamer Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony,Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer girls standing in front of house, wearing traditional goat skin dress decorated with cowie shells, Dombo village, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Young Hamer girl carries her baby sister on her back in a goat skin baby carrier, Dombo village, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer lady wearing traditional goat skin dress decorated with cowie shells, carrying kalash on her way to market, Dombo village, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer lady wearing traditional goat skin dress decorated with cowie shells, Dombo village, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony, naked initiate running over backs of bulls or cows, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Ari woman, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Market, Jinka, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Face painting with a mixture of clay, oils and plant pigments, Hamer Jumping of the Bulls initiation ceremony, Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Hamer men with cattle,Turmi, Lower Omo valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Weekly market, Key Afir, Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia, Africa

Ethiopia; Southern Nations Region; southern Ethiopian highlands; Mago National Park; lower Omo River; young Mursi woman with traditional lip dish and face-painting; Terracotta lip plate with painted and incised patterns

Ethiopia; Southern Nations Region; southern Ethiopian highlands; Mago National Park; lower Omo River; elderly Mursi woman with headdress and face and body painting;

Ethiopia; Southern Nations Region; traditional huts in Kolcho village; lower Omo River; Omo valley

Ethiopia; Southern Nations Region; southern Ethiopian highlands; Mago National Park; lower Omo River; Mursi woman with lip plate and headdress

Ethiopia; Southern Nations Region; Mago National Park; lower Omo River; Mursi woman with lip plate and earrings;

Ethiopia; Southern Nations Region; Mago National Park; lower Omo River; young man from the Mursi people;

Ethiopia; Southern Nations Region; Mago National Park; lower Omo River; two girls from the Mursi people;

Arbore people, Arbore, Lower Omo Valley, South Ethiopia, Africa

South Omo Research Center & Museum, Ethnological Museum in Jinka, Lower Omo Valley, Omo Region, South Ethiopia, Ethiopia, Africa

The Bull Jumping Ceremony is conducted by several tribes in the Lower Omo Valley and is the most important ceremony in a tribal man's life.The ceremony is about hierarchy and membership in the tribe and typically involves a young man who undergoes a number of rituals before he leaps onto and runs rapidly over a series of cattle held by other men who have recently bull-jumped. Once the jumping is completed, the bull-jumper is a man in the eyes of the tribe. An important part of the ceremony is a ritualistic whipping, which women actively seek out from certain men known as Mazha. Dimeka, Omo Valley, Ethiopia, 2010