The Dessanech people
Presentation
The Dassanech people are settled on both banks of the Omo. They are distributed in a region fertilized by the flooding of the Omo Delta and the influence of Lake Turkana. Their population has a mainly agricultural economic activity. Livestock and their use nevertheless illustrate the moral values of the community based on ancient pastoralism.
Dimi, collective ritual
The major rites of the Dassanech are collective circumcision practiced around the age of thirteen and the Dimi.
During circumcision, specific ornaments are given to the adolescent: headband of pearls, necklace of roots, bow and arrows, two gourds and a special loincloth.
The Dimi is a collective ritual in which all the men of a group whose daughter reaches puberty participate for six weeks. The girl's father sacrifices a large number of cattle, thus foreshadowing the dowry he will receive at the future marriage. This event marks the man’s entry into the political world of the tribe.
At the end of the ceremony, ostrich feathers are stuck in her hair, a leopard skin covers her shoulders; Then the circumcision loincloth reappears, to which are added cow's tail bracelets, a small shield and a cane.
