The Tuareg are a semi-nomadic Berber tribe spread across Niger🇳🇪, Mali🇲🇱 & Algeria🇩🇿. Traditionally they were caravan traders selling their wares across the Saharan desert.
They are a matrilineal society that traces their lines through the mother's side. The women are highly valued & are independent even when married, often possessing their own tent & camel. Tuareg divorcees call the men they have divorced ‘Ohasis’ meaning freed from any obligation.
They are known as the “blue people of the Sahara” or “men of the veil” because of the indigo turbans the men wear.
Only the men wear this starting with a rite of passage around 18 years old. It is central to the male role, representing cultural values of modesty & reserve, protecting them from the hot dust & from evil spirits.
#Africa #African
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