Post #6 TANZANIA 4-16-14

Here's some interesting facts on the Maasai Tribe:

1. The Maasai are a Nilotic group. Nilotic means "1. a group of languages of East Africa belonging to the Chari-Nile group"
2. The Maasai originated from the lower Nile valley north of Lake Turkana (Northwest Kenya)
3. They inhabit the African Great Lakes region (mainly Northern Tanzania and Kenya)
4. Cattle play an important role in Maasai life, it is their primary source of food
5. A man's wealth is measured in terms of cattle he owns and children he has 
6. The Maasai have a patriarchal society, which means the important matters of each group is decided by elder men
7. The Maasai tribe speaks Maa and are also schooled in English and Swahili (the official languages of Tanzania and Kenya) 
8. A woman does not own any property
9. Traditionally, the Maasai rely on meat, milk and blood from cattle for protein and caloric needs, the people drink blood on special occasions
10. The Maasai occupy a total land area of 160,000 square kilometers with a population of approximately one half million people

     Modern society in Tanzania and the Massai tribes affect one another in several ways. For one, government policies, such as the preservation of parks and reserves, have made the traditional Maasai way of life increasingly difficult to pursue. Second, with increasing poverty and migration, the traditional authority of Maasai elders appears to be lessening. Over the years, many projects have begun to help Maasai tribal leaders find ways to preserve their traditions while also balancing the education needs of their children for the modern world. The emerging forms of employment among the Maasai people include farming and business such as; selling traditional medicine, running restaurants/shops, or buying and selling minerals. Many Maasai have moved away from the nomadic life to the modern.Many will happily return home dressed in modern clothes, only to show others from the traditional family homestead wearing a shuka (colorful piece of cloth), cow hide sandals and carrying a wooden club (o-rinka) that there is more than cattle. Especially for women, this given them opportunities to make their own money and become self reliant.
   While modern Tanzanian society and the Massai are vastly different, the US society and the Massai tribe also differ greatly. While in the US the value of money depicts one's power, in Massai cattle and children serve the same purpose. Another contrast between the two cultures would be the ways in which the dead are disposed of. In the US the deceased are buried, but in the Massai they are left to decompose. Lastly, gender roles may be one of the largest culture shocks. 
     Women in the US are treated as equals, with equal job opportunities, equal economic standing points, and equal chances to obtain their own oppinions; Massai women are instead treated with the equivalency of cattle. Their responsibilities consist of your typical 'house wife': cleaning and caring after children, food preparation, and serving men. This lifestyle varies differently from my own, and I believe it would be fascinating to witness it in person and to understand how Massain women deal with it. To understand these things, if I were given the opportunity, I would ask one of these women whether they would prefer a new start or money.