A group of Karo men relax on their wooden stools after a dance. The Karo excel in body art. Before dances and ceremonial occasions, they decorate themselves elaborately using local white chalk, pulverised rock and other natural pigments. The Karo are a small tribe living in three main villages along the lower reaches of the Omo River in southwest Ethiopia. The largest village, Duss, is home to almost half the population of around 3, 500 people. Once solely agriculturalists, the people now keep livestock as well.They are Omotic people and speak a dialect of their larger and more powerful neighbours, the Hamar, from whom they originated in the distant past. An old Karo woman with a metal lip ornament. It is a Karo tradition for girls and young women before marriage to pierce a hole below the lower lip in which they place a thin piece of metal or a nail for decoration. The Karo are a small tribe living in three main villages along the lower reaches of the Omo River in southwest Ethiopia. The largest village, Duss, is home to almost half the population of around 3, 500 people. Once solely agriculturalists, the people now keep livestock as well.They are Omotic people and speak a dialect of their larger and more powerful neighbours, the Hamar, from whom they originated in the distant past.Omo River. Karo. African tribe. Traditional people. Traditional attire. Karo Woman. Woman. Old woman. Wizened face. Beaded necklaces. Lip ornament. Leather garment. Traditional African society. B0015P 0219Nigel Pavitt52005100656195150+03006
