The Hadzabe of Lake Eyasi region are a fascinating representative of African culture. Still leading the same hunter-gatherer lifestyle that has sustained their people for generations, the Hadzabe make use of locally made poisons and ingenious camouflage to hunt all sorts of animals.
A cultural visit can give you access to a thrilling sunrise hunt to see just how these hardy people have survived in the primal Tanzanian wilderness for thousands of years. A veritable step back in time, this is an undeniably authentic cultural journey into wild Tanzania that reveals the untold world of these charismatic people.
The tribe time forgot:
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The Hadzabe tribe is the world’s last hunter-gathering community living in the wilds of Tanzania
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The tribe hunts baboons, birds, antelope, and buffalo with hand-made bows and arrows
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There are about 1,000 Hadza living in caves around Lake Eyasi in Africa’s Great Rift Valley
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The tribe has lived the same way, unencumbered by the outside world, for 10,000 years
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Their language, rhythmic and punctuated by clicks, is believed to be the oldest still spoken
Existing far from the crowds and mainstream culture that inevitably follows globalisation, the Hadzabe tribe exists much as they always have. Men typically hunt and bring home honey to feed their families, while women and children gather fruits, berries, and roots with which to supplement their diets.
The men are particularly adept hunters, and their daring and inventive hunting style is a sight to behold. Using parts harvested from other animals, they cunningly lure and put down the game. As this is their only source of food, they are the only tribe permitted to hunt in the Serengeti.
The Hadzabe people live in caves near Lake Eyasi, and their isolation and shrinking numbers have allowed them to avoid diseases and epidemics that have spread due to intertribal marriages. An interesting facet of Hadzabe culture is their language. Believed to have some kind of relation to the Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert, the Hadzabe language is a distinctive tongue of clicks that is similar to that of the famous Bushmen. Despite this and their similar physical appearances, DNA testing has shown no relation between the two groups
What to expect when visiting the Hadzabe bushmen in Tanzania?
Spend the day with the Hadzabe tribe and witness their unchanged, traditional way of life and harmony with the earth. Accompanied throughout by our guide, guests have the opportunity to engage with the Bushmen and learn all about their time-honored hunting techniques, survival skills, food preparation, and cultural norms.
Amongst the world’s last remaining hunter-gatherer tribes inhabiting the scrubby bushland, the Hadzabe search for food alone and return home with golden honey, sweet fruit, or hearty wild game when, and if available. Women go out in large groups and forage for bright berries, baobab fruit, and tubers, depending on availability. In the rainy, wet season, sweet honey is the main staple of their diet along with colorful fruit, tubers, and sometimes meat.
Adjusting their diets to the seasons this tribe is incredibly skilled, selective, and opportunistic seekers and searchers. They have only themselves to rely on to feed their families and tribe.
Hadzabe Tribe hunting excursion
The Hazabe Bushmen are one of the last remaining hunter-gatherers in Africa and live solely of the land. Just as in the Stone Age, like our ancestors did for thousands of years. We can arrange for you to go with the Bushman on a hunting trip early in the morning and see firsthand how they make fire and prepare their food. In the afternoon you will visit a market where the Hadzabe trade their honey, fruits and other things for knives, arrows and spears that the Datoga silvermsith’s make.
Do’s and don’ts when visiting a Maasai village in Tanzania
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Do ask questions. Your Hadzabe guide is there to share their culture and welcome questions about their culture and traditions
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Don’t take photos without permission. Always ask for permission when taking photos of the Hadzabe village and the Hadzabe people.
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Do respect your environment. It’s important to remember that this is not a tourist attraction – it is the home of your hosts.
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Do keep an open mind and be ready to learn about this amazing culture!
