CELEBRATING THE RAINS
The Wodaabe nomads of Niger’s Sahel have spent much of the year moving camp nearly every day in search of ever rarer scorched pasture for their large herds oflong-horned zebus and sheep, each family on its own. They have spent interminable days and nights at the wells, waiting for their turns to pull up leather buckets of water for their thirsty herds.
Finally, since the beginning of August, the rains have come. For a few weeks they will flood the savanna under violent storms. Puddles and ponds are now glittering in every depression, and a soft breeze makes the short green grass shiver in the cool mornings. The acacia trees have hidden their long bone-colored thorns under a profusion of tiny green leaves. There is so much green grass and surface water around that the herds are now free to browse and drink with little human help.This is the time for families and clans to reunite and celebrate the rains with male dances, songs, and beauty contests. A time to wed and feast new babies.
Every day during this short blessed time of the year, and for the enjoyment of women,young Wodaabe men will endlessly sing and dance the Yakey, which is at once a male beauty contest within clans. Much later in the short season, the best-looking men will compete in the Gerewol dance and beauty contest against men of other clans. The elders will be their worst critics, never happy with the young dancers’ energy and endurance or with their looks. To the unfortunates whose appearance does not meet the criteria of these nomads—figure tall and slim, forehead high and convex, nose and lips thin, and white teeth and eye’s whites, to be displayed in comical grimaces, they are met with various forms of sarcasm. The men save no efforts in enhancing their looks, checking the results in small pocket mirrors.
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Though the women’s role is limited to that of spectators, they work just as hard aslooking beautiful themselves, and in that they easily beat the men. Some are stunning.
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Only the best-looking men dare represent their clans in the Gerewol, now witnessed by the whole tribe. The critical elders are now pitiless, going as far as threatening lacking dancers with fitting them with donkeys’ pack saddles.
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Theelders selected the best looking girls to act as jury, who respectfully watchthe dancers on their knees.
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When the dances are interrupted by storms, everyone gathers under straw mats and oilskins.
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Written and Photographed by Victor Englebert (AdventurousVic)
Editing & Creative Direction by Monroe J. Yohey
