Brave men of the White Nile: Dagon people

Author: (American) Lyle, translated by Li Xin, Zhang Xiaoling
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-04-01
Features: The Dinka people believe their homeland is the best in the world and that no one else in the world is as good as the Dinka. They are more fiercely resistant to external interference than any other tribe. This is the proud and combative Dinka people. The two major concerns of the Dinka people are cattle and marriage. They are still unaware of money and continue to practice barter, with the value of anything measured in the number of cattle heads. The Dinka people still maintain their tribal organization, and men must undergo strict rituals upon reaching adulthood, with elders enforcing ancient laws. They clearly preserve a unique traditional social structure. The Dinka people are one of the tallest populations in the world, and they are slender and graceful in physique. They live in the vast and flat grasslands of southern Sudan, with a population exceeding one million, making them one of the most ethnically distinctive tribes in Africa and one of the least exposed to Western lifestyles. Their entire world revolves around cattle: herders must constantly migrate to find grazing land, young men must learn various combat skills to protect their herds, and girls are married off to acquire more cattle. What deeply fascinates readers is the egalitarian relationships in Dinka society, as it is precisely this equality that allows the Dinka society to function well without the need for authoritarian leaders or violent punitive measures.