desert people
Most of the people who live in the depths of the deserts are ethnic groups. These people have learnt to withstand the harsh climate and have survived in this climate for decades.
The Tuaregs are a group of people who have lived in the Sahara Desert for centuries. This group is also known as the ‘blue men’ because of the traditional veils that they are known to wear to protect themselves from the harsh climate. The Tuareg people live in tents that are made from goat skin which has been painted in red ochre and then sown together by the women of the tribe. They live in camps of these tents and primarily lived on animal derived products however they rarely eat meat. Most of their food intake includes milk, dates, cereal and fermented butter. They make flour from millet, a type of cereal and despite not eating meat most of the time, when they have guests that they have to honour, they will kill an animal to eat, according to Muslim traditions and they retrieve their water using pumpkins that have been sun dried after the insides are scooped out.
The Tuareg people produce engraved silverware, rugs, mats and other textiles from wool. Today, some Tuareg people have found work in the tourism sector and tour guides since they know the desert so well.
The Bejas are the people who have been known to inhabit the Nubian desert with most living in the north-east of the Sudan. The Bejas are often called the ‘fuzzy wuzzies’ because of their frizzy hair. This group of people are known and feared by others for their common raids through the rich towns of the Nile. For more than 4000 years this group has been on the run looking for greener pastures for their animals; cattle, camels, sheep and goats. They were able to resist the pressures from the Egyptians and won a battle against the British army in the 19th century despite being less equipped and trained than the British. The common weapons of the Bejas are swords, bent knives, shields made from elephant skin and “throw sticks”; weapons that are very old and were used by the Pharaohs for hunting.