Konso Tribe

The Konso, who are from Cushitic speaking language family, live in an isolated, dry and ruggedly mountains region? The area is made up of hard rocky slopes. The very special thing of this people is their fortified villages by a stone wall used as a defensive measure.  Their village is located on hilltops and is split up into communities, with each community having a main hut or ward division called as kanta.  The other spectacular feature of Konso walled Towns is the presence of public gathering  place called Moora,which serves as a gathering place for young people after dinner and they also serve as Guest houses for travelers..In order to enter a Konso village, you must pass through a gate and a series of alleys.  These paths are part of its security system, keeping the village difficult to access.

They are mixed agriculturists using their dry and infertile lands to grow crops.  Animal dung is used to fertilize the grounds and their most important crop is the sorghum.  Sorghum is used as flour and to make local beer.  Grains, beans, cotton, corn and coffee are also grown by the Konso people.

The erection of stones and poles is part of the Konso tradition.  A generation pole called Olahita is raised every 18 years, marking the start of a new generation.  The age of a village can be determined by how many poles are standing.  Carved wooden statues called Waaka or Waaga are also used to mark the grave of a famous Konso tribal member.  The marker, Waaga is placed above the grave and smaller statues are then placed around the larger one representing his wives and conquered enemies. The Konso Tribe is environmentally conscious and became popular in their Terracing of land to protect natural resource. Currently Konso cultural landscape was registered as one of the Worlds Heritage site by UNESCO in2011. The Konso is a very interesting tribe to visit on your trip to the lower Omo Valley.