"Kush" of East  Africa, which is today’s Ethiopia, lives a lot of descendants of the tribe of Dan and other tribes of Israel.It is still in the 20th century EC; there live a Jewish group called Falashas of Ethiopia. Their skin is black and they call themselves “bet Israel”, which means the house of Israel in Hebrew. They were transported to Israel by the airplanes chartered by the government of Israel in 1983 and 1991. Over 90% of bet Israel now live in Israel, accepted as Jews.

The famous tribes of Omo Valley (south-western Ethiopia)

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Arbore
Although relatively large, Arbore is far more rustic and unaffected than many similarly size towns in south Omo, in common with their linguistically and culturally affiliated Tsemai neighbors, the Arbore migrated to their present homeland from konso perhaps two centuries ago. Because they have ancestral and cultural links to konso and the pastoralists of the the surroubding lowlands, the Arbor traditionally played an important role as middlemen in trade between the Omo River and the Konso Highlands.The town of Arbore lies in an area where several tribal boundaries coverage. And because the Arbore people routinely intermarry with other ethnic groups. It is also inhabited a substantial number of hamer and even Borena women- adding a cosmopolitan feel to the worthwhile Saturday market.

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Mursi and Surma
The Mursi live between their dry & wet season range on the Tama plains, north of  Mago Park in the Omo River region of southwestern Ethiopia. They care for livestock and plant some crops.The men practice light scarification on their shoulders after killing an enemy and shave geometric patterns on their head. During dances and ceremonies they adorn literally every part of their body with white chalk paint. Young unmarried men practice group stick fights. The winner is carried on top of poles to girls waiting beside the arena, who decide among themselves which of them will ask his hand in marriage.

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Karo
The Karo, which number only about 3,000 people, mainly live on the practice of flood retreat cultivation on the banks of the Omo River in southwestern Ethiopia.The Karo excel in face and body painting, practiced in preparation of their dances and ceremonies, they decorate their bodies, often imitating the spotted plumage of a guinea fowl. Feather plumes are inserted in their clay hair buns to complete the look. The clay hair bun can take up to three days to construct and is usually re-made every three to six months. Their painted facemasks are spectacular. Karo women scarify their chests to beautify themselves. Scars are cut with a knife and ash is rubbed to produce a raised welt.
Being the smallest tribe I the area, this group obviously struggles which direct threats from nearby tribes that have more gun power, greater numbers, and likely coalitions with one another.

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Hamer
The Hamers are pastoralists and number 30,000. They are known for practice of body adornment and wearing a multitude of colorful beads. Women adorn their necks with heavy polished iron jewelry. Hamer society consists of a complex system of age groups. Moving from one age group to another involves complicated rituals. The most significant ceremony for young men is the “jumping of the bull” – the final test before passing in to adulthood. Several days before the ceremony, initiates pass out invitation in the form of dried knotted grass. The ceremony lasts three days. Late in the afternoon on the final day, ten to thirty bulls are lined up side by side. The naked initiate rushes towards the animal, vaults onto the first bull’s back and then runs across the line of animals. At the end of the line, he turns back to repeat the performance in the opposite direction. He must make this unstable journey without falling. The Hamer men have a reputation of being less than adoring husbands. The women submit to the ritual floggings proudly and love to show the deep scars that are regarded as a proof of devotion to their husbands.

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Bumi
Also known as the Nyangatom or the Bume, the Bumi live south of Omo National park and occasionally migrate in to the lower regions of the park when water or grazing is scarce. Numbering around 6,000-7,000 in population, the Bumi are agro pastoralists, relying on cattle herding and floor- retreat agriculture (consisting mainly of sorghum harvesting on the Omo and kibish Rivers). The Bumi tend to indulge in honey and frequently smoke out beehives in the park to get the honey inside the nests. The Bumi are known to be great warriors and quite frequently, active warmongers, they are often at war with the neighboring tribes including the Hamer, the Karo and the Surma. Small group of Bumi living along the Omo are specialized crocodile hunters using harpoons from a dugout canoe. The elders of both sexes wear a lower lip plug, the men’s being made from ivory and women’s made from copper filigree.

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Bodi
The Bodi are pastoralists living close the Omo River in south- western Ethiopia.
The Bodi are of Nilo-sahran stock and pastoral background. Although they do cultivate sorghum along the banks of the Omo River, their culture is very much cattle centered. Similar to the Mursi, livestock plays an important role I marriage, divination, and name-giving rituals. The Bodi classification of cattle is complex, with over eight words to denote different colors and patterns. Bodi dress is simple. The women wear goatskins tied at the waist and shoulder, while men fasten a strip of cotton or bark-cloth around their waist.

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Ari
Ari women are famous for their pottery which they sell to support their families.
The Ari inhabits the northern border of Mago National park in southwestern Ethiopia. Ari villages have neat compounds in fertile and scenic land with Coffee plantations. They have large livestock herds and produce large quantities of honey. The women wear skirts from the banana like tree, called Enset.

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Dorze
Aside from the dramatic views back to the rift valley lakes near Arbaminch, chencha is of interest to travelers as the home of the Dorze people, renowned cotton weavers whose tall beehive-shaped dwellings are among the most distinctive traditionl structures to be seen anywhere in Africa. The Dorze speak an Omotic toung, similar to several languages of the Lower Omo Valley. It is, above all, the unique Dorze houses that make Chencha worth a diversion. These remarkable extended domes measure up to 6m tall (roughly the height of a two-storey building), and are constructed entirely from organic material.

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Konso
The Konso inhabit an isolated region of basalt hills-essentially an extension of the southern highlands-lying at an altitude range of  roughly 1,500m to 2000m, and flanked to the east by the semi-desert Borena lowlands and to the west by the equally harsh Lower Omo Valley. Mixed agriculturists, the Konso make the most of  the hard,  rocky slopes that characterize their relatively dry and infertile homeland through a combination of extensive rock terracing, the use of animal dung as fertilizer, crop rotation, and hard work. Traditionally, a waga will be erected above the grave of any important Konso man or worrier, surrounded by smaller statues of his wife and defeated foes.

 

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Galeb
The Dasanech, alternatively known as the Galeb or Reshiat, range across a large territory following the western banks of the Omo River to Lake Turkana. Local oral tradition, reinforced by that of the Turkana, recounts that the Dasanech migrated to their current homeland from a region called Nyupe, to the west of Turkana, after being forced out by the expansionist wars of the Turkana in the late 18th c. Like the Turkana, Samburu and Gabbar of northern Kenya, the Dasanesh/Galeb were originally pure pastoralists, living an almost totally nomadic lifestyle. The abundant water frontage and fertile soil of their present territory has subsequently pushed them towards a more diverse subsistence economy, based around fishing and agriculture as well as herding livestock.

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Chamo and Abaya Lakes
Far south in Ethiopia's Great Rift Valley lie two marvellous lakes ringed by savanna plains and smoke; mountain crests. By far the largest of Ethiopia's Rift Valley lakes, the 551-square-kilometre waters of Chamo and the 1,160-square-kilometre surface of Abaya are considered by many to be also the most beautiful. Indeed, few places on earth can match the allure of their setting.
Much of this forms part of one of Ethiopia's finest national parks, Nech Sar, established as a sanctuary for the rare Swayne's hartebeest. From the town of Arba Minch on the ridge of land that divides Abaya and Chamo there are commanding views of the panorama all around including both lakes with Nech Sar on the eastern side and, to the west, the Huge range of mountains. Such is the outstanding beauty of this viewpoint that it has long been known as the Bridge of Heaven. Equally poetic, Arba Minch -meaning Forty Springs in Amharic -takes its name from the bubbling streams which spring up amid the undergrowth. No period of the luxuriant forest which clothes the steep slopes beneath the town.
This region, more than 500 kilometres south of Addis Ababa, is one of Ethiopia's last great surviving wildernesses. An international hotel at Arba Minch with high-quality service and facilities ensures the visitor enjoys the splendours of nature in comfort.
This is an ideal base from which to explore the forested land between the lakes, and the plains of Nech Sar beyond where the surviving herds of Swayne's hartebeest, once in abundance, and zebra and Grant's gazelle roam the high savanna.
There's an air of untamed grandeur about all this that lingers over the lakes and mountains. Alive with many species of fish -the fighting tiger fish, giant Nile perch, barbell, catfish and tilapia offering fine sport -
Chamo and Abaya are an angler's paradise. In the reed-fringed bays of Chamo's sparkling aquamarine waters hundreds of hippos emerge at night to graze on the grassy shores. Chamo is also sanctuary for several thousand Nile crocodile, some reaching lengths of up to seven metres from snout to tip of tail.
Birds
Here the balance between predator and prey remains in equilibriumb. Bird life flourishes in equal proportion: hordes of yellow weaver birds flit constantly through the trees, and vividly-coloured kingfishers skim the lakes where Great White pelicans, storks, ibises, hornbills and cormorants plumb the waters for food. With piercing echoing cries, black and white fish eagles swoop down from their tree perches to snatch up unwary fish in their talons.
Dorze
Another distinctive people of the region around Lakes Chamo and Abaya are the Dorze, once warriors, who have now turned to farming and weaving. They produce the colourful toga-like robes known as shammas which are worn throughout Ethiopia. Though there's a large Dorze population around Arba Minch itself, their traditional homeland is further to the north around Chencha, high up in the Huge Mountain range overlooking the lakes and the Bridge of Heaven.
The brief, 26-kilometre drive from Arba Minch up to Chencha involves a remarkable transition. You climb from the lush, tropical forests of the lowland, through bamboo at around 2,500 metres, into stands of juniper laced with Spanish moss where cold fingers of cloud grasp the ancient limbs of the trees and the air is chill and bracing.
Dorze villages are classic examples of simple architecture, unlike anything seen elsewhere in Ethiopia. They are towering beehive-shaped structures reaching up to 12 metres high, the interiors dark but spacious and airy with floors of pressed earth. The vaulted ceiling walls are covered with an elegant thatch of Ensete (false banana) to form a smooth and unbroken convex dome. Each home stands in its own grounds surrounded by smaller but similar houses: guest house, cow-shed, kitchen and perhaps even a workshop for weaving or other work.

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