Meet the African tribe that provides visitors with s^x

This, it seems, lessens jealousy and strengthens bonds between people.

The prohibition against bathing is another custom that has endured through the ages. The women apply fragrant resins to their skin and take a smoke bath instead of taking a bath. They are also influenced by the notion that red denotes “Earth and blood.” One of the things that really sets them apart is their crimson skin. Their skin is protected from the harsh desert sun and insect bites by the red colour of the otjize paste (a mixture of butterfat, omuzumba scrub, and ochre).

Influence of the Himba in African Literature

There isn’t much literary representation of the Himba people. However, the main character, Binti, hails from the Himba people in Nnedi Okorafor Binti. A “tribe in Namibia who use’sweet-smelling otjize’, a mixture of ochre and butterfat over their skin, rolling it into their hair as protection against the desert sun,” is how Okorafor describes the group. Contrary to the actual Himba people, who are nomads, the Himba in the novella do not travel.