Hadza on PBS and the BBC in 2001,Tanzanian indigenous, money given directly to Hadzabe contributed to alcoholism

The Hadza, or Hadzabe (Wahadzabe, in Swahili),are a protected hunter-gatherer Tanzanian indigenous ethnic group, primarily based in Baray, an administrative ward within Karatu District in southwest Arusha Region. They live around the Lake Eyasi basin in the central Rift Valley and in the neighboring Serengeti Plateau. As descendants of Tanzania’s aboriginal, pre-Bantu expansion hunter-gatherer population, they have probably occupied their current territory for thousands of years with relatively little modification to their basic way of life until the last century.They have no known close genetic relatives and their language is considered an isolate.

Since the first European contact in the late 19th century, governments and missionaries have made many attempts to settle the Hadza by introducing farming and Christianity. These efforts have largely failed, and many Hadza still pursue a life similar to their ancestors. Since the 18th century, the Hadza have come into increasing contact with pastoralist peoples entering Hadzaland, sometimes declining in population. Tourism and safari hunting have also affected them in recent years.

Hadza people traditionally live in bands or ‘camps’ of around 20-30 people, and their social structures are egalitarian and non-hierarchical. Traditionally, they primarily forage for food, eating mostly honey, tubers, fruit, and, especially in the dry season, meat. As of 2015, there are between 1,200 and 1,300 Hadza people living in Tanzania. Only around a third of the remaining Hadza still survive exclusively by traditional foraging.

Hadzabe coming from hunting

Language

Once classified among the Khoisan languages primarily because it has clicks, the Hadza language (Hadzane) is now thought to be an isolate, unrelated to any other language.Hadzane is an entirely oral language. UNESCO states that the language is vulnerable because most children learn it, but the use is restricted to certain areas of life, such as in their homes. Still, it is not predicted to be in danger of extinction. Hadzane fluency is also considered the most important factor in distinguishing whether someone is Hadza. In more recent years, many of the Hadza have learned Swahili, the national language of Tanzania, as a second language.

A Hadza hut. Huts have been built in this style for as long as records have been kept

Present

In recent years, Hadza territory has seen increasing encroachment from neighboring peoples. The western Hadza lands are now a private hunting reserve, and the Hadza are officially restricted to a reservation within the reserve and prohibited from hunting there. The Yaeda Valley, long uninhabited due to the tsetse fly, is now settled by Datooga herders, who are clearing the Hadza lands on either side of the valley for pasture for their goats and cattle. The Datooga hunt out the game, and their land clearing destroys the berries, tubers, and honey that the Hadza rely on. Watering holes for Datooga cattle can cause the shallow watering holes that the Hadza rely on to dry up. Most Hadzabe are no longer able to sustain themselves in the bush without supplementary food such as ugali.

After appearing in documentaries on the Hadza on PBS and the BBC in 2001, the Mang’ola Hadza have become a tourist attraction. Although this may seem to help the Hadzabe, much of the money from tourism is allocated to government offices and tourism companies instead of the Hadzabe. Money given directly to Hadzabe also contributes to alcoholism, and deaths from alcohol poisoning have recently become a severe problem, further contributing to the loss of cultural knowledge.

Hadzabe Tribe bushmen Chabba and Dudukwe react to seeing themselves in the mirror for the first time with sunglasses on Chabba

Chaaba does not take financial matters lightly.

Chaba is a young man from the Hadzabe (also spelled Hadza)—one of the last remaining hunter-gatherer tribes in East Africa, mainly found around Lake Eyasi in northern Tanzania. He’s become unexpectedly popular on social media :YouTube and TikTok videos that show him experiencing modern life outside his traditional environment.