Tribe

A tribe is a group of people who live and work together in a shared geographical area. A tribe has a common culture, dialect, religion, customs, traditions, and sense of unity. It works cooperatively (for example, dividing up work that needs to be done).

A tribal girl in Bangladesh

Tribal marks

A tribe is usually headed by a chief. A tribal society is a group of tribes organized around kinships.

The word tribe is taken from the Latin word “Tribus”, which means “one third”. The word originally referred to one of the three territorial groups which united to form Rome.

History

Some tribal ornaments

In the evolution of human societies, tribes came after bands of people but before nations. Humans lived in tribes before they started living in cities and nations.

Collectively, the Khoikhoi and San are called the Khoisan and often called the world's first or oldest people, according to the biggest and most detailed analysis of African DNA. A report from NPR details how more than 22,000 years ago, the Nama were the largest group of humans on earth and a tribe of hunter-gatherers.

Modern day

There are still tribal groups all over the world, though their numbers are getting smaller and smaller. Many live as hunter-gatherers, though some tribes practice agriculture. Others, such as the Bedouin and Tuareg people, practice nomadism.

Related pages

• Anthropology
• Indigenous people
• Tribes of Arabia
• Tribes of Israel