My favorite extreme example of the ways in which water defines society is the Himba people [1] in northern Namibia. They live in one of the driest deserts in th

My favorite extreme example of the ways in which water defines society is the Himba people [1] in northern Namibia. They live in one of the driest deserts in the world and water is so scarce that bathing with water is a social faux pas. Instead of bathing they cover their skin with otjize paste made of animal fat and red ochre which acts as a cleanser, protects them from the heat, and repels insects. When they hunt the men gather the liquid they need for the day by digging up tubers similar to cassava that contain a lot of fiber and moisture, while the women herd their livestock around watering holes until the dry season where they make a b-line for areas with high ground water to dig small wells. Among other adaptations, they hunt not by driving their pray to exhaustion or by using heavy weapons like spears, but by digging up beetle larva infected by parasitic Lebistina larva which produces a very concentrated toxin that they use with very thin bows and arrows to bring down pray (which they have to chase down anyway). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himba_people https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himba_people