essay
People and herds
turkana herders of the dry savanna : ecology and biobehavioral response of nomads to an uncertain environment • Oxford • Published In 1999 • Pages: 232-247
By: Leslie, Paul W., Dyson-Hudson, Rada.
Abstract
This article discusses the multifaceted relationship of family size and herd size in Turkana society. It argues that the overall Turkana strategy for managing the relationship between the livestock and the human populations entails maximization of herd growth, and coping with shorter-term fluctuations in herd size and available resources through accretion or sloughing of dependents. In the longer run, the strategy involves maximizing labor and herd management potential through family building, as well as cooperative arrangements with other herders. Nuptiality and fertility, the demographic keys to family formation, are thus central to the Turkana subsistence strategy, and to the relationship between people and their herds.
- HRAF PubDate
- 2010
- Region
- Africa
- Sub Region
- Eastern Africa
- Document Type
- essay
- Evaluation
- Creator Types
- Anthropologist
- Ecologist
- Document Rating
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- Analyst
- Teferi Abate Adem; 2009
- Field Date
- 1980-1996
- Coverage Date
- 1980-1999
- Coverage Place
- Turkana, Kenya
- Notes
- Paul W. Leslie and Rada Dyson-Hudson
- For bibliographical references see document 24: Little and Leslie
- LCCN
- 99219983
- LCSH
- Turkana (African people)