Maasai ethnicity - top countries
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Maasai ethnicity
The Maasai are an ethnic people living in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. According to their own traditional lore, the Maasai are descendants of migrants who came from the lower Nile valley some 500 years ago. The Maasai are pastoralists who raise cows in the harsh desert environment of their traditional lands and shun the consumption of hunted meat. All of the Maasai’s food needs are provided by their cattle: they drink their milk, eat their meat, and occasionally also drink their blood. This traditional diet has left its mark, with recent DNA studies pointing to a genetically-linked high tolerance for lactose among the Maasai. In the past, cattle rustling from other tribes was common, who hold the belief that God gave all the cattle on Earth to the Maasai (and who are thus allowed to simply take back their property). The group is known for its intricate and colorful jewelry and for the impressive adumu jumping dance of Maasai warriors.