Cultural attractions in Konso

Konso has several interesting cultural attractions. Some are:

The Walled Towns / Paleta /

The Konso people place great emphasis on defensive structures and this attribute is unique to each location and culture. As a result the Konso live within walled villages (paleta) located on high elevated positions. These towns are encircled by between one to six rounds of dry protective stone walls. The walls are normally built using locally available basalt. The Konso people build their walls in large and small size basalt blocks are interlocked reaching to a height of 2-4 meters and a width of between 1-2 meters.

The towns that are located to the east of core Konso land (e.g. Dokatu, Gamole, Darra and Olanta) are fortified with multiple rings of heavily built stone walls, some of them up to 5 centuries old. The towns that are located further away and to the west of here (e.g. Mecheke, Gume, Burjo and Gaho) have relatively relaxed defences with only one stone wall.

Usually, in most villages, the walls have two or more gates. In addition to being just a regular gate, each one has a specific purpose attached to it for ritual ceremonies.
Within their walled towns, the Konso live in compounds fenced by wood and stones. This area is divided into the two following terrace systems, where normally on the first floor, the space is reserved for cattle and storage, and the second floor is defended and occupied by the people.

Each town applies a ward / kanta / system, an interesting upgrade to the people which enables traditional politics and socio-economics to function smoothly. Each individual community member belongs to a certain kanta.

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The Waka (Wooden statues)

The Konso population are skilled agriculturalists who occupy the southern highland extensions, and are notable for their unusual practice of sculpting abstract wooden statues when marking their graves. Wakas are wooden statues curved from juniper or acacia tree in a bleak and rigid style to represent a dead man who has killed one or more enemies in a battle including lions or leopards. Traditionally, a waka will be erected above the grave of any important Konso man or warrior, surrounded by smaller statues of his wives and defeated enemies. They are erected in the graves in the most important paths on the way to town and are not re- erected once they fall. The Konso believe that a man can only be buried once.
The Mora

Moras are cultural activity spaces located near village walls. Paths from the gate lead to these Moras. Usually a single town has up to 17 Moras which are connected to each other through foot paths.

The Moras retain an important and central role in the life of the Konso
  1. Meeting Place: -In Konso it is a common tradition to gather and discuss social, economic and administrative issues including the system of resolving conflicts and punishing those found to be guilty by the elders.
  2. Sleeping place:-One of the social functions of Mora is to serve as a sleeping place for the village men’s and guests.
  3. Kindergarten:-The big Mora and the ward /Kanta/ Moras in every village are used as the gathering and playing for small children
  4. Recreational services:-Both the Pafta / the big house/ and dancing floor Moras found in the various Konso villages are used for several types of recreational activities . Some of these are:-
    • Gebeta / Tasha /- a kind of game consisting of a board with a double raw of twelve holes played pebbles of beads by group of people sitting on the Mora.
    • Kurayla- a traditional stick throwing and picking game. The competition done between the younger and elder brothers or one ward against the other in which the winner counts the points.
    • Tula-It is a game; the players are grouped into two. Stone, wood or other thing is kept in two different places on the open Mora at night. The members of one of the groups begin to touch the stone or wood without being touched by the members of the other group in order to score a point. The other group also tries the same way in its turn and finally the group which scores more will be the winner of the game.
    • Stale- In the main Mora, the Konso erect tall columnar basalt, basalt, up to 3 meters tall, for a highly successful generation up on the transition of generation. This erected stone /stele/ is called Daga–Hela. Less successful generation have their stone erected else where in the town or outside the wall depending on the accomplishment.
    • Olahitas / generation poles / -These are ceremoniously cut from the sacred forests by the clan leaders to mark the transition between the older and younger generation. They are panted ceremoniously every 18 years in the Mora.
    • Kara ceremony- Kara is a very important ritual ceremony related to the transfer of power and responsibility from the older age group to the younger age group. This is performed through a long ritual process which lasts up to two months. This ritual starts in certain defined Mora. As the ceremony reaches a certain stage, other the Moras are used to perform the various stages of rituals. The ritual is again terminated again at a given Mora designed for that specific ritual performance- the culmination of the Kara. This however is practices in only one area around Doketu town and its sister towns Burkuda and Hulme.
Gebeta a kind of Game Generation Pole or Olahitas
The Water Ponds (Harda)

 

The oldest and regularly maintained water reservoir / Harda / are located in areas where the rain water could easily be trapped and cannot easily sink into the ground.
These Hardas are made by the community to contain the rain water for cattle. They can be as high as 13 meters and attain a length of 60m. There are also smaller Hardas. They are constructed using a carefully selected stone and lined up by expert builders. Harda construction and conservation is done collectively by all members of the particular paleta and at times by the active age group / Hela. The gullies that are leading to the Harda are carefully cleaned and sometimes lined with stones to reduce the silt from getting in to the reservoir.

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Cultural Landscapes

The Konso cultural landscapes have become a miracle exposition after hosting 500 years of human struggles and turmoil. The relationship between man and nature has created a bond that reflects in the most striking of practices and aspects of Konso cultures. The environment has become a symbol of the balance and outstanding tourism attractions. The Dry stone terrace marks the hills of the Konso are the result of hundreds of years of hard labour in the struggle to survive in the difficult environment.
These intense terraced slopes are located between altitudes of 1500-2100 meters. They use blocks of basalt and soil to stabilize the ground. These terraces retain the soil from erosion and create saddles that are used for agriculture.
Tourists will be able to capture the beauty and long years of work on the landscape, with its beautiful outlined rows of dry stone terraces and shining hill tops.
This Page is Last Updated On: Sat, 22-Aug-2009
Copy right ©Konso Tourism Desk, 2001 E.C