Wagtale

Meet ǂOma Leon Tsamkxao

Leon lives in Nyae Nyae Conservancy, eastern Namibia, in a San run wilderness area managed by the Ju/’hoansi communities who have lived there for thousands of years.

His father, Tsamkxao ǂOma, otherwise known as Chief Bobo, is the Chief of the Ju/’hoansi and a revered elder in the community.

Leon tells us: “This is the only conservancy whereby the members of the conservancy can still hunt, but only the traditional way. When they use their bows and arrows.”

But things are changing very quickly for the Ju/’hoansi of Nyae Nyae.

Leon explains: “In the past it was like, people were almost hunting every day, and the healing system was very strong because at that stage we were having a lot of healers. And when somebody is sick, the healers all come together to heal the person. And the hunting was so good!

"Slowly, in the eighties, nineties, after independence, everything has changed.”

Today, tragically, there is only one healer left in Nyae Nyae, with the transfer of traditional knowledge and culture in a steady decline.

Watch “The Healers and Hunters of Nyae Nyae” to find out more:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1nPHBJRR0s

Want to visit Nyae Nyae? Leon is also a tour guide, so be sure to get in touch with him!