Young Himba Girl

Hairstyle and jewelry are used by the OvaHimba to convey age and social status within their community. One braided hair plait extended to the back of the head indicates a young boy, while two braided hair plaits extended forward towards the face indicates a young girl, as shown here. This style will remain all the way until puberty.

The eye gaze staring back at you, is something that seems embedded in the Himba people. I am continually awed at the power of the gaze combined with the overall expression. Not just this photo either, but across all my photos, I see it over and over again. Fret not, there were also plenty of big friendly smiles to go around too, but time and again, I find myself coming back to just stare back at these photos getting lost in the gaze.