On the wire
Latin AmericaFuture of Amazon rainforest policies at stake in Brazilian presidential electionUnited StatesNative American drive mining company off sacred landCanada$2.2M Boost For Quantum Test Targeting Iron Issues In First Nations GroupsWorldCelebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day with City Hall Flag Raising and Native-Led Events Across SeattleOceaniaMāori Band Coterie Revives Iconic Warriors Anthem — LBBLatin AmericaWake Forest-CINCIA Researchers Brief Pope on Amazon Mercury Pollution | NewswiseWorldIndigenous Peoples Day: Reflections on 500 Years of ResistanceWorldIndigenous Peoples Day 2026WorldPRCS Announces Facility Schedule Changes for Indigenous Peoples’ DayWorldIndigenous Peoples History and Storytelling is topic on October 6Latin AmericaFuture of Amazon rainforest policies at stake in Brazilian presidential electionUnited StatesNative American drive mining company off sacred landCanada$2.2M Boost For Quantum Test Targeting Iron Issues In First Nations GroupsWorldCelebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day with City Hall Flag Raising and Native-Led Events Across SeattleOceaniaMāori Band Coterie Revives Iconic Warriors Anthem — LBBLatin AmericaWake Forest-CINCIA Researchers Brief Pope on Amazon Mercury Pollution | NewswiseWorldIndigenous Peoples Day: Reflections on 500 Years of ResistanceWorldIndigenous Peoples Day 2026WorldPRCS Announces Facility Schedule Changes for Indigenous Peoples’ DayWorldIndigenous Peoples History and Storytelling is topic on October 6
Kabila

The hunter-gatherer year: a seasonal round

How foraging peoples move through the same territory year after year, following water, plants and animals.

the rains comepools dry upthe year turnsDry season campFirst rainsBands dispersePlants ripenHunting and honeyReturn to water

  1. Dry season camp. Begin in the dry season. Among the Ju/'hoansi San of the Kalahari, described by researchers in the 1960s, several bands camped near the few waterholes that never dried up.
  2. First rains. The rains change the map. Shallow pans fill with water, grasses sprout and antelope scatter. Places that were too dry to live in a month ago become usable.
  3. Bands disperse. Bands split into small family groups and spread out. Moving lets the land near the permanent water rest. Nobody owns the food before it is collected.
  4. Plants ripen. Plant foods usually supply most of the calories. Women and men know hundreds of species and when each ripens. For the Ju/'hoansi the mongongo nut is a staple.
  5. Hunting and honey. Hunters track game, often for days. Meat is shared widely by custom, so that a lucky hunter cannot become a rich one. Honey is a prized seasonal food.
  6. Return to water. When the pans dry, groups walk back towards lasting water. The big dry season camp is the time for marriages, healing dances and trade. Then the round begins again.

Read the lesson

  1. Hunter-gatherersFor most of human history everyone lived by hunting, fishing and gathering wild foods. You will learn how this way of life works, who practises it today, and what is often misunderstood about it.

Seven peoples, once a week

Every Monday: seven peoples you may never have heard of, who they are and where they live.