7/30/2019 People Living in Desert
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People living in deserts:
Many people in the deserts are nomads. Nomads rear cattle like
goats, cows and camels. They
keep moving from one place to anotherwith their animals in
search of food and water for them.
Some of them are craftsmen and make a living by selling their
goods.
Some people grow crops like bajra, jowar, wheat and mustard
seeds. There are also many
industries (textiles, sugar, cement, fertilisers, etc.) and
mines (lead, zinc, iron-ore, etc.) that
provide people of this region with means of livelihood.
Handicrafts and jewellery made inRajasthan are sold in many parts
of India and the world.
Clothing
To avoid the heat, people in deserts have to dress up carefully
:
The long, flowing robes shield the skin from the sun and allow
air to reach the body. The clothes
are loose-fitting to prevent immediate sweat evaporation so that
the body does not dehydrate so
quickly in the very dry air. Headgear shields the head from the
sun. Veils protect the face andkeep the sand out of the mouth. The
clothes also keep the people warm at night and in winter.
Homes
Some people live in permanent homes such as the mud houses of
some Native Americans. The nomad
carry with them portable homes as they move their livestock from
place to place. All desert homes need
be well insulated from extreme heat and cold. Tents made of
densely woven goat's hair or thick-walledhomes are suitable. Since
rain is torrential, they need to be water proof.
Nomadism
There are three recognized classes of nomadism:
hunter-gatherers, pastoralists and traders.
Hunter-gatherers
They move as small, independent bands within the area in which
they know where are the waterholes,important trees, patches of
smaller food plants and potential food animals. They move daily,
monthly or
semi-annually.
Pastoralists
They move from place to place depending on the needs of their
domesticated stock like sheep, goats orcamels. Their targets are
places with prolonged and predictable grass supply. Some of them
may also hun
while others may cultivate an area near where they settle and
grow cereal crops. They may also trade
when they get a chance.
Traders
They are mobile merchants with trains of pack animals like
camels, asses, mules or yaks with them.
They supply goods produced on one side of the desert to the town
people.
