- Ritual
- Ukuli Bula／牛背渡り
- Region and community
- エチオピア南部／Hamar男子
- Age at the cultural rite
- Variable or not confirmed in the source
- Transition conditions
- Community initiation / Marriage-linked transition
- Legal age of majority
- Ethiopia18 yearsEthiopia · Calendar unspecified · Separate provisions govern court-ordered emancipation and marriage. · Law and supporting sources
About the rite
Ukuli Bula is a Hamar rite in southern Ethiopia through which a young man moves from boyhood toward adult male standing. His father and community elders decide when he is ready. Before the event, the initiate distributes bark tokens as invitations and prepares by shaving his head. During the central act, he crosses the backs of a line of cattle several times.
A successful initiate enters the status of Maz. Government tourism material links this new standing with eligibility for marriage, cattle ownership and participation in assemblies of elders. The ceremony does not follow a fixed calendar date; each family and community determines when an initiate is ready.
Related rites
