The Pastoral Continuum: The Marginalization of Tradition in East Africa

Spencer presents the definitive study of the ways of life of the cattle-herding peoples of East Africa, drawing on many years of research. This region has offered a prime example of a traditional culture resisting the inevitability of change; it provides the best-known and most extensive instance both of cattle-pastoralist society and of social organization based primarily on age. The Pastoral Continuum examines the richness and resilience of the culture of these peoples, illuminates the role of indigenous practices and institutions in adaptation and survival, and offers a unique view of the place of pastoralism in the modern world and its prospects for the future.