One of the most interesting peoples unknown to the outside world is the Mikea. There are barely 1,500 individuals, and they live inside the thorn forests of southwestern Madagascar.
Reading about the Mikea people, we have learned that they are more of a socioeconomic group than an independent ethnic group. According to French anthropologists who studied the Mikea at the beginning of the 20th century, this people is a conglomerate of families and clans belonging to larger tribes such as the Vezos and the Masikoros. The Mikea split from their tribe during the Merino invasion (the dominant ethnic group on the island) in order to preserve their independence. The French colonization at the end of the 19th century made more families decide to abandon their agricultural life in the towns to preserve their customs within the forest.
Do you want to meet the Mikea people of Madagascar?
The large island of Madagascar is associated with floral endemisms and rare species of arboreal mammals, such as the famous lemurs. Last Places' vocation to explore the lesser-known areas of countries' ethnography has led us to design an alternative trip to Madagascar, focused on its tribes, such as the Mikea people. Join Bego Colmeiro on her next trip to Madagascar from 1 to 14 September 2024, during which you will have the opportunity to meet the Mikea people. Click here for all the details of the trip.
Today, the Mikea continue to practice gathering and hunting. Also, they carry out some shifting agriculture, as they move with their belongings and dogs through the extensive Mikea Forest of Madagascar. Regarding their beliefs, the Mikea worship their ancestors. They communicate with them through dances and songs that allow them to enter a momentary trance and speak with their loved ones in the afterlife.
As of 1960, the thorn forest of Mikea, habitat and refuge of these people, it has been threatened by oil and mining prospecting. Last Places aims to empower the last nomadic tribe of Madagascar through a type of tourism that is sustainable and respectful of the local culture and ecosystem. If travelers reach Mikea communities and leave money to local authorities, the Malagasy government can begin to understand that the Mikea forest is an asset that must be protected and that the Mikea are a unique culture and a national treasure.
© Photos by Jordi Zaragozà Anglès taken during trip to Madagascar.
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