Ethiopian women flogged in order to show their love

A tradition in which women from the Hamar tribe in Ethiopia get whipped to demonstrate their love for their men has been spotlighted by photographer Jeremy Hunter. The women of this tribe engage in a tribal ceremony during which they are flogged to show the sacrifices they make for their men.

The tradition is known as Ukuli Bula and is done as part of a Rite of Passage ceremony for boys.

To reach manhood, Hamar boys must undergo two rituals: circumcision and a leap over the bulls. This determines whether the young Hamar male is ready to make the social jump from youth to adulthood. During this ceremony, their female family members declare their love for the young men and to prove the sacrifice they are willing to endure, they beg men to whip them.

After the ceremony held in the Omo River Valley, the boy becomes a man and is now allowed to marry. 

Hunter shared a series of photographs documenting the ceremony and revealed that after the whipping, tradition allows those women to call on help from those who marked them if ever they are in need of help. Young Hamar women sometimes coat their bodies with butter to lessen the effect of the whipping. More pics after the cut