Where Do Tribal Peoples Live Around the World?

"Tribe" describes diverse, often Indigenous, communities with distinct cultures, languages, and territorial ties. They inhabit every continent except Antarctica:

Africa

• Maasai (Kenya/Tanzania) – pastoralists
• Himba (Namibia) – semi-nomadic herders
• Zulu (South Africa) – Bantu nation
• San (Bushmen) – Kalahari hunter-gatherers

Asia

• Naga (India/Myanmar) – hill farmers
• Hmong (Thailand/Laos/Vietnam/China) – highland cultivators
• Ainu (Japan/Hokkaido) – hunter-fisher-gatherers
• Mentawai (Indonesia/Siberut) – forest dwellers

Americas

• Navajo / Diné (US Southwest) – largest US tribe
• Inuit (Canada/Greenland/Alaska) – Arctic marine hunters
• Mapuche (Chile/Argentina) – forest/steppe resistance
• Yanomami (Brazil/Venezuela) – Amazon foragers

Oceania

• Aboriginal Australians (500+ nations) – continent-wide
• Māori (New Zealand) – Polynesian navigators
• Papuans (New Guinea) – highland horticulturalists

Many now live in urban areas while maintaining cultural identity. UNDRIP (2007) affirms their rights to lands, resources, and self-determination.