TRANSMIGRATION AMONG AARI WOMAN POTTERS IN SOUTHWESTERN ETHIOPIA AND THE ACCUMULATION OF EXPERIENCE IN POTTERY-MAKING TECHNIQUES

Abstract

This paper aims to describe the relationship between transmigration among Aari women potters in southwestern Ethiopia and the accumulation of their experience in pottery- making techniques. Aari people do not view favorably women who spend excessive time out- side their homes. However, several cases have been observed in which pottery women who ventured outside their homes have been accepted by their husbands and the husbands' relatives. This presentation focuses on women potters' transmigrations after marriage, and preliminary conclusions show that the accumulation of their experience in pottery-making techniques allows women potters who have been divorced several times to establish a new lifestyle based on pottery-making. An examination of the dates of the techno-life histories—life histories combined with knowledge and techniques—of approximately 20 potters provides three points, which are related to the change in their techniques. Transmigration among Aari women potters socially continues, and potters are flexible in changing their pottery-making techniques according to their transmigration, which is related to their social relationships with their husbands and children. Pottery-making techniques can bridge the gap between different social groups, provide potters an economic foundation, and help them establish new lifestyles that are based on their transmigra- tion experiences.