Aviva Directory » People & Daily Life » Lifestyles » Nomadic

Nomads and nomadic lifestyles are the focus of this portion of our web guide.

A nomadic lifestyle describes a way of life in which individuals (known as nomads) lack a fixed home and regularly move from one area to another.

Traditionally or, in some cases, historically, these were hunter-gatherer groups, pastoral groups owning livestock, tinkers, or traders. Today, such groups have dwindled considerably, although the Kochi people, the Bedouins, the Sámi people, the Maasai, the Mongols, the Gaddi people, and an Irish traveling community still exist and are still nomadic. Nomadic pastoralism is practiced chiefly in arid and semi-arid areas of the world, such as Afghanistan, Algeria, India, Iran, Kenya, Nepal, Russia, and Somalia.

Other nomadic lifestyles can be found among various itinerant populations who travel through densely populated areas offering specialized services or products to residents.

While their numbers have declined, groups of Romani continue to practice a nomadic lifestyle in some parts of the world. The Romani are widely known as Gypsies, although this is considered a pejorative and a racial slur. The Romani are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group with their own language. Since the 19th century, some Romani have migrated to the Americas and other parts of the world, and many of them have settled into fixed habitations.

The Romani are sometimes confused with Irish Travelers, although they are not genetically related. Also known as Pavees, Irish Travelers are an indigenous ethnocultural group originating in Ireland. Most Irish Travelers speak English, although some may speak Shelta, a hybrid English-Irish language. Today, Irish Traveler communities exist in Ireland, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada, although some of them don't use that name.

There are probably not a lot of websites generated by these groups, although there may be online content about them which would be appropriate here.

Among other elements of society, a form of the nomadic lifestyle has been on the rise in recent years. These are people who have decided to live a nomadic life rather than continue to pay rent on an apartment, mortgage on a house, or the expenses involved in maintaining a fixed residence.

They are not homeless in the sense that they are sleeping on park benches or sidewalks. Neither are they homeless in the strict sense; they have a home, but their home might be a motor home, a travel trailer, a converted school bus, a van, or even something smaller. Many of them are seniors on a fixed income, choosing this option as a way of downsizing, but others work remotely, either for a company or self-employed, requiring only an Internet connection. Some of them have established a social media following that provides them an income from people who are interested in viewing their nomadic adventures.

Because their new homes are mobile and their income doesn't depend on them remaining in the same geographic location, they travel.

These nomads are sometimes known as digital nomads because the fact that they can earn a living digitally is what allows them to enjoy a nomadic lifestyle. In most cases, they could work remotely from a fixed home or operate their business from their house, but since all they need is a computer and Internet access, they have the option of saving the expense of a fixed home in favor of moving from city to city, state to state, or even to other countries.

Contemporary nomads will often park near a library or another place where public WiFi is available, or they might use the hotspot on their smartphone if they have an unlimited digital plan. To avoid nightly fees, they might park wherever it is legal to park, while others might surreptitiously park in places where it's not expressly permitted.

In the United States, people can park for free or for a small fee on public lands under the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which are mostly found in the Western states.

Others opt for a nomadic life without being digital. One retired man was experienced in sharpening blades. He was very good at what he did, and it didn't require a large overhead or a lot of space. While there wouldn't be enough work for him to operate from a fixed space, particularly one that he was paying for, a lot of people don't know how to properly sharpen their knives, scissors, lawnmowers, or other blades, and others would rather pay for this service. Traveling from town to town along the East Coast of the United States in a van, he would set up shop for a few days or until business slowed, then move on to the next town, nicely supplementing his Social Security payments.

There are various ways in which it might be done. Examples include digital nomads, slow travelers, hostel hoppers, house-sitters, van living, peripatetic nomads, and nomadic pastoralism.

 

 

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