The Blue Men of the Sahara is a name for the Tuareg people. People call them this name because they often wear blue clothes and the pigment in the cloth easily stains the wearer’s skin dark blue. There are between 300,000 and one million Tuareg today. They have lived in the Sahara Desert for thousands of years. It is hot, dry, and windy there. Their lives are difficult because of the desert weather and life.
The Tuareg do not live in one place. They move from place to place to find water and food for their animals. The Tuareg live in groups of four or five families. Everybody helps each other. The Tuareg live and sleep in the tents. Tuareg tents are usually made of animal skins, but today some Tuareg have plastic tents.
The Tuareg dress in a special way. The men cover their faces. The women do not. The men travel a lot in the desert. They need to protect their faces from the dry air and sand.
The Tuareg men have many customs about their faces. They start to cover their faces at age 25. They do not cover their faces for friends. They use black or white cloth. The cloth is five yards long. They wrap the cloth around their face and neck. You see their eyes, but you don’t see their nose and mouth.
Every Tuareg man wraps his cloth in a unique way. In this way, everyone knows each other. On special occasions, they cover their faces with blue cloth.
Tuareg men marry women from the same group. They often marry cousins. The Tuareg women have a lot of freedom. They decide important things about their lives. The Tuareg women have long hair and are very beautiful.
Today, many Tuareg do not live in the desert. Countries around the Sahara Desert do not want groups of people going from place to place. Many Tuareg now live in towns. Soon it will be hard to find the Blue Men of the Sahara.
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“撒哈拉藍人”指的是圖阿雷格人。人們這樣稱呼他們是因爲他們常穿藍色的衣服，而這種藍布的染料又容易把穿衣人的皮膚染成深藍色。圖阿雷格人已在撒哈拉沙漠裏生活數千年了，如今他們的人數在30萬到100萬之間。撒哈拉沙漠氣候炎熱、乾旱而且風力強勁。惡劣的沙漠氣候與生活條件使得圖阿雷格人的日子十分艱難。
圖阿雷格人並不在一個地方定居。爲了給他們的牲畜尋找水和食物，他們不停地從一處遷徙到另一處。四五個圖阿雷格家庭聚居在一起生活，互相照應。圖阿雷格人住在帳篷裏，這些帳篷通常是由動物皮製成的，但如今也有些圖阿雷格人使用塑膠帳篷。
圖阿雷格人的穿着很特別。男人們會用頭巾遮住他們的面孔，女人們卻不這麼做，因爲男人們經常在沙漠中跋涉，他們需要保護自己的臉免受乾燥的空氣和沙子的傷害。
圖阿雷格男子的遮臉習俗還有很多講究：25歲時開始遮住臉部，不在朋友們面前遮住臉部。他們用（來遮臉）的布是黑色或白色的，布長5碼；他們用這樣的布包住自己的臉部和脖子，眼睛露在外面，但鼻子和嘴是看不到的。
每個圖阿雷格男人裹布的方式都很獨特。正因如此，每個人都可以辨認出彼此。在特別的場合，他們會用藍布遮住臉。
圖阿雷格男人會娶同一部落的女子，通常就是自己的堂姐妹或表姐妹。圖阿雷格女子享有很多自由，她們一生中的重大事情都由自己來決定。她們留着長髮，非常美麗。
現今，很多圖阿雷格人已不住在沙漠裏了，（因爲）撒哈拉沙漠周邊的國家不希望一羣一羣的人四處遷徙。如今很多圖阿雷格人住到城裏去了。不久的將來，“撒哈拉藍人”就該蹤跡難覓了。