What does a nomad do?

A nomad is a person with no settled home, moving from place to place as a way of obtaining food, finding pasture for livestock, or otherwise making a living. Most nomadic groups follow a fixed annual or seasonal pattern of movements and settlements. Nomadic people traditionally travel by animal, canoe or on foot.

What is a peripatetic nomad?

Sometimes also described as "nomadic" are various itinerant populations who move among densely populated areas to offer specialized services ( crafts or trades) to their residents—external consultants, for example. These groups are known as "peripatetic nomads".

How do nomadic people travel?

Most nomadic groups follow a fixed annual or seasonal pattern of movements and settlements. Nomadic people traditionally travel by animal, canoe or on foot. Animals include camels, horses and alpaca. Today, some nomads travel by motor vehicle.

How many nomads are there in the world?

In the twentieth century, the population of nomadic pastoral tribes slowly decreased, reaching an estimated 30–40 million nomads in the world as of 1995. Nomadic hunting and gathering—following seasonally available wild plants and game—is by far the oldest human subsistence method.