Traditionally the men are only clothed with a penis sheath (
humi) and
rattan rings around the waist, this combined attire is called
sabiyab. The more the rattan rings indicate more prestige and bravery, since rattan grew outside of Yali territory, hence difficult to obtain. The rattan ring also functions as a
fire starter. The
humi of the Yali are long and thin made from dried
bottle gourd, and secured with the rattan. Their heads are occasionally covered with hair nets, which have a pointed end at the neck. They are decorated with feathers and furs from
cassowary, yalme,
cuscus, while fur from
sugarglider are used to decorate the tip of the penis gourds. The skin are painted with clay or charcoal, and boar tusks are fashioned to necklace or nose accessories. The women wear a short skirt made of
reed called
kem or
kem lahuog. Their heads also carry
noken called
sum. The Yali practices
exogamous moieties, as they believed they were the descendant of two brothers, Winda and Waya. While in Anggruk and Ninia Districts, the brothers are called Kabak and Pahabol. All Yali clans belong to either one moiety, and marriage of clans inside a moiety group is strictly prohibited and considered
incest (pabi). Punishment in the past would have been death, though after discouragement by Christian missionaries, the punishment for incest is more lenient. Clans in Yali are called
unggul, and all members believed in one origin myth; they are then part of a larger
unggul uwag. This larger group have multiple origin myths, though carrying the same clan names.
Unggul uwag groups then joined together with another to form
wilig lumpaleg; these are sometimes called confederations. Like the one of the Dani, the names of
wilig lumpaleg are formed by combining the clan names. However, unlike the Dani, Yali confederations can be formed from clans from one moiety group. The even larger group is called
ap ahe, as the clans have spread to many regions and may now belong to other tribes, like the Lani and the Dani, though they are still believed to be related and descend from one founder (ap ahe). ==See also==