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TRIBES
Akamba
The region east of Nairobi towards Tsavo National Park is the traditional
homeland of the Akamba people, which they call Ukambani. Their ancestors were
Bantu-speaking, and the Akamba migrated from areas further south several
centuries ago.
The Akamba became great traders in ivory, beer honey, iron weapons and
ornaments, covering the region all the way from the coast to Lake Victoria and
up to Lake Turkana. Since their low-altitude land was unable to sustain their
growing population, they traded for food stocks from the neighboring Maasai
and Kikuyu.
During colonial times, the British highly regarded the Akamba for their
intelligence and fighting ability, and drafted them in large numbers into the
British Army. Thousands lost their lives in WWI. Afterwards, in an effort to
control them, The British limited the number of cattle the Akamba could own
(by confiscating them) and also settled more Europeans in Ukambani. In the
1930s the Akamba responded by marching en masse to Nairobi to squat peacefully
at Kariokor Market in protest. After three weeks, the administration gave way
and the cattle were eventually returned to the people.
All adolescents go through initiation rites to adulthood at about the age of
12. Young parents are known as 'junior elders' (‘mwanake’ for men,
‘mwiitu’ for women) and are responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of
the village, later becoming 'medium elders' (nthele) and 'full elders' (atumia
ma kivalo), when they take on the responsibility for death ceremonies and
administering the law. The last stage of a person's life is that of 'senior
elder' (atumia ma kisuka), who is charged with responsibility for maintaining
holy places.
The Akamba are famous for their mafconde-style (ebony) carvings. Subgroups of
the Akamba include the Kitui, Masaku and Mumoni.
EI-Molo
This tiny tribal group has strong links with the Rendille, their close
neighbors on the shores of Lake Turkana. Both tribes worship the same god,
Wak, and bury their dead under stone Cairns. The EI-Molo rely on Lake Turkana
for their existence, living mainly on a diet of fish and occasionally
crocodile, turtle and other wildlife. Hippos are hunted from doum-palm rafts
with harpoons, and great social status is given to the warrior who kills a
hippo. An ill-balanced protein-rich diet and the effects of too much fluoride
have taken their toll on the tribe, which over the centuries has become
increasingly vulnerable to disease and attacks from stronger tribes. At one
stage there were just 500 EI-Molo, living in two small villages on islands on
the lake.
Intermarriage with other tribes and abandonment of the nomadic lifestyle has
helped to raise their numbers to about 4000, who now live on the mainland near
Loyangalani. Traditional costume is now uncommon and the traditional
dome-shaped huts of the EI-Molo are slowly being replaced by permanent
concrete homes.
Gabbra
This small pastoral tribe of striking Arabic-looking people lives in the far
north of Kenya, from the eastern shore of Lake Turkana up into Ethiopia. Many
Gabbra, who are Cushitic speakers, converted to Islam during the time of
slavery. Traditional beliefs include the appointment of an abbra-olla (father
of the village), who oversees the moral and physical well being of the tribe.
Fathers and sons form strong relationships, and marriage provides a lasting
bond between clans. Polygamy is still practiced by the Gabbra, although the
practice is becoming less common as old attitudes to women (as status symbols
and unpaid workers) are being eroded.
Gabbra men usually wear turbans and white cotton robes, while women wear
“kangas”, thin pieces of brightly colored cotton. Although “nagaya”
(peace) is a core value of the Gabbra, tribal wars with the Samburu were once
common.
The Gabbra are famous for their bravery, hunting lions, rhinos and elephants
in preference to 'weak' animals such as antelopes.
The Gabbra lost many of their cattle herds to drought and rind-pest epidemics
in the 19th century and were decimated by malaria and smallpox before being
driven into the Chaibi Desert from their lands in Ethiopia by the army of
Emperor Menelik. Somehow the Gabbra survived this and today continue to live
in the harshest environment in Kenya. Cattle rustling is still commonplace
among the Gabbra, and these days is carried out with automatic weapons.
Gusii
The Gusii inhabit an area in the western highlands, east of Lake Victoria,
forming a small Bantu-speaking island in a mostly Nilotic-speaking area. They
were driven from their original territory near Mt Elgon to the Kisii highlands
about 200 years ago, as the Luo, Maasai and Kipsigis advanced into their
lands. The Gusii strongly resisted the British advance and were later drafted
in large numbers into the British Army.
The Gusii family typically consists of a man, his wives and their married
sons, all of whom live together in a single compound. Initiation ceremonies
are performed for both boys and girls, and rituals accompany all-important
events. Death is considered to be the work of 'witchcraft' rather than a
natural occurrence.
Traditionally, the Gusii are primarily both cattle keepers and crop
cultivators, and some also brew millet beer.
As is the case with many of Kenya's tribal groups, medicine men (abanyamongo)
have a highly privileged and respected position. They are responsible for
maintaining the physical and mental well being of the group - performing the
combined rote of doctor and social worker.
One bizarre practice was (and still is) the removal of sections of the skull
or spine to alleviate maladies such as backache or concussion.
Kalenjin
The term Kalenjin was formulated in the 1950s to describe the group of
Nilotic-speaking peoples previously called the Nandi by the British. The
Kalenjin comprise the Nandi, Kipsigis, Eleyo, Marakwet, Pokot and Tugen
(former President Moi's people) and occupy the western edge of the central
Rift Valley area. They first migrated to the area west of Lake Turkana from
southern Sudan about 2000 years ago, but then gradually filtered south as the
climate became harsher.
Although originally pastoralists, most Kalenjin groups took up agriculture.
Beekeeping is still a common activity and the honey is used in trade and for
brewing beer. The Kipsigis, on the other hand, have a passionate love for
cattle and cattle rustling continues to cause friction between them and
neighboring tribes.
The Nandi, the second largest of the Kalenjin communities, settled in the
Nandi Hills between the 16th and 17th centuries. They had a formidable
military reputation and, in the late 19th century, managed to delay the
construction of the Uganda railway for more than a decade until Koitalel,
their chief, was killed.
As with most tribes, Kalenjin have age-sets into which a man is initiated
after circumcision. Polygamy was widely practiced in the past. Administration
of the law is carried out at the kok (an informal court led by the clan's
elders). The Kalenjin doctors, who are mostly (and unusually) women, still use
herbal remedies in their work. Other specialist doctors still practice
trepanning (taking out pieces of the skull to cure certain ailments from
mental illness to headaches).
Many Kenyan athletes are Nandi or Kipsigis.
Kikuyu
The Kikuyu are of Bantu origin and make up the country's largest tribal group
and their heartland surrounds Mt Kenya. The original Kikuyu are thought to
have migrated to the area from the east and northeast from the 16th century
onwards. Famously warlike, the Kikuyu overran the lands of the Athi and Gumba
tribes, becoming hugely populous in the process. Today, 20% o! Kenyans are
Kikuyu. The Kikuyu also fiercely resisted the British, spearheading the Mau
Mau rebellion in the 1950s that was a major catalyst for the end of British
rule.
The Kikuyu territory borders that of the Maasai, and intertribal raids on
property and cattle were once common. Despite this,
intermarriage between the two tribes occurred, and there are many cultural
similarities between the tribes today. The Kikuyu are the best politically
represented tribe in Kenya due the influence of Jomo Kenyatta, the first
president of Kenya.
The administration of the clans (mwaki), made up of many family groups
(nyumba), was originally taken care of by a council of elders, with a good
deal of importance being placed on the role of the witchdoctor, the medicine
man and the blacksmith. An important tool of the witchdoctor is the mwano, a
gourd filled with bones and pebbles, used for divination.
The Kikuyu god, Ngai, is believed to reside on Mt Kenya (Kirinyaga-which means
either the 'mountain of brightness' or 'black-and-white peak spotted like
ostrich feathers'), which accounts for the practice of orientating Kikuyu
homes with the door facing Mt Kenya.
Initiation rites for both boys and girls are very important ceremonies and
consist of ritual circumcision for boys and female genital mutilation for
girls (although the latter is slowly becoming less common). Each group of
youths of the same age belongs to a ritkaan (age-set) and pass through stages
of life, and their associated rituals, together.
Subgroups of the Kikuyu include the Embu, Ndia and Mbeere.
Luo
The Nilotic-speaking Luo people are Kenya's third-largest tribal group, making
up about 12% of the population. They live in the west o
f
the country on the shores of Lake Victoria. Along with the Maasai, they
migrated from the Nile region of Sudan in about the 15th century.
The Luo's cattle herds suffered terribly from the Rinderpest outbreak in the
1890s and most Luo moved to fishing and subsistence agriculture.
During the struggle for “uhtim” (Swahili for 'national independence'),
many of the country's leading Kenyan politicians and trade unionists were Luo,
including Tom Mboya (assassinated in 1969) and the former vice president
Oginga Odinga, who later spearheaded the opposition to former President Moi's
one-party state.
The Luo are unusual among Kenya's tribal groups in that circumcision is not
practiced for either sex The Luo traditionally extract four or six teeth from
the bottom jaw, although this is uncommon today.
The family group consists of the husband, wife (or wives) and their sons and
daughters-in-law. The house compound is enclosed by a fence and includes
separate huts for the man and for each wife and son.
The family unit is part of a larger grouping of “dhoot” (families),
several of which in turn make up an “ogandi” (group of geographically
related people), each led by a ruoth {chief}. As is the case with many tribes,
great importance is placed on the role of the medicine man and the spirits.
The Luo, like the Luyha, have two major recreational passions, soccer and
music. There are many distinctive Luo instruments made from gourds, gut or
wire strings. Few Luo today wear traditional costume.
Luyha
The Luyha are of Bantu origin and are made up of 17 groups. They are the
second-largest group after the Kikuyu, but occupy a relatively small area in
western Kenya centered on Kakamega, where they settled around the 14th
century. Population densities here are incredibly high.
In times past, the Luyha were skilled metal workers, forging knives and tools
that were traded with other groups, but today most Luyha are agriculturists,
farming groundnuts, sesame and maize. Smallholders also grow large amounts of
cash crops such as cotton and sugar cane.
Many Luyha still have a strong and powerful belief in witchcraft and
superstition, although, to the passing traveler, this is rarely obvious.
Traditional costume and rituals are becoming less common, due mostly to the
pressures of the soaring Luyha population.
Maasai
For many, the Maasai are the definitive symbol of 'tribal' Kenya. With a
reputation (often exaggerated) as fierce warriors and a proud demeanor, this
tribe of Nilotic origin has largely managed to stay outside the mainstream of
development in Kenya and still maintains large cattle herds along the
Tanzanian border.
The Maasai first migrated to central Kenya from current-day Sudan, but in the
late 19th century they were decimated by famine and disease, and their cattle
herds were routed by Rinderpest. The British gazetted the Masai Mara
National
Reserve in the early 1960s, displacing the Maasai, and they slowly continued
to annex more and more Maasai land. Resettlement programs have met with
limited success as the Maasai scorn agriculture and land ownership. There is a
strong taboo against 'piercing' the soil, and the dead are traditionally left
to be consumed by wild animals.
Maasai women are famous for their vast plate-like bead necklaces, while men
typically wear a red checked shuka (Maasai blanket) and carry a distinctive
ball-ended club. Blood and milk are the mainstay of the Maasai diet,
supplemented by a drink called “mursik”, made from milk fermented with
cow's urine and ashes, which is shown to lower cholesterol.
At around the age of 14, males become el-moran (warriors) and build a small
livestock camp (manyatta) after their circumcision ceremony, where they live
alone for up to eight years, before returning to the village to marry, Morans
traditionally dye their hair red with ochre and fat. Female genital mutilation
is common among the Maasai, despite the best efforts of various human rights'
groups.
Tourism provides an income to some, either through being guides and camp
guards (askaris), selling everyday items (gourds, necklaces, clubs and
spears), dancing or simply posing for photographs. However, the benefits are
not widespread. In recent years, many Maasai have moved to the cities or
coastal resorts, becoming doormen for hotels and restaurants.
Meru
The Meru arrived in the area northeast of Mt Kenya from the coast around the
14th century, following invasions by Somalis from the north. The group was led
by a chief (mogwe) up until 1974, when the last incumbent converted to
Christianity. Justice was administered 
by
a group of tribal elders (njuuri), along with the mogwe and witchdoctor, and
would often carry out summary executions by giving poison-laced beer to an
accused person. Other curious practices included holding a newly born child to
face Mt Kenya and then blessing it by spitting on it. Circumcision is also
still common. The Meru now live on some of the most fertile farmland in Kenya
and grow numerous cash crops including miraa plants, the stems of which
contain an amphetamine-like stimulant. Subgroups of the Meru include the
Chukka, Igembe, Igoji, Tharaka, Muthambi, Tigania and Imenti.
Pokot
The Pokot are Kalenjin by language and tradition, but their diet is dominated
by meat, supplemented with blood drawn from cattle, milk and honey. Pokot
warriors wear distinctive headdresses of painted clay and feathers similar to
those of the Turkana. Flat, aluminum nose ornaments shaped like leaves and
lower-lip plugs are c
ommon
among men. Circumcision is part of the initiation of men and many Pokot women
undergo female genital mutilation at around 12 years old. The pastoral Pokot
herd their cattle and goats across the waterless scrub north of Lake Baringo
and the Cherangani Hills. Cattle raiding (these days with AK-47s), and the
search for water and grazing, has often brought them into conflict with the
Turkana, Samburu and the Ugandan Karamojong.
Pokot hill farmers are a separate and distinct group who grow tobacco and keep
cattle, sheep and goats in the hills north of Kitale, on the approaches to
Marich Pass. These hill farmers have a strong craft tradition, producing
pottery and metalwork and snuffboxes from calabashes or horns.
Rendille
The Rendille, who are of Cushitic origin, are pastoralists who live in small
nomadic communities in the rocky Kaisut Desert in Kenya's northeast. They have
strong economic and kinship links with the Samburu and rely heavily on camels
for many of their daily needs, including food, milk, clothing, trade and
transport. The camels are bled by opening a vein in the neck with a blunt
arrow or knife. The blood is then drunk on its own or mixed with milk. The
regional colonial administration found the Rendille to be a thorn in its side,
as the Rendille avoided taxation and forced labor through both indifference
and outright hostility.
Rendille society is strongly bound by family ties, and this center around
monogamous couples. Mothers have a high status and the eldest son inherits the
family wealth. It is dishonorable for a Rendille to refuse a loan, so even the
poorest Rendille often has claims to at least a few camels and goats.
Rendille warriors often sport a distinctive visor-like hairstyle, dyed with
red ochre, while women may wear several kilos of beads. After giving birth to
their first child, Rendille women adopt a clay head decoration known as a
“doko”, which resembles a rooster's comb.
Samburu
Closely related to the Maasai, and speaking the same language, the Samburu
occupy an arid area directly north of Mt Kenya. It seems that when the Maasai
migrated to the area from Sudan, some headed east and became the Samburu. As
with the Rendille, Samburu warriors often paste their hair with red ochre to
create a visor to shield their eyes from the sun. Age is an important factor
in assigning social status and a man passes through various stages before
becoming a powerful elder in his 30s.
Circumcision heralds a boy's transition to a moran, while female genital
mutilation is performed on the day of marriage for girls (usually at around 16
years old). After marriage, women traditionally leave their clan, so their
social status is much lower than that of men. Samburu women wear similar
colorful bead necklaces to the Maasai.
Samburu families live in a group of huts made of branches, mud and dung,
surrounded by a fence made of thorn bushes. Livestock, which are kept inside
the fence perimeter at night, are used for their milk rather than for meat.
Swahili People
Although the people along the coast do not have a common heritage, they do
have a linguistic link - Kiswahili (commonly referred to as Swahili), a
Bantu-based language that evolved as a means of communication between
Africans and the Arabs, Persians and Portuguese who colonized the East African
coast. The word Swahili is a derivative of the Arabic word for coast - Sahel.
The cultural origins of the Swahili come from intermarriage between the Arabs
and Persians with African slaves from the 7th century onwards. The Swahili
were to become one of the principal slaving forces in Africa. Islam is
practiced by almost all Swahili, although it usually takes a more liberal form
than that practiced in the Middle East.
Swahili subgroups include Bajun, Siyu, Pate, Mvita, Fundi, Sheila, Ozi, Vumba
and Amu (residents of Lamu).
Turkana
The Turkana are one of Kenya's more colorful (and warlike) people. Originally
from Karamojong in northeastern Uganda, the Turkana number around 250,000,
living in the virtual desert country of Kenya's northwest.
Like the Samburu and the Maasai (with whom they are linguistically linked),
the Turkana are primarily cattle herders, although, recently, fishing on the
waters of Lake Turkana and small-scale farming is on the increase. The Turkana
are one of the few tribes to have voluntarily given up the practice of
circumcision.
Traditional costume is still commonplace and Turkana men cover part of their
hair with mud, which is then painted blue and decorated with ostrich and other
feathers. Despite the intense heat of the region, the main garment is a woolen
blanket, often with garish checks.
Turkana accessories include a pillow-come-stool carved out of a single piece
of wood, a wooden fighting staff and a wrist knife. A woman's attire is
dictated by her marital and maternal status; the marriage ritual itself is
quite unusual and involves the kidnapping of the bride.
Tattooing is also common. Men were traditionally tattooed on the shoulders for
killing an enemy - the right shoulder for killing a man, the left for a woman.
A surprising number of men still wear these markings. Witchdoctors and
prophets are held in high regard and scars on someone's lower stomach are
usually a sign of a witchdoctor's attempt to cast out an undesirable spirit
using incisions