The People of Kenya
Of Kenyas population of 37 million people, about 3 million live in the capital Nairobi, almost 1 million in Mombasa and almost half a million people live in Kisumu. The rest of the population live in the countryside – the central province and western region being the most fertile and most populated.
As in most of Subsaharan Africa women are is often seen balancing goods on their head when walking longer distances
There are forty two different tribes in Kenya – most of them having their own language and strong cultural traditions. Some of the most commonly known tribes are the Kikuyu, the Luo, the Luhya, Meru, Kamba, Turkana, Kamba, Taita, Digo and the Samburu – the latter sharing the same language as the Masai – Maa. Kiswahili and English is the official languages in kenya and a huge part of the population speaks both languages fluently as well as tribal tongue(s) as a third or fourth language.
Fishermen in Lake Naivasha compete with the pelicans about the fish
Generally speaking most Kenyans outside the coastal and eastern provinces are Christian of one sort or another, while most of the people on the coast as well as in eastern Kenya are Muslim.
There are a wealth of places to go out in kenya and most people love to dance
Man in a kiosk in Butere checks an sms with a smile
Many Kenyans love to go out and mobile phones have become widespread in Kenya. People generally takes great pride in their appearance and the nightlife in big cities like Nairobi and Mombasa is very lively and you will find it hard to resist the groovy beats from the local DJ’s.
Both Masai and Samburus seem to fashion their traditional outfits more than many of the other tribes in kenya and they attract the attention when walking around in a town dressed in strong red colors, wearing lots of bracelets, a sword, a runku (a club made out of hard wood). In former times eg. the Kikuyus also had quite exotic looking attires where the leaders of the clan wore capes made from the fur from Black and white Colobus monkeys over their shoulders, but nowadays most urban living Kenyans wear either rather conservative looking clothes or more streetsmart and hip clothing.
Music is everywhere in Kenya and it is often heard from many of the small shops in the street, from a ghettoblaster on a wheel-barrel on the market, inside almost every Matatu or live. The West African Lingala music is very popular as is local artists like Tony Nyadundo. Above is some local musicians in Kisumu playing on self-made electric guitars that are wired to a radio for amplification
Part of many safaris is a visit to a nearby village outside the national park and this is a great way to get a chance to see how the local people live their life. For instance, the Masai villages in the outskirts of Masai Mara are often visited by tourists are offered a tour around their manyatta, a peek into their private homes and the option of taking as many pictures as they like for a fee of about 30 USD per person.
Masai warriors showing off their vitality and strength by jumping high into the air to the rhythmic voices from the embracing crowd
When living amongst big predators like lions the Masais needs to be able to defend themselves and their livestock from attacks – here a Masai warrior reversed his spear in order not to damage the sharp blades when demonstrating his throwing technique
Tourists often wants to know if the Masais are really dressed like that every day or if they’ve just put up a show to meet the tourists expectations. The truth is yes and no. Many Masai still in 2010 take great pride in wearing a traditional dress while maybe carrying a Nokia cellphone underneath it. Traditionally young Masai men had to kill a lion in order to become a warrior (moraan) and from that practise the lions have come to fear humans and they will most often shy away when they see men in red dresses like the Masais.
The warriors have great fun when dancing and jumping the highest
Nowadays their red fabrics are mostly produced in factories and few bother to weave a dress by hand when they can be bought along the roadside for quite cheap. Others use wigs to mimic the looks of the traditional morans (meaning masai warrior), and a few might even own a university degree. Yet most of the people you will encounter in their manyattas actually do sleep on a cow skin, cook over a small fireplace inside the house and live from a mixture of milk – sometimes mixed with blood and some beef and vegetables.
A group of Masai warriors preparing for a traditional dancing and singing ceremony – the leader blowing a horn from a kudu while wearing a hat made out of a lions mane
Also their traditional weapons such as spear, sword and a rungo are not carried to impress the tourists – they are crucial for personal protection and to fight off lions on the lookout to have a feast on their beloved livestock. Since hunting in kenya is illegal, the number of Masais killing a lion as part of the initiation ceremony for the boys to become morans have declined dramatically, but still fatal encounters arise between man a beast when sharing the same territory and in most incidents it is the lion that will be the looser. The huge amount of tourists coming to the Masai Mara this way bring the nomadic Masai a small supplement of cash and inevitably there is a cultural exchange taken place making some kind of impact on their traditional lifestyle.
Samburu girls walking in the street of Ol’Doinyo
Nomadic life has been a fundamental circumstance to survive in mostly arid Kenya. Nevertheless the different tribes have specialized knowledge about how to survive in the most harsh conditions. Read more about the people of Northern Kenya. Nonregarding which part of the country they are from, the Kenyans will most likely greet you with a big smile and say “Karibu” meaning welcome in Kiswahili.
Nomads in Turkana region waving to tourists
At the coast the Arabic influence have been strong during centuries and due to the construction of the railway between Mombasa and Nairobi, a big number of Indians came to Kenya and decided to stay there after the railway was built.
Muslim man sitting in the street, Isiolo
The coast of Kenya is part of the Swahili Coast and there’s a myriad of influences from countries all around the Indian Ocean and from Europe which is reflected in both the food, spices, ships, houses and the look of people.
The Kenyan coast is sometimes being called the Swahili Coast and there are strong influences during centuries from Arabia, India and Europe
Mostly cloudy17°Creal feel: 19°Ccurrent pressure: 102 mbhumidity: 97%wind speed: 0 m/s Nwind gusts: 0 m/ssunrise: 6:28sunset: 18:31
The People of Kenya
Of Kenyas population of 37 million people, about 3 million live in the capital Nairobi, almost 1 million in Mombasa and almost half a million people live in Kisumu. The rest of the population live in the countryside – the central province and western region being the most fertile and most populated.
As in most of Subsaharan Africa women are is often seen balancing goods on their head when walking longer distances
There are forty two different tribes in Kenya – most of them having their own language and strong cultural traditions. Some of the most commonly known tribes are the Kikuyu, the Luo, the Luhya, Meru, Kamba, Turkana, Kamba, Taita, Digo and the Samburu – the latter sharing the same language as the Masai – Maa. Kiswahili and English is the official languages in kenya and a huge part of the population speaks both languages fluently as well as tribal tongue(s) as a third or fourth language.
Fishermen in Lake Naivasha compete with the pelicans about the fish
Generally speaking most Kenyans outside the coastal and eastern provinces are Christian of one sort or another, while most of the people on the coast as well as in eastern Kenya are Muslim.
There are a wealth of places to go out in kenya and most people love to dance
Man in a kiosk in Butere checks an sms with a smile
Many Kenyans love to go out and mobile phones have become widespread in Kenya. People generally takes great pride in their appearance and the nightlife in big cities like Nairobi and Mombasa is very lively and you will find it hard to resist the groovy beats from the local DJ’s.
Both Masai and Samburus seem to fashion their traditional outfits more than many of the other tribes in kenya and they attract the attention when walking around in a town dressed in strong red colors, wearing lots of bracelets, a sword, a runku (a club made out of hard wood). In former times eg. the Kikuyus also had quite exotic looking attires where the leaders of the clan wore capes made from the fur from Black and white Colobus monkeys over their shoulders, but nowadays most urban living Kenyans wear either rather conservative looking clothes or more streetsmart and hip clothing.
Music is everywhere in Kenya and it is often heard from many of the small shops in the street, from a ghettoblaster on a wheel-barrel on the market, inside almost every Matatu or live. The West African Lingala music is very popular as is local artists like Tony Nyadundo. Above is some local musicians in Kisumu playing on self-made electric guitars that are wired to a radio for amplification
Part of many safaris is a visit to a nearby village outside the national park and this is a great way to get a chance to see how the local people live their life. For instance, the Masai villages in the outskirts of Masai Mara are often visited by tourists are offered a tour around their manyatta, a peek into their private homes and the option of taking as many pictures as they like for a fee of about 30 USD per person.
Masai warriors showing off their vitality and strength by jumping high into the air to the rhythmic voices from the embracing crowd
When living amongst big predators like lions the Masais needs to be able to defend themselves and their livestock from attacks – here a Masai warrior reversed his spear in order not to damage the sharp blades when demonstrating his throwing technique
Tourists often wants to know if the Masais are really dressed like that every day or if they’ve just put up a show to meet the tourists expectations. The truth is yes and no. Many Masai still in 2010 take great pride in wearing a traditional dress while maybe carrying a Nokia cellphone underneath it. Traditionally young Masai men had to kill a lion in order to become a warrior (moraan) and from that practise the lions have come to fear humans and they will most often shy away when they see men in red dresses like the Masais.
The warriors have great fun when dancing and jumping the highest
Nowadays their red fabrics are mostly produced in factories and few bother to weave a dress by hand when they can be bought along the roadside for quite cheap. Others use wigs to mimic the looks of the traditional morans (meaning masai warrior), and a few might even own a university degree. Yet most of the people you will encounter in their manyattas actually do sleep on a cow skin, cook over a small fireplace inside the house and live from a mixture of milk – sometimes mixed with blood and some beef and vegetables.
A group of Masai warriors preparing for a traditional dancing and singing ceremony – the leader blowing a horn from a kudu while wearing a hat made out of a lions mane
Also their traditional weapons such as spear, sword and a rungo are not carried to impress the tourists – they are crucial for personal protection and to fight off lions on the lookout to have a feast on their beloved livestock. Since hunting in kenya is illegal, the number of Masais killing a lion as part of the initiation ceremony for the boys to become morans have declined dramatically, but still fatal encounters arise between man a beast when sharing the same territory and in most incidents it is the lion that will be the looser. The huge amount of tourists coming to the Masai Mara this way bring the nomadic Masai a small supplement of cash and inevitably there is a cultural exchange taken place making some kind of impact on their traditional lifestyle.
Samburu girls walking in the street of Ol’Doinyo
Nomadic life has been a fundamental circumstance to survive in mostly arid Kenya. Nevertheless the different tribes have specialized knowledge about how to survive in the most harsh conditions. Read more about the people of Northern Kenya. Nonregarding which part of the country they are from, the Kenyans will most likely greet you with a big smile and say “Karibu” meaning welcome in Kiswahili.
Nomads in Turkana region waving to tourists
At the coast the Arabic influence have been strong during centuries and due to the construction of the railway between Mombasa and Nairobi, a big number of Indians came to Kenya and decided to stay there after the railway was built.
Muslim man sitting in the street, Isiolo
The coast of Kenya is part of the Swahili Coast and there’s a myriad of influences from countries all around the Indian Ocean and from Europe which is reflected in both the food, spices, ships, houses and the look of people.
The Kenyan coast is sometimes being called the Swahili Coast and there are strong influences during centuries from Arabia, India and Europe