Kenyan Society Overview

Kenya has witnessed waves of migration from the earliest times. At present, there are an estimated 70 tribes living in Kenya, a country of 29 million people. This makes for a fascinating diversity of customs and traditions—from the female witch doctors of the Kalenjin tribe to the eye-catching dress of the Turkana tribe and the cattle-blood stimulant drunk by Masai warriors. In fact, it is likely that many of the stereotypical African scenes you may have seen on glossy tourist brochures originated from Kenyan tribes! The main groups of tribes are the Bantu who migrated from western Africa, the Nilotic people who originated from Sudan and the Hamitic group, who were mainly pastoral tribes from Ethiopia and Somalia. The main tribes are Kikuyu (21%), Meru (5%), Kalenjin, Luyha, Luo (14%), Kisii, Kamba, Swahili, Masai, Turkana

Despite the spread of western values and disintegration of some traditional tribal lifestyles, tribal identity remains an important part of a person’s self-definition. In fact, tribal identity has become a rallying point for the conduct of modern politics. For instance, Jomo Kenyatta, Kenya’s first president, was perceived by many as being partial to the Kikuyus. Resistance to Kenyatta’s rule was organized by Oginga Odinga who belonged to another prominent tribe, the Luo. Kenya is also the adopted home of a sizable Asian population that arose as a result of the colonial government’s policy of importing cheap indentured labour from its Asian colonies, mainly from India. Asians have played a prominent role in Kenyan business and politics.