Kenya Travel Guide & Manual - International Luxury Travel Market

Cultural variety is the
spice of Kenyan life
Kenya is a diverse nation made up of 42 ethnic
communities.
The largest of these is the Kikuyu, who come
from the central highlands and account for
more than 20 per cent of the total population.
Other main tribes are the Luo (from close to
Lake Victoria), the Kamba (from Eastern Province),
the Kalenjin (pastoralists from the Rift
Valley) and the Luhya (from Western Province).
Traditionally, each community has its own
culture and language or dialect but in modern
times many of these outward differences have
disappeared as more and more people have
become urbanised or have migrated to Nairobi
or Mombasa.
STRONG AFFINITY
Nevertheless, each Kenyan – nominally at least
– retains a strong affinity with his or her tribe;
although this is less apparent among the more
sophisticated and well educated.
Some tribes, notably the Maasai and Samburu,
have been less willing to become urbanised
and to leave their homelands and traditional
way of life and have remained pastoralists or
even nomads.
Each community has interacted with others
through East Africa’s lingua franca, Swahili,
and over the past 100 years or so English has
also been spoken. Today, it is not uncommon
for Kenyans to speak three languages fluently
– not only Swahili and English but also their
tribal language. Many others can speak a
fourth or even fifth local language.
Kenya is not only a nation of communities but
also one with a variety of religious affiliations.
The predominant religion is Christianity, whose
adherents make up about two-thirds of the
population. In addition, between 20 and 30 per
cent are Muslim. This figure is much higher at
the coast. Kenya also has significant numbers
of Hindus and Sikhs among its Asian
community. In addition, many Kenyans
– especially those in rural areas – still
hold traditional African beliefs.
Amid this complex patchwork of peoples,
it is sometimes hard to define Kenyan
culture, although there are similarities
that bind everyone together. Kenyans are
passionate in their support of national
teams – at football, rugby, volleyball and
even cricket – and are justly proud of the
nation’s achievements on the athletics
track over the past 40 years.
In any case, Kenya’s ethnic make-up only
adds to its richness and makes any visit to the
country all the more fascinating. It also ensures
a wide variety of arts and handicrafts that are
peculiar to certain geographical areas or which
have a defined tribal root. Today, however, most
arts and crafts are geared to the tourist market.
Popular items include sisal baskets, bracelets
made of imitation elephant hair, Maasai and
Samburu beads, musical instruments such as
drums, gold and silver jewellery, soapstone
sculptures, wood carvings and tribal masks as
well as paintings, prints and sculptures. Popular
items of clothing include kangas – wraparound
skirts for women – and highly coloured
kikoys – a type of sarong that is ostensibly for
men but seems to be worn by both sexes.
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