Who are Kenya's 42(+) tribes?

Dr Sam Balaton-Chrimes, Senior Lecturer in International Studies and member of the Alfred Deakin Institute, tells us about her research findings in a recent paper - Who are Kenya’s 42(+) tribes? The census and the political utility of magical uncertainty, Journal of Eastern African Studies, DOI: 10.1080/17531055.2020.1863642

[@edwardochieng7962]

Interesting..Australian fully aware of Kenya's ethnic diversity..congratulations from kisumu kenya..

[@roymagnana2918]

Thank you for your precious research and exemplary work. Thank you also for addressing and being sensitive to the designation "tribe," which many of us in Africa experience in a like manner as do African-Americans the "N" word. Asante.

[@ebatadesse9703]

I think the description "tribes" is more fitting than ethnicities since there are multiple communities of this grouping, speaking the same language albeit with dialects with some differences being way of life like pastoralist ,sedentary or mixed. for example borana, sakuye, waata orma and gabra, wayu and galla(considered pejorative term) all speak the afaan oromo language. while isaak, hawiyah, garre , ogaden etc.. are somali,

[@mocua2910]

Mijikenda, kalenjins and luhya. Those are not three but more than twenty seven tribes in them

[@wangarirose7212]

As an indigenous kenyan, I would consider these as 3 tribes, with numerous sub-tribes. I mean Maragoli is a sub tribe of the luhya community and so is kipsigis a subt tribe of the Kalenjin community etc.

[@vowuor]

@@wangarirose7212 and who decides that one a is a sub tribe and not a "full" tribe? W/hy aren;'t Meru and Embu sub-tribes of Kikuyu? The linguistic differences are comparable

[@sirisya]

@@vowuor Good questions. Also, why are the Kisii and the Kuria not one tribe or one umbrella tribe like the Luhya and the Kalenjin. The Bukusu and the Maragoli are very distinct linguistically . For example, Wetangula and Mudavadi cannot strike a conversation of 5 minutes each speaking his "Luhyan dialect".

[@vowuor]

@@sirisya good point! Bukusu and Maragoli are no less different than Kikuyu and Kiembu. These distinctions are created to drive wedges between people or to unite them, depending on the politics of the day.

[@harrisondaniel6335]

Point of correction some aren't tribes but clans of a tribe, meaning they speak similar language, same region, different elders but one chief elder. It's like how a central government is organized. They identify with their ancestral chief's name of their location but when assemble as one tribe

[@harrisondaniel6335]

To correct myself, it's not similar language but same or one language

[@TheFisherManPeter]

I really appreciate your work. I am looking for information of Munyoyaya, but I cannot find it. Would you guide me where I can get it?

[@panic_seller]

There's some funny groups in there, the groups with "so-called" and all groups with the string "Wa*" like Wamtwapa, Wachangamwe, I wonder if there was a language barrier with the respondents from the Coast region, then we have the Somalis and the different tribes within Somali, same for Mijikenda, sometimes collective and individual group names have been used to refer to the same thing, would be interesting to learn the questions respondents were asked when gathering this information, sometimes the respondents understand differently.

[@kennedyotwal8806]

Karibu Nairobi Kenya

[@joedias7946]

How many tribal people do they have in Australia? Have you made a study of the aboriginal people. You are amazing if you did that.

[@righttoknowwiththomas9178]

Add Pemba,indians, Shona

[@tiffanylucre6694]

yeah. indians dont really count coz they came mostly during colonisation. its like saying add the british who remained after colonisation

[@Dan13Speed]

These are not tribes. These are nations. I hail from the Agikuyu Nation. Our origins are in Kemet then we immigrated into Ethiopia and we entered present day Kenya and settled around the Mountain of the Gods, which we call Kirinyaga.

[@bellaolum9768]

😂😂😂😂

[@moogi3172]

Goofy

[@sirisya]

Kemet? Not the Congo forest?

[@EstaJeanette-nk7fj]

​@alkebulan.7707kikuyu are Bantus they have nothing to do with Cushites Ethiopians.

[@franklinematanji430]

Do you really have to complicate things? What makes you a nation and not tribe? The migration?

[@betterlifesolutions]

How are Kikuyu a tribe now? Almost 10 million and one language and culture. How do you call the Luo a tribe? Or the Baganda?

[@stephentaylor2119]

Maragoli I know, don't consider themselves Luhya, their language forms part of a dialect continuum, non-intelligible at the extremes, but both ends can understand dialects in the centre.

[@barkhadhasan1870]

Ogadan anaf somalia what is tt different bt ogadeen is somalian people it same l am ogadeen from jigjiga ethiopia somali region

[@stephentaylor2119]

More like 105 if you don't lump tribal clusters together

[@feysaladen9500]

Sorry ogaden is part of somalis

[@josephinekilonzo9681]

There's tribe 43 South Asian

[@EstaJeanette-nk7fj]

Those are not Africans. They are not a tribe.

[@barasasilali9600]

Kenya has more than 76 tribes, what you have is best on political classification.

[@Holywood_Entertainments]

Give your evidence. You are not any greater than KNBS.