.webp "kikuyu Origin") |
| kikuyu Origin |
kikuyu Origin
The Gikuyu, like white settlers in the early 20th century, were drawn to the Kenyan highlands because of the cool temperatures, fertile soils and abundant rainfall. Prior to the arrival of the Gikuyu, the area was occupied by hunters and gatherers known as Dorobo.
It is not known exactly when the Gikuyu first occupied the central highlands, but their oral history indicates that the Gikuyu occupied the area for hundreds of years before Europeans arrived in Kenya.
The Gikuyu have played an important role in the development of contemporary Kenyan political, cultural and social life. The Land and Freedom movement (pejoratively called the "Mau Mau" movement) during the 1950s was primarily Gikuyu guerrilla warfare (warfare waged without organized government troops) in response to British rule.
The British took over Gikuyu farmland and handed it over to white settlers. The Gikuyu were forced to work on these farms and provide labor for cash crops such as coffee and tea. Gikuyu nationalist Jomo Kenyatta (1894–1978) became Kenya's first president at independence in 1963.He is respected among the Gikuyu for his leadership against colonialism (foreign domination) and for his status as the father of his country. .
Where did Kikuyu migrated from?
This kind of complicated migration story is not the kind of story that can be passed down in oral tradition and, as Armstrong notes, "unless a historical event is mythologized, it cannot become a source religiously inspired. without myth, it is cold and lifeless. It is even doubtful that there can be a story without a myth.
The Gikuyu origin myth, like other origin myths, tells of a Garden of Eden scenario where God enters the scene. According to this myth, the first man, Gikuyu, walked with God, Ngai, Mwene Nyaga, Murungu, Mugai or whatever he was called. Call him Ngai.
The scene begins at the top of the "Mountain of God", Kiri Nyaga often referred to as Mount Kenya. It was here that God showed the first man Gikuyu the land below and ordered him to go to a specific place south of the mountain where there was a grove of fig trees, Mikuyu. Gikuyu came down from the mountain and upon reaching the place, he found a woman.
I think she arrived and Gikuyu and Mumbi became husband and wife. They also told him that he could contact this Ngai at any time by praying to him as he looked up at Mount Kenya or by sacrificing a goat under the Mukuyu or another type of fig tree, the Mugumo.
The name Gikuyu means a huge fig tree: Mukuyu, and Mumbi means Creator. Mukuyu's roots entered into Great Mother Earth, nurturing each other and connecting with God. The man and the goddess of creation came together, and when the essence of Mukuyu's milk entered the earth, Gikuyu and Mumbi gave birth to the ten daughters who became the mothers of the ten Gikuyu clans. Think of the sun, the moon and the ten planets.
When the girls came of age and began to desire their own husband, they went to his mother and asked her where she got hers. She confided the problem to her husband Gikuyu. Gikuyu consulted Ngai, God and Ngai asked him to sacrifice an immaculate ram under the "Mugumo" fig tree.
She called her daughters and asked them to go to Mukuyu and each cut a straight stick as tall as she was. Nine of the daughters brought the sticks and their father placed them on the fire as ndara and then placed the sacrifice on them. In the morning,
NINE young people showed up and each of the girls drank a chimarrão as big as she was. The youngest Wamuyu was too young to be involved in the stick trade and thus was left without a husband. The others married the young man "A Gikuyu" which means "of the big Mukuyu tree".
Gakaara wa Wanjau in “Warahuri wa Muhooere wa Gikuyu na Mumbi. thus compares the cult of Gikuyu to the story of Adam and Eve from Genesis:
- Gikuyu, unlike Adam, was not formed with clay, but with speech.
- Mumbi was not created from the Gikuyu rib as Eve was, but existed at the same time as man, if not before.
- There is no mention of the sin, condemnation and disorderly arising of lies, deceit, murder, slander and bitterness which characterize the Genesis of the Bible and which are the characteristics of the Western Christianity.
- Gikuyu and Mumbi were never cursed.
The original location of the Eden Gikuyu has generally been identified as being in Central Province near the village of Gaturi of Muranga District at a place called Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga. The Gikuyu believe it to be the cradle of the tribe. The following map, taken from Google Earth, shows that you will take the Muranga - Othaya road towards Nyeri and turn right at a town called Karuri.
Mukurwe wa Gathanga
It seems that myth has always had a greater attraction and significance to humans than so-called facts and most Gikuyu seem to take this creation myth literally as fact without a doubt. They would cling to the myth even if scientists definitively "prove" it through genetic mapping and that the Gikuyu originated in Egypt from a group of slaves in Egypt who fled the Pharaoh to the south while other Hebrews led by Moses fled north. .
What seems certain is that mobile bands of Bantu migrant groups dispersed from various nodal points including Central Africa, Ethiopia, South Africa at various times. What the Gikuyu have been able to retain in their collective memory is such a dispersal point that they call Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga, a sort of Garden of Eden for them. Let's try to locate it. Like many Gardens of Eden there was an original tree involved, in fact for the Gikuyu three important trees.
Three trees
The original Gikuyu tree is the Mukuyu, (Ficus sycomorus), a pleasant, beautiful, perennial shade fig tree that provides wonderful shade as a sanctuary from the African sun. As these trees reach great age and height, an old woman can be called gikuyu. From the top of the mountain, looking down, these are landmarks or knots in the landscape. bears his name, Gikuyu.
A mugumo fig tree (Ficus thonningii) grows singly or parasitically on another tree, encircling it and with roots descending from the upper branches. The mugumo tree is the second most sacred tree among the Gikuyu and under which sacrifices were also made to the Ngai. This tree reaches a large size and ages, but without interesting shade or a comfortable base.
An ancient is truly an incredible sight, such as the famous 15ft diameter near Thika which must have fallen before Kenya could gain independence from Britain. The lower right image shows a mugumo tree.
The site of the first farm according to the myth was called Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga in Muranga. Mukurwe (Albizia gummifera) was a common tree found in most Gikuyu lands and had a variety of uses. Its trunk was used for construction, the branches for firewood and the leaves also serve as food for goats.
The mukurwe was a utilitarian tree where the mukuyu and the mugumo were sacred. The Nyagathanga bird made its nest in this particular tree and hence the name Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga, the Mukurwe belonging to the Nyagathanga bird. Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga as a place was the abode of nature long before the advent of man and woman and the idea that a place could be staked and owned.
Here I would like to speculate that the practical needs for establishing a dwelling such as the availability of water, fuel, building materials might have been as important in the choice of site as those of religious importance, if not more important. Gikuyu's mate's name, Mumbi, means Creator, which means she made things out of clay, and as a potter, she too would need a place with good clay, just like Gikuyu would need. many building materials.
It looks like the place should have the following characteristics.
- On the outskirts of a huge fig tree, mukuyu or gikuyu, around which the daily activities of the village were concentrated. This tree may also have been the site locator from afar. He gave his name to the tribe, Gikuyu.
- Near or surrounded by smaller trees such as mukurwe, muringa, muhu and other useful trees suitable for firewood, building materials, animal feed, etc.
- Close to a mugumo, the sacrificial tree and certainly not next to it. Near a source of drinking water, Gathambara.
- In a fertile location ready for farming.
- Near a source of good clay useful for pottery.
- Are they all present in Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga? Unsurprisingly, the answer is that in all of Kikuyuland, it's the only place with a good, if not the best, combination of all of the above.
- Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga means "The tree where the Nyagathanga bird lives". The bird preceded the woman and they have a special relationship and bond. The woman preceded the man and was the first in Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga.
And finally, it may be that the place only existed as a metaphor and was never intended to be a physical place. This would put it on a par with other places of mythical origin like the Garden of Eden and other fantastic places like Eldorado and Shangri-la. These places and these ideas and beliefs in the existence of a Holy Grail, a Golden Fleece, a Philosopher's Stone, etc. are vitally important in contributing to people's quest for fulfillment and are embedded in the human psyche.
In conclusion, this article opened the discussion on various issues regarding Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga's ideas of "place" or "place" in Gikuyu consciousness. Like the spiral of the Gikuyu basket, kiondo, we have to follow the rope upside down through all the steps, until we reach the navy, mukonyo. The search for the original location of Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga may have just begun.
Kikuyu Language
The Gikuyu generally speak three languages fluently. The main national language in Kenya is English. All children receive instruction in English from elementary school through middle school.
Kiswahili is a second national language, although it is not the language of government, it is widely used as the language of commerce, especially by those without formal education. Kiswahili is also taught in schools from primary to high school. The Gikuyu use English or Kiswahili when traveling outside the central highlands. Radio, TV and media publications are available in both languages across Kenya.
The Gikuyu language is the preferred language at home and in the community. Gikuyu is taught in primary schools in Gikuyuland.
Kikuyu Location
The Gikuyu are Kenya's largest ethnic group. They number about 8 million out of a total population of about 40 million in Kenya. The Gikuyu people live in Kenya, but mainly reside in Nairobi Province and Central Province, located in the central region of the country. As Kenya's largest group, the Gikuyu occupy a central place in Kenyan social life.
The capital Nairobi lies at the southern edge of the area traditionally occupied by the Gikuyu people. Consequently, many Gikuyu are now counted among the residents of the city of approximately 2.5 million people.
Gikuyuland is a plateau approximately 100 miles (160 kilometers) from north to south and 30 miles (48 kilometers) from east to west. Its elevation varies from about 3,000 feet (900 meters) to over 7,500 feet (2,300 meters) above sea level. The plateau has deep gorges and parallel ridges. Rainfall is abundant.
However, on the eastern side of the plateau, the terrain is relatively dry and dominated by grasslands.
The altitude increases towards the west, giving rise to more precipitation and forests with good agricultural potential.
The larger ecological zone is characterized by high altitude and high rainfall, where plant life is abundant and most of the population is concentrated. This is the area where important cash crops are grown, including pyrethrum (a flower that produces a natural insecticide), coffee and tea. The rich soils support the growth of traditional crops such as sweet potatoes, plantains, millet, sorghum, black-eyed peas, and maize, which is the staple food of Gikuyuland.
.webp "kikuyu-history-and-culture.") |
| kikuyu-history-and-culture. |
Kikuyu tribe culture
The local community, school and church are central to Gikuyu's social relationships. Dating, dating, friendship, and family life are important concerns around which people build their social lives. In the past, social life was dominated by rules on age hierarchies and gender distinction. There is evidence that the Gikuyu today have more individual choices in these areas. However, some Gikuyu have lost their sense of community responsibility in the past.
In the past, children were organized into local children's groups which were formed around the same time. These were grouped into larger groups called regiments. The boys of a common band or regiment spent their lives together and exercised authority over the bands and regiments that came after them. Detailed rules governed the roles of various age groups or generational groups in matters of courtship and procreation, defense, and social structure.
%20(1).webp "Kikuyu traditions") |
| Kikuyu traditions |
Kikuyu traditions
Traditionally, the Gikuyu preferred large families living in large compounds. Having children was considered a religious obligation. Four children, two boys and two girls, it was ideal. Children were desirable because they carried the family name, which was passed down the male line. Daughters were coveted so that the family could collect the bride's wealth (gifts to her family from her future husband's family), which in turn could be used to obtain brides for her brothers.
A married woman becomes more powerful when she has more children. Her children stayed with her in her home, separated from their father. Polygamy (one man with multiple wives) was seen as a way to support large families. Women also preferred polygamy to monogamy (one man and one woman); they often helped their husbands find younger wives. The older wives had clear authority over the younger wives and supervised them in the affairs of the complex.
The events leading up to the wedding began with a first meeting of the future son-in-law with his future in-laws. The consent of the young woman was required during this meeting before the events could unfold. Later stages included parental visits, exchange of goods such as the bride's wealth, and finally the young woman's move to her husband's house.
The marriage itself ended when, before going to live with her husband's family, the young man and his relatives visited the house of the young woman with special gifts.
Today, marriage no longer involves these traditional rituals and exchanges. However, there is always the wealth of the bride, the significant parental involvement in choosing the spouses of the children, and the high value placed on having children. Marriage ceremonies no longer involve Gikuyu religious rituals, which have given way to Christian and Islamic marriage practices.
Kikuyu Religious
The Gikuyu are now well represented in several Christian churches. This includes the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Fundamentalist and African Separatist churches. The meaning of belief in a supreme god, Ngai, is retained or transferred to Christian belief centered on monotheism (belief in one god). Ngai created everything. He lives in heaven and is invisible.
He sometimes lives on Mount Kenya. You should only go to him for serious matters, such as those involving matters of life and death. In times of famine or epidemic, elders approach Ngai on behalf of the entire community.
Other traditional beliefs have also persisted in contemporary life. Among these, the belief in ancestral spirits is important. These deceased relatives are involved in all cases, especially those not considered important enough to attract Ngai's attention.
Everyday health issues, for example, involve ancestral spirits, which cause disease when their interests are not taken into account. "Traditional practitioners" were popular resources for determining which ancestor was responsible for which disease and for giving advice on how to please the ancestor.
In the past, religious values emphasized communal solidarity and discouraged individualism. Authority was vested in elders and prophets, who were supposed to know what was best for everyone. Expressions of individuality and solitary living were not encouraged. A person perceived as outside the group could be accused of being a witch and could be killed by the elders. At the same time, the focus on the group offered considerable security
Gikuyu Sex Training for Youth – Nguīko
The great traditional initiation ceremonies of Gikuyu, Mambura, which brought a new generation of youth into marriageable adulthood, involved many processes, of which the circumcision of the genitals is the most famous.
Many people today concentrate on the ceremony of circumcision, irua, reducing it to a discussion of surgical incisions. However, Mambura ceremonies and associated rituals were a very complex matter, as many rituals were esoteric in nature and revealed only to initiates. The purpose of this article is not to discuss the emotional subject of female circumcision aka MGM, or male genital mutilation or its female counterpart MGF.
According to Kenyatta, among the things they were taught during this period before marriage were "subjects relating to the rules and regulations governing sexual indulgence". The young man was trained in the control of sexual energy through a method called Nguiko; a method of intimate contact between a woman and a man that does not involve penetration.
Once the process of healing through circumcision is complete, the young people return and gather in different youth huts, the thingiras, where initiation ceremonies take place in the form of teaching. It is here that the circumcised girls of the oldest initiation group came to practice Nguiko with the male initiates.
This Nguiko was able to perform at first under the supervision of the matrons in charge of training the girls, but they were soon left alone after internalizing the rules. It would then continue with different partners until marriage, which would end the group change but continue within marriage.
Kenyatta explains that Nguiko, or stroking as he calls it, was considered a sacred act and followed a well-organized and systematic method. He explains that all gender issues have been incorporated into a well-regulated convention code.
He asserts that this form of sexual energy regulation formed the basis of health and was the cornerstone on which the Gikuyu were built as a physically, morally and mentally sound race, free from nervous and psychic disturbances. Thus was learned among the Gikuyu the cardinal virtue of temperance, where a powerful creative energy is hidden, controlled and judiciously used.
Kenyatta describes the act thus:
The boy takes off all his clothes. The girl takes off her top, nguo ya ngoro, and keeps her skirt, mothuru, and the soft leather apron, mwengo, which she brings back between her legs and ties around her waist, thus maintaining her mwengo. in position and forming an effective protection of your private parts. In this position, the lovers face each other with their legs intertwined to prevent any movement of the hips. Then they start caressing each other, rubbing their breasts, while having a loving conversation until they gradually fall asleep.
The rules that governed Nguiko were such that a couple could never risk serious consequences if they broke them. The unbuttoning of a woman's skirt resulted in social ostracism from a group for the man and the impossibility for another girl to have access to her Nguiko.
If the two get along and the woman is discovered, she becomes the laughingstock of the community. The skirt, muthuru, and the apron, mwengu, were carefully inspected by the matron or other girls. In the unheard of case of a woman becoming pregnant, the punishment meted out to the man by the Tribal Council was nine goats and three fattened rams for the Council.
The man also became a social pariah and was no longer accepted in the activities of his age group. After that, the girl would have a hard time finding a husband, a terrible situation.
Interestingly, the Indians had a similar thing of divinely making love without intercourse. This “making love” aimed to harmonize and balance the masculine and feminine principles where the couple reached a high level of consciousness and union of the soul.
According to a lady who remembers the joys of Nguīko, it was a question of preparing the Nyungu, a pot for the future child, as one prepares a vegetable patch for the seed. She also gave them fuller breasts and more radiant skin. She asserts that the current discordant relationships between men and women were learned from Father Mubia and must be unlearned. La Mubia, she says, is sexually a girl. Unsurprisingly, Gikuyu Nguīko was a female-led event.
According to Alice Stockham, the sexual energy, when properly directed, heals the sensory nerves, vitalizes the blood and restores the tissues. In addition to individual healing, the couple also transmits this love to the community and social order and harmony are achieved. This is why Kenyatta said that the Nguīko was the cornerstone on which Gikuyu society was built and why, without Nguīko, modern society experiences all kinds of calamities.
The idea today would be to save sex from the depths where it descended from the animal "Bang!" Popular! thank you mom or whatever,” through western influence. It also redeems me from the fear, guilt and shame caused by the influence of senseless Western religion. We need to re-anchor sex in worship and as a divine and sacred act to heal not just our individual lives, but society as a whole. In the Gikuyu family, sex was "The Great Sacrifice". Kigongona Kia Mucii.
Kikuyu age sets
The Gikuyu are well known for their traditional teenage rituals. Before the arrival of Europeans, there was a custom known as Ngweko. Periodically, the elders oversaw meetings of young people who spent time among themselves to get to know members of the opposite sex. Young people were paired up based on mutual attraction. If a girl becomes pregnant, the responsible boy is held accountable and must marry the girl she impregnated.
The Gikuyu considered Ngweko to be a form of sex education. And since Ngweko was associated with reproduction, the Gikuyu considered it a sacred act to carry out the orders of their great god Ngai to reproduce. Many Gikuyu elders believe the missionaries erred in calling Ngweko a sinner. Schools established after the arrival of Europeans did not include sex education. Since the inception of coeducational boarding schools, teenage pregnancy has become a major social issue in Kenya, even among the Gikuyu.
Before participating in Ngweko, boys and girls undergo various rituals, including surgeries on their genitals. The purpose of these rituals is to enable young people to bond with others with whom they have had painful experiences. Clitoridectomy (female circumcision) was practiced, and still is to some extent, by the Gikuyu.
It is the subject of much debate among Africans and others, and is often referred to by foreigners as female genital mutilation. A middle position seems to be emerging that gives social meaning to the ritual of adolescence as it works to eliminate clitoridectomy, even in the hospital conditions in which it currently occurs. (Previously, the procedure was performed under non-sterile conditions with crude instruments. Numerous injuries and life-threatening deaths have occurred.) Gikuyu boys continue to be circumcised, a widespread practice in Africa and many other parts of the world. .
Many dances and songs, called mambura (rituals or divine services), take place during initiation ceremonies. Gikuyu's story is staged publicly to provide a sense of community solidarity. Each irua group receives its own special name.
Initiation ceremonies include special foods and the selection of a godfather to impart knowledge and supervise the young. After several days of instruction, the boys and girls are taken to a circumcision center. Many friends and family gather to sing and dance the night away. A special party is organized for the parents of the children. The day before the operation, a ceremonial dance known as matuuro is performed. The next day, the physical operations take place. Boys and girls should be circumcised without crying or showing signs of weakness.
Many Gikuyu elders still maintain strong relationships with others with whom they were initiated. With painful and compulsory initiation ceremonies increasingly a thing of the past, many Kenyans are concerned about what they perceive to be a rising tide of individualism and lack of solidarity among young people. Today's young people in Kenya must discover for themselves how to combine the old and the new. This issue is important and is the subject of stories, plays and other programs on Kenyan radio and television.
Kikuyu Folklore
The Gikuyu people explain their origins as farmers and herders as follows. The first tribal fathers, Gikuyu and Mumbi, had their own children, who later had children who spread across Mount Kenya. One day, a grandson's knee started to swell. When he opened his knee, three children came out, who became his children. Over time, one of them became a hunter; we liked to pick fruits and plants; and the third made a fire for cooking.
The hunter domesticated certain animals and the gatherer cultivated crops like bananas, cassava and sweet potatoes. The third son set fire to stones and metals and became a blacksmith. This is how the Gikuyu culture was born.
The Gikuyu attribute their ultimate origin to the sacred intervention of their god Ngai, who sometimes resides on Mount Kenya, which to the Gikuyu is a sacred place. According to legend, Ngai led the first man, Gikuyu, to the top of Mount Kenya. Ngai showed him the rich soil that lay under the mountain. Gikuyu was told that his sons and daughters would inherit the land and multiply. Gikuyu was given a wife named Mumbi, meaning "Creator" or "Shaper", and together they had nine daughters.
Ngai said whenever problems arise, people should make a sacrifice and ask Mount Kenya for help. One day, Gikuyu was not happy that he didn't have a male heir. He begged Ngai to give him a son. After the proper rituals, Gikuyu headed to a sacred tree where he found nine men waiting to greet him. He arranged for these men to marry his daughters, on the condition that they agree to live under his roof and obey a system of matrilineal inheritance (tracing descent through the female line). Over time, many grandchildren and great-grandchildren were born. Later still, each girl came to lead her own clan, giving rise to the clans of the Gikuyu people.
The legend continues that over time the kinship system changed from matrilineal to patrilineal (tracing descent through the male line). This is thought to have happened because women became excessive in their dominance over men.
The men attacked the women when they were all pregnant at the same time. They overthrew female domination and became heads of their families. Later, polygamy (one man with multiple wives) replaced polyandry (one wife with multiple husbands) as a marital practice. However, the women managed to keep their names for the major clans. To this day, most women have one of these names. The names are Wanjiru, Wambui, Wanjiku, Wangari, Waceera, Wairimu, Wangui, Wangechi, Wambura and Wamuyu.
Several other important legends provide cultural heroes. Among them is Karuri, who was a ruler of legendary proportions. Another is Wamugumo, a famous giant who is said to have eaten an entire goat on his own. He could clear land that many men took a long time to clear and easily kill lions, buffaloes and leopards.
A famous woman named Wangu wa Makeri ruled during the matriarchal period (when women held the majority of power). Back then, women could have multiple husbands, mostly young men, and the older ones did all the work.
Traditionally, folktales and riddles are combined with myths to give young people a strong sense of Gikuyu values. Grandmothers were excellent storytellers. Some common riddles are: A man who never sleeps hungry? Fire (since it feeds all night); Does my son live among the spears? Language; Does my child travel without rest?
The river (still flowing). Proverbs are plentiful in modern culture and are constantly changing to reflect the times. For example, a proverb teaches that "a good mortar is not worth a good pestle", to explain that it can be difficult to unite husband and wife successfully. Another popular proverb is "When the hyenas come, no one shelters them", which means that in times of panic, it's every man for himself. Many proverbs teach common sense, such as "When someone goes on a journey, don't let the bananas cook on the fire".
A tongue twister refers to a boy who saw a tadpole and ran away; when the tadpole saw the boy, he ran away too. In Gikuyu, we say Kaanaka Nikora kona kora kora, nako kora kona kaanaka Nikora kora.
Kikuyu Living Conditions
The Gikuyu people take advantage of the abundant natural resources provided by the central highlands of Kenya. Due to the altitude, much of the region is free of malaria, tsetse mosquitoes and other flies that transmit human and animal diseases. The Gikuyu were successful in commercial farming and many other businesses. Some Gikuyu now own large estates and lead prosperous lives.
However, many other Gikuyu live in slums, which have grown rapidly in urban areas, especially in Nairobi. Thousands of homeless street children arrived in Nairobi from the towns of Gikuyu, where they suffered from family breakdown and poverty.
In the past, traditional Gikuyu houses were round with wooden walls and thatched roofs. Neighbors would often help build a house in exchange for beer and meat. Building materials were collected from local materials. Husband and wife normally lived in separate houses. The woman's house had room for her children, sheep and goats. Well-built houses sometimes lasted ten years or more, even though roof repair was an annual event.
Kikuyu Clothing
In the past, Gikuyu adults dressed in animal skins, especially sheep and goats. Hide tanning was a vital industry in which many men were recognized as experts. The women's outfit includes three pieces: a top, a skirt and an apron. The men wore a single garment that covered the whole body. Young people preferred bare legs through the use of short skirts, especially those made of goatskin (sheep or goat) due to their soft coat. Older people wore more elaborate costumes, often made of fur.
European clothing is now common in Gikuyuland. In rural areas, women wear multicolored cotton dresses or skirts and blouses. Men usually wear western-style slacks and shirts with a jacket and tie for formal occasions. Women who prefer to dress in African fashion wear long pieces of colorful fabric as skirts and wrap around a dress.
kikuyu food
Produce and meat are plentiful and provide excellent nutrition. Maize (maize) made into a thick porridge called ugali is Kenya's national dish. (See the Kenya article for the recipe.) Ugali is eaten with traditional meat, stews or vegetables known as sukuma wiki. Irio, a Gikuyu dish, is a mixture of boiled green corn cooked with beans, potatoes, and chopped vegetables.
In the past, brewing was a cooperative activity between men and women. Beer was made from sugar cane, corn and millet. Calabashes were used to contain the filtered juices for fermentation. Today, bottled beverages often replace traditional beer for everyday and social consumption. Distilleries in Kenya offer a variety of beers and soft drinks.
Eating meat is the norm for all ceremonial occasions. A popular meal, especially on Sundays, is nyama choma (roast beef). Goat meat is the most popular option, although it is more expensive than beef. Chicken is also a regular treat. In ancient times, the Gikuyu had a ceremonial calendar that involved feasting.
Boiled and roasted meat was eaten on these occasions, and beer was the preferred drink. Although the traditional ceremonial calendar is largely a thing of the past, the Gikuyu maintain an intensely social existence that involves regular attendance at funerals and weddings. These events are always accompanied by a wide range of meats and bottled drinks.
Kikuyu Cultural Heritage
Music and dance, as well as storytelling, have been prominent in the past. Dancing for both men and women was obligatory at initiation ceremonies, weddings, and other public events. People of all ages loved to dance. In the past, there were three types of musical instruments: drums, flutes and rattles. These were used for private enjoyment, while drums and flutes were played publicly at dances. Music was woven into the fabric of everyday life.
There were baby songs; songs sung by girls while threshing corn; songs sung by children during archery practice; songs sung by family and community members at weddings and funerals; songs sung by community members and initiated in ceremonies; songs about everyday life and love issues that were sung around the campfire; drinking songs; songs about cultural heroes past and present; and songs sung in praise of the ancestors and the Supreme God, Ngai.
Written literature includes children's literature, stories and tribal tales. One such book, titled Nyumba ya Mumbi, graphically illustrates Gikuyu's creation myth. Perhaps the most famous writer of the 20th century is Ngugi wa Thiong'o, whose many stories, plays and novels chronicle Gikuyu's struggle for national identity.
Kikuyu Employment
In the past, there was a very strong sexual division of labor. However, men and women worked together and separately on tasks that complemented each other. Each woman had her own plots of land where she grew sweet potatoes, millet, maize and beans. The men were in charge of heavy work, such as clearing land and felling trees.
The women's household chores included tending the barns and watching over the feeding of the sheep, goats and cows. A polygamous husband (one with several wives) had his own hut separate from his wife, where he ate with friends or his children and his wife served him food. On a daily basis, the women, accompanied by their children, collected firewood, water and products for the garden.
There was also a sexual division of labor in the industries. Some men were blacksmiths, making knives, arrowheads, bracelets, axes, hammers, spears, and other utilitarian tools. Only women were potters. Pottery provided for domestic needs. Women also excelled in basket making. Men tended to specialize in tanning the skin.
The informal Gikuyu education system involved children and youth learning economic tasks from adults and experts through direct observation and, often, apprenticeship.
Today, the Gikuyu remain intensely agricultural and devoted to their land. Cash crops are now important, but the traditional division of agricultural labor is still in place. Through formal education and the accumulation of private assets, many Gikuyu are now wealthy and enjoy a prosperous lifestyle. Professional occupations, along with factory and other labor jobs, now differentiate the Gikuyu into social categories based on income. However, among most Gikuyu there is still a strong sense of ethnic solidarity and shared cultural heritage.
Kikuyu Education
Traditionally, children followed an educational process that began very early in the life cycle. Babies were sung lullabies emphasizing tribal values. As a child, he listened attentively to stories, riddles and proverbs with moral messages. Even after the advent of formal schools in colonial times, a special time was set aside for telling folk tales.
In the past, children played games that emphasized leadership roles involving bows and arrows, spears and slingshots to teach shooting skills. The girls cooked imaginary dishes and played making pots and grinding cereals. Dolls, made from clay and local grass, were also standard playthings for girls. As the children grew up, the boys were raised by their adult male parents and the girls by their mothers, grandmothers and older sisters.
For example, children learned to differentiate large herds of cattle or goats by the color, size and texture of their horns. Parents and grandparents also taught young people about the boundaries of their land, land preparation techniques for farming, and family genealogy. The mothers taught the girls about crops, soils, climate and other important details of food production.
Today, the traditional informal education system has largely been replaced by formal education. In Kenya, including Gikuyuland, there have been attempts in recent years to make formal education more sensitive to traditional knowledge and values. One of the dangers of teaching only modern subjects is that traditional wisdom, such as knowledge of potentially edible wild plants during famine, is lost to future generations.
Finding a reasonable balance between the old and the new in the school curriculum is a constant challenge for Gikuyu educators. Harambee (meaning 'let us unite') primary and secondary schools are being built in Gikuyuland and other parts of Kenya. The literacy rate (percentage of people who can read or write) in Kenya is around 50%, but it is lower in Gikuyuland.
Kikuyu Sports
Throughout Gikuyuland, schools sponsor competitive sports for boys and girls. Spectators love football (soccer) and athletics. In the past, Gikuyu children enjoyed games like wrestling, weightlifting, and club throwing. There were mock district fights pitting children from each region against their counterparts from elsewhere. Wrestling has produced stars who have been widely hailed across the country. The girls played hide-and-seek and bouncing games when they were young, but became increasingly involved in household and marital responsibilities as they approached adolescence.
Kikuyu Leisure
Like other Kenyans, the Gikuyu like to watch television, listen to the radio and go to the cinema. Radio and television regularly broadcast traditional gikuyu material.
People of all ages play a board game called bao, in which players attempt to capture the seeds of their opponents. The game consists of a wooden board containing holes in which the seeds are placed. A player seeks to capture his opponent's seeds using a complex strategy in which his opponent's seeds end up on his side of the board. This indigenous (native) African strategy game is widespread in Africa and is now played in other parts of the world.
Kikuyu Social Issues
Perhaps the main social problem of the Gikuyu is how best to manage their relative success in Kenyan commerce and politics. The Gikuyu are often opposed by groups seeking to diminish the political power they hold due to their large population and relative wealth among Kenya's ethnic groups. The Gikuyu expanded into areas outside their homeland, the central highlands. Many Gikuyu are therefore now wealthy "immigrants", seen by groups in other parts of Kenya as squatters and land grabbers.
Problems in Kenya as a whole include alcoholism and the spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Consumption of alcoholic beverages is common. This combines with poor road conditions to produce one of the highest rates of accidental driving deaths in the world.
Kikuyu Crafts and Leisure
Traditional industries and crafts have largely been replaced by tourist and commercial markets. The most remarkable traditional activity that still exists is basket weaving, which is practiced by women. The Gikuyu kiondo (basket) is now popular in Europe and America, where it is widely used as a bag or backpack by students.
The kiondo is a woven basket of different shapes, colors and sizes. These baskets are woven from cords collected from the bushes. Sometimes they are decorated with Gikuyu geometric patterns. Another traditional folk art is the making of figurines made from local materials such as clay, wire and grass. They represent scenes of solitary or communal daily life, such as children playing, old people in different types of clothing, people dancing, riding bicycles and singing.
Thank you for visiting our Kiki's History website, and we hope that you find our content both informative and enjoyable. If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We value your feedback and appreciate your support.
Most Popular Post [See Here]
.webp)
.webp)
.png)
.webp)
.webp&description= Untold History;; Kikuyu Culture and Traditions){kind=link}
0 Comments