Kenya Culture

Kenya is widely renowned as a country of assorted and wealthy cultural traditions. It aspires to cultivate and develop those traditions to ensure that its valuable cultural assets are not permanently lost and that solidity is not undermined in the process of change to fresh conducts.

Kenya’s culture is quite appealing for any visitor. The country’s history exposes that the presence of humankind here dates as early as the Stone Age when the nation acted as a migratory path, witnessing the arrival of tribal groups from Africa and the Middle East.

About 97% of Kenya’s 32 million people comprise of an African descent belonging to over 70 different tribal groups with differing tribal languages. Among the most significant being the Kikuyu, Akamba, Luhya, and Luo. It developed its own lingua franca- Swahili, which is a Bantu language with strong traces of Arabic.

The primary languages are English (official) and Swahili (national), though there are several regional tribal languages widely spoken. Swahili is the most widely spoken African language, with 50 million speakers in East Africa and Central Africa, particularly in Tanzania. Another language you’ll come across is Sheng – a mixture of Swahili and English; spoken extensively by the younger members of society.

Kenyan food generally consists of stodge filler with beans or a meat sauce. It’s really just survival fodder for the locals’ maximum filling-up potential at minimum cost. If you had to name a national dish in Kenya, nyama choma (barbecued meat, usually goat), would probably be it.

Kenyans love music and the style known as benga is the contemporary dance music that rules. It originated among the Luo people of western Kenya and became popular in the area in the 1950s. Some well-known exponents of benga include Shirati Jazz, Victoria Kings, Globe style and the Ambira Boys.

Music and dance play an integral role in social and religious life. Rhythm, all-important, is largely provided by the drum, supplemented by wind and stringed instruments. Visual arts are largely confined to the mass production of wood sculpture for the tourist trade.

Most Kenyans outside the coastal and eastern provinces are Christians of one sort or another, while most of those on the coast and in the eastern part of the country are Muslim. Muslims make up some 30% of the population. In the more remote tribal areas you’ll find a mixture of Muslims, Christians and those who follow their ancestral tribal beliefs. We await you in Kenya to learn more about our culture!