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April 20, 2023
History of The Giriama people
History of The Giriama people Giriama are part of Mijikenda people whose oral history relates that the ancestors of the Mijikenda, who were then one people, lived in a place called Singwaya, believed to be north of Tana River and south ofJuba River in Somalia. However due to conflicts with other communities there they…
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Erick Saddam
April 19, 2023
Giriama Traditional Wedding
Kuhaswa – Traditional Giriama wedding The parents of the bridegroom look for the bride. They go to the bride’s home and the bridegroom’s father introduces himself and then says ”Fudzire mala Mudzungu wa utsunguni”. We have come to look for the cucumber, which is painful. The father of the bride answers ”nauhambale” let the painful…
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Erick Saddam
April 19, 2023
The ‘mad’ Kenyan woman who rattled the British
Mekatilili wa Menza Mekatilili wa Menza may have been in the freedom struggle scene for a short time, but her contribution in raising the African consciousness among the Giriama people of the Coastal Kenya was immense.Mekatilili was one of the first women in Kenya to rise up against the British in 1913. Her bravery, oratorical…
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Erick Saddam
February 1, 2023
Mepoho: The Tale of the Magical Giriama Woman
Mepoho: The Tale of the Magical Giriama Woman Mepoho was a Giriama woman who lived in the 13th century. The Giriama are a subgroup of the Mijikenda, or 9 villages, who largely reside along the the Kenyan Coast. Legend has it that, some women who had gone to get water one chilly morning found Baby…
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Erick Saddam
October 29, 2022
Mashujaa Day
Mashujaa Day is observed on October 20 every year. However, in case this date ever falls on a weekend, the day is shifted to the following Monday, which is then declared as a public holiday. ‘Mashujaa’ is the Swahili word for ‘Heroes,’ and because of this, Mashujaa Day is called ‘Heroes’ Day’ also. This significant…
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Erick Saddam
August 18, 2022
The Mijikenda Community of Coastal Kenya
The word ‘Mijikenda‘ directly translates to ‘nine villages’. The Mijikenda tribe, is one among the North-East Coastal Bantu groups, that inhabit the Kenyan coast. Like its name implies, the group consists of nine sub-tribes who share a similar cultural and linguistic heritage. Here is the catch – each subtribe speaks a different dialect of the…
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Emmanuellar Sidi
August 18, 2022
CHENDA CHENDA FESTIVAL
The Mijikenda people, a vibrant and diverse community along the Kenyan coast, hold a deep reverence for the number nine, known as “Chenda” in their language. This seemingly simple numeral carries profound cultural significance, serving as a unifying thread that weaves together the rich tapestry of Mijikenda heritage. The number nine is not merely a…
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Erick Saddam
June 16, 2022
Sacred Mijikenda Kaya Forests
The Mijikenda Kaya Forests consist of 10 separate forest sites spread over some 200 km along the coast containing the remains of numerous fortified villages, known as kayas, of the Mijikenda people. The kayas, created as of the 16th century but abandoned by the 1940s, are now regarded as the abodes of ancestors and are…
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