Maasai Tribe

Maasai Tribe (Swahili: Wamasai) are a Nilotic ethnic group occupying northern, central and southern Kenya and northern Tanzania, near the African Great Lakes region. Their born language is the Maasai language,a Nilotic language related to Dinka, Kalenjin and Nuer. Except for some elders living in rural areas, most Maasai people speak the official languages of Kenya and Tanzania—Swahili and English.

The Maasai residents has been reported as numbering 1,189,522 in Kenya in the 2019 census, approximated to 377,089 in the 1989 census, though many Maasai view the census as government meddling and consequently either refuse to partake or actively provide false information.

Maasai Tribe-Maasai People

The Maasai tribe are a Nilotic ethnic group inhabiting southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. They are among the best known local populations due to their residence near the many game parks of the African Great Lakes, and their distinctive customs and dress. The Maasai speak the Maa language and are a member of the Nilo-Saharan family that is related to Dinka and Nuer.

They are furthermore educated in the official languages of Kenya and Tanzania, Swahili and English. The Maasai population has been reported as numbering 841,622 in Kenya in the 2009 census, likened to 377,089 in the 1989 census.

The Tanzanian and Kenyan governments have instituted programs to encourage the Maasai to abandon their traditional semi-nomadic lifestyle, but the people have continued their age-old customs. Recently, Organizations have claimed that the lifestyle of the Maasai should be embraced as a response to climate change because of their ability to produce food in deserts and scrublands. Many Maasai tribes throughout Tanzania and Kenya welcome visits to their village to experience their culture, traditions, and lifestyle.

The Maasai people of East Africa live in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania along the Great Rift Valley on semi-arid and arid lands. The Maasai occupy a total land area of 160,000 square kilometers with a population of approximately one and a half million people.

The Maasai society is comprised of sixteen sections (known in Maasai as Iloshon): Ildamat, Ilpurko, Ilkeekonyokie, Iloitai, Ilkaputiei, Ilkankere, Isiria, Ilmoitanik, Iloodokilani, Iloitokitoki, Ilarusa, Ilmatatapato, Ilwuasinkishu, Kore, Parakuyu, and Ilkisonko, also known as Isikirari (Tanzania’s Maasai). There was also once Iltorobo section but was assimilated by other sections. A majority of the Maasai population lives in Kenya. Sections such as Isikirari, Parakuyu, Kore and Ilarusa lives in Tanzania.

Maasai Tribe-Origin, Migration and Assimilation

Based on the tribe’s oral history, the Maasai tribe derived north of Lake Turkana (north-west Kenya) in the lower Nile Valley. They started migrating south in the 15th century and reached in the long trunk of land stretching across central Tanzania and Northern Kenya during the 17th and 18 centuries. 

Many ethnic groups that had already formed settlements in the region were forcibly displaced by the incoming Maasai, while other, mainly Southern Cushitic groups, were assimilated into Maasai society. The Nilotic ancestors of the Kalenjin and Samburu likewise absorbed some early Cushitic populations.

Maasai Tribe Historical Adaptation

Tragedy struck the Maasai tribe at the turn of the century. An epidemic of deadly diseases attacked and killed large numbers of the Maasai’s animals. This was quickly followed by severe drought that lasted years. Over half of the Maasais and their animals perished during this period. Soon after, more than two-thirds of the Maasai’s land in Kenya was carried away by the British and the Kenyan government to create both ranches for settlers and Kenya and Tanzania’s wildlife reserves and national parks.

The Amboseli National Park, Nairobi National Park, Maasai Mara Game Reserve, Samburu, Lake Nakuru, and Tsavo National Parks in Kenya and the Manyara, Ngorongoro, Tarangire and Serengeti parks in Tanzania all stand on what was once the territory of the Maasai tribe.

Today, the Maasai people live on a smaller piece of land in the Kajiado and Narok districts, surrounded by these now Kenya’s fine game reserves. Many practice nomadic pastoralism, while others have been absorbed into modern day jobs working in tourism where they showcase their culture to visiting tourists.

Many Maasai people have moved away from the nomadic life to positions in commerce and government. Yet despite the sophisticated urban lifestyle they may lead, many will happily head homewards dressed in designer clothes, only to emerge from the traditional family homestead wearing a shuka (colourful piece of cloth), cow hide sandals and carrying a wooden club (o-rinka) – at ease with themselves.

Maasai Culture and Traditions

The warrior is of great importance as a source of pride in the Maasai culture. To be a Maasai is to be born into one of the world’s last great warrior cultures. From boyhood to adulthood, young Maasai boys begin to learn the responsibilities of being a man (helder) and a warrior. The role of a warrior is to protect their animals from human and animal predators, to build kraals (Maasai homes) and to provide security to their families.

Maasai Traditions – Maasai Circumcision

Among Maasai males, circumcision is practiced as a ritual of transition from boyhood to manhood. Women are also circumcised (as described below in social organization). This belief and practice are not uncommon to the Maasai. In rural Kenya, a group of 95 children aged between six months and two years were investigated in 1991/92. 87% were discovered to have undergone the removal of one or more deciduous canine tooth buds.

In an older age group (3–7 years of age), 72% of the 111 children examined displayed missing mandibular or maxillary deciduous canines. Young Maasai warrior (a junior Moran) with headdress and markings. Traditionally, the Maasai steered elaborate rite of passage rituals which include surgical genital mutilation to initiate children into adulthood. The Maa word for circumcision, “emorata,” is applied to this ritual for both males and females.

This ritual is generally performed by the elders, who use a honed knife and makeshift cattle hide bandages for the procedure.

The male ceremony refers to the excision of the prepuce (foreskin). In the male ceremony, the boy is expected to endure the operation in silence. Expressions of pain bring dishonor upon him, albeit only temporarily. Significantly, any exclamations or unexpected movements on the part of the boy can cause the elder to make a mistake in the delicate and tedious process, which can result in severe lifelong scarring, dysfunction, and pain

Maasai Culture Shelter

The Maasai tribe, historically a nomadic people, have traditionally relied on readily available materials and indigenous technology to construct their unusual and interesting housing. The traditional Maasai house was designed for people on the move and thus their houses were very impermanent. The Inkajijik (houses) are either circular or loaf-shaped, and are made by women.

Their villages are enveloped in a circular Enkang (fence) built by the men and this protects their cattle at night from wild animals.

Maasai Culture – Cultural Tours

Kenya’s safari tours enable both visiting tourists and native Kenyans to enjoy the country’s wildlife, while also exploring the Maasai’s rich cultural heritage by visiting their homes and attending Maasai cultural shows. These tours are held in Kenya’s game reserves, in particular, the Maasai Mara National reserve

The tours also provide an ideal opportunity for participants to take part in the Maasai dance and buy traditional Maasai jewelry, art and crafts to take home as souvenirs.

Maasai Way of Life

Maasai Clothing

Clothing varies by sex, age and place. Young men wear black for several months after their circumcision. Although, red is a favored color among the Maasai. Black, Blue, checked and striped cloth are also worn, together with mulitcoloured African garments. In the 1960s the Maasai began to replace sheep shin, calf hides and animal skin for more commercial material. The cloth used to wrap around the body is the called Shúkà in the Maa language.Contact a Siyabona Africa Consultant for more information on Kenya National Parks and Kenya safari accommodation options.

The milk and blood of their cattle continue to be the preferred diet of the Maasai, while the hides serve as mattresses, sandals, mats, and clothing. Cattle also act as marriage bonds, while a complex system of cattle-fines maintains social harmony. Visually stunning, the Maasai warrior with his swathe of scarlet shuka (blanket), beaded belt, dagger, intricately plaited hair, and one-legged stance remains the most enduring icon of Kenyan tourism That said, many a modern Maasai dons a suit for work but, come the weekend, and he ll be back in his beloved trad1t1onal dress.

Ear piercing and the stretching of earlobes are also part of Maasai beauty, and both men and women wear metal hoops on their stretched earlobes. Women shave their heads and remove two middle teeth on the lower jaw (for oral delivery of traditional medicine). The Maasai often walk barefooted or wear simple sandals made of cow hide.

Maasai Culture – Maasai Food

All of the Maasai’s needs for food are met by their cattle. They eat the meat, drink the milk and, on occasion, drink the blood. Bulls, oxen and lambs are slaughtered for meat on special occasions and for ceremonies. The by-products of the animals – skin and hides – are used as bedding while cow dung is used for building (it is smeared on the walls). The Maasai’s entire way of life truly revolves around their cattle.

The effects of modern civilization, education and western influence have not completely spared this unique and interesting tribe. Some of the Maasai tribe’s deep-rooted culture is slowly fading away. Customs, activities and rituals such as female circumcision and cattle raiding have been outlawed by modern legislation. Maasai children now have access to education and some Maasai have moved from their homeland to urban areas where they have secured jobs.

The Maasai tribe now occupy a much smaller area in the Kajiado and Narok districts as their vast territory has been taken over by some of Kenya’s game reserves. The Maasai’s territory now overlaps with the Serengeti plains in Tanzania and Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya – an area famous for the huge Wildebeest migration that take place every year, when up to a million animals move from the north end of the plains to the south. However, the Maasai’s authentic and intriguing culture is a tourist attraction on its own.

Maasai Tribe – Private Ownership

The concept of private ownership was, until recently, a foreign concept to the Maasai. However, in the 1960s and 1980s, a program of commercializing livestock and land was forced on us initially by the British and later by the government of Kenya. Since then, our land has been subdivided into group and individual ranches. In other parts of Maasai land people subdivided their ranches into small plots, which are sold to private developers.

The new land management system of individual ranches has economically polarized our people; some Maasais, as well as outside wealthy individuals, have substantially increased their wealth at the expense of others. The largest loss of land, however, has been to national parks and reserves, in which the Maasai people are restricted from accessing critical water sources, pasture, and salt lick. Subdivision of Maasai land reduced land size for cattle herding, reduced the number of cows per household, and reduced food production.

As a result, the Maasai society, which once was a proud and self-sufficient society, is now facing many socioeconomic and political challenges. The level of poverty among the Maasai people is beyond conceivable height. It is sad to see a society that had a long tradition of pride in being a beggar for relief food because of imposed foreign concepts of development.

Maasai Tribe – Social Responsibility

The Maasai live in Kraals arranged circularly. The fence around the kraal is made of acacia thorns, which prevent lions from attacking the cattle. It is a man’s responsibility to fence the kraal. While women construct the houses. Traditionally, kraals are shared by an extended family. However, due to the new land management system in the Maasai region, it is not uncommon to see a kraal occupied by a single family.

The Inkajijik (Maasai word for a house) are loaf-shaped and made of mud, sticks, grass, cow dung and cow’s urine. Women are responsible for making the houses as well as supplying water, collecting firewood, milking cattle and cooking for the family. Warriors are in charge of security while boys are responsible for herding livestock.

During the drought season, both warriors and boys assume the responsibility for herding livestock. The elders are directors and advisors for day-to-day activities. Every morning before livestock leave to graze, an elder who is the head of the inkang sits on his chair and announces the schedule for everyone to follow.

The Maasai are a semi-nomadic people who lived under a communal land management system. The movement of livestock is based on seasonal rotation. Contrary to many claims made by outsiders, particularly the Hardinian school of thought, this communal land management system allows us to utilize resources sustainably.

Each section manages its own territory. Under normal conditions, reserve pastures are fallowed and guarded by the warriors. However, if the dry season becomes especially harsh, sections boundaries are ignored and people graze animals throughout the land until the rainy season arrives. According to Maasai traditional land agreement, no one should be denied access to natural resources such as water and land.

Maasai Culture – Economic Activities

Livestock such as cattle, goats and sheep are the primary source of income for the Maasai. Livestock serves as a social utility and plays an important role in the Maasai economy. Livestock are traded for other livestock, cash or livestock products such as milk and siege. Individual, families, and clans established close ties through giving or exchanging of cattle. “Meishoo iyiook Enkai inkishu o-nkera”- so goes a Maasai prayer. The English translation of this prayer is: “May Creator give us cattle and children. Cattle and children are the most important aspect of the Maasai people.

The Maasai economy is increasingly dependent on the market economy. Livestock products are sold to other groups in Kenya for the purchase of beads, clothing and grains. Cows and goats are also sold for uniform and school fees for children. It is now common to see young Maasai men and women in major towns and cities of Kenya selling, not just goats and cows, but also beads, cell phones, charcoal, grain among other items. The entrepreneurial spirit is something new in our society.

It was not until the early 1980s with the Group Ranch project that we became much more entrenched in a market economy and, hence, more impoverished generally speaking.

Maasai Tribe- Music and Dance

Maasai music traditionally consists of rhythms provided by a chorus of vocalists singing harmonies while a song leader, or olaranyani, sings the melody. The olaranyani is usually the singer who can best sing that song, although several individuals may lead a song. The olaranyani begins by singing a line or title (namba) of a song.

The group will respond with one unanimous call in acknowledgment, and the olaranyani will sing a verse over the group’s rhythmic throat singing. Each song has its specific namba structure based on call-and-response. Common rhythms are variations of 5/4, 6/4 and 3/4 time signatures.

Lyrics follow a typical theme and are often repeated verbatim over time. Neck movements accompany singing. When breathing out the head is leaned forward. The head is tilted back for an inward breath. Overall the effect is one of polyphonic syncopation. Unlike most other African tribes, Maasai widely use drone polyphony.

Maasai Women

Women chant lullabies, humming songs, and songs praising their sons. Nambas, the call-and-response pattern, repetition of nonsense phrases, monophonic melodies repeated phrases following each verse being sung on a descending scale, and singers responding to their own verses are characteristic of singing by females. When many Maasai women gather together, they sing and dance among themselves.

One exception to the vocal nature of Maasai music is the use of the horn of the Greater Kudu to summon Morans for the Eunoto ceremony.

Both singing and dancing sometimes occur around Manyattas, and involve flirting. Young men will form a line and chant rhythmically, “Oooooh-yah”, with a growl and staccato cough along with the thrust and withdrawal of their lower bodies. Girls stand in front of the men and make the same pelvis lunges while singing a high dying fall of “Oiiiyo..yo” in counterpoint to the men. Although bodies come in close proximity, they do not touch.

The Maasai Dance

Eunoto, the coming of age ceremony of the warrior, can involve ten or more days of singing, dancing and ritual. The warriors of the Il-Oodokilani perform a kind of march-past as well as the Adumu, or Aigus, sometimes referred as “the jumping dance” by non-Maasai. (both Adumu and Aigus) are Maa verbs meaning “to jump” with Adumu meaning “To jump up and down in a dance?

Warriors are well known for, and often photographed during this competitive jumping. A circle is formed by the warriors, and one or two at a time will enter the center to begin jumping while maintaining a narrow posture, never letting their heels touch the ground. Members of the group may raise the pitch of their voices based on the height of the jump.

Maasai Ladies

The girlfriends of the Moran (intoyie) parade themselves in their most spectacular costumes as part of the Eunoto. The mothers of the Moran sing and dance in tribute to the courage and daring of their sons.

Interesting Maasai Facts

• Cattle play an important role in Maasai life. It is their primary source of food.A man’s wealth is measured in terms of cattle he owns and children he has.
• The Maasai are semi-nomadic which is a result of their raising cattle and the need to find new grazing land.
• Maasai families live in an enclosure called a Enkang which typically contains ten to twenty small huts. The enclosure is protected by a fence or bushes with sharp thorns.
• Maasai huts are very small, with usually only one or two rooms and not high enough for these tall people to stand.
• Traditionally these people of Africa do not bury their dead. Burials are believed to harm the soil and is reserved only for some chiefs. Most dead bodies are simply left outside for scavengers.
• In the mid 1800’s the Maasai territory reached its greatest size. It covered almost all of the great rift valley and several other adjacent lands.
• It is widely believed the Maasai people originated in the Nile valley. It is believed these people of Africa left the Nile Valley in the 15th or 16th century reaching their current home in the Great Rift Valley around the 17th or 18th century

Maasai Tribe- The Keepers of God’s cattle

It’s one of Kenya’s most iconic images, the Maasai warrior in his traditional pose, spear in hand, scarlet shuka cloak thrown over his shoulder, one leg raised to rest on the other, gaze turned to the far horizon. Certainly the most visually striking of the colourful tribes of Kenya, the Nilo-Hamitic Maasai are a nomadic people whose style of life has remained unchanged for centuries and is still dictated by the constant quest for water and grazing land for their cattle.

Called ‘Maasai ‘after their form of speech, which is known as ‘Maa’, the Maasai are renowned for their bravery. They are also distinguished by their complex character, good manners, impressive presence and almost mystical love of their cattle. These days ‘I hope your cattle are well’ is still the most common form of Maasai greeting, whilst milk and blood remains the traditional Maasai diet.

Cowhides provide such things as mattresses, live cattle establish marriage bonds, and a complex system of cattle-fines maintains social harmony. Thought to have migrated to Kenya from the lower valleys of the Nile, the Maasai encountered a troubled history in their adopted home.

Firstly their people were decimated by famine and disease, secondly they lost many of their cattle to the scourge of rinderpest, thirdly their development was affected by the arrival of the European explorers and, finally, they lost much of their land to the influx of British colonialist settlers. Nor did their dispossession end there, because in recent years they have also had to endure the steady shrinkage of their ancestral lands thanks to urban settlement and the establishment of the National Parks and Reserves.

Undeterred, however, the Maasai have risen to the challenge. Many have entered into cooperative ventures with the tourism industry and created lodges and conservancies on their land. And, rather than killing lions as was the custom of the young warriors of the past, the morans of today are actively engaged in protecting them. Some things, however, never change – such as the Maasai love of their cattle.

No matter how large the herd, each cow will have a name and a lineage. And only in the harshest of circumstances will a Maasai part with a single animal. Why do the Maasai love their cattle so dearly? Perhaps the best explanation is given by the Maasai themselves in the following folk tale.

In the beginning, the Maasai did not have any cattle. Then one day God called to Maasinta, who was the first Maasai, and said to him, ‘I want you to make a large enclosure, and when you have done so, come back and inform me’. Maasinta went and did as he was instructed. Then, God said, ‘tomorrow, very early in the morning, go and stand in the enclosure and I will give you something called cattle. But keep very silent no matter what you might see or hear.’

Very early in the morning, Maasinta went to the enclosure and waited. Suddenly there was a great clap of thunder and a leather thong descended from heaven. Down it descended hundreds of cattle in all the colours of brown and black, some with great horns, others with velvet dewlaps. Meanwhile the earth shook so violently that Maasinta’s house nearly fell over and he was gripped with tremendous fear, but he did not make a sound.

It was at this moment that Dorobo, who shared the house with Maasinta, woke from his sleep and went outside. There, seeing the cattle descending down the leather thong, he let out a great shriek.

Immediately God withdrew the thong into heaven and, thinking that it was Maasinta who had shrieked, He said to him, ‘what’s the matter? Are these cattle not enough for you? If that is the case, I will never send anymore – so you had better love these cattle in the same way that I love you.’ And that is why the Maasai love their cattle so much.

Walking with the Masai

‘To understand a man, you must walk a mile in his moccasins’, or so says the native American proverb. Journalist and travel writer, Stuart Butler, doesn’t adopt the traditional Maasai footwear known as ‘thousand milers’, which are sandals made out of old car tyres, but he does walk many miles across Maasailand in the company of his Masai friend, Josphat Mako. And his understanding of the Maasai culture is enhanced with every step he takes.

10 facts about the Maasai tribe

• They are lion hunter.
• After death rituals.
• They are nomads.God has given them all the cattle.
• The wealth is measured in terms of cattle.
• There are about one million of them.
• Their clothing & ornaments.
• They don’t eat meat but drink the fresh blood of the animals.
• Maasai jumping dance fact.
• They have learned to live with the lions and other predators.