Samburu

The Samburu is a people group in Kenya related to the Maasai. They presently live in the Rift Valley Province, above the equator where the foothills of Mount Kenya merge into the Northern Desert just South of Lake Turkana. They are a semi-nomadic, pastoral community that raise cattle, sheep, goats, and camels. There are over 150,000 individuals in this community and their economy is based on livestock. They refer to themselves as “Loikop.”
The Samburu live in groups of 5-10 families in camps called Manyattas. They usually move every 5 weeks to new pastures. These Manyattas consist of structures with plastered mud or hides and grass mats stretched over a frame of poles. They protect their flocks and huts with fence of thorns that completely surrounds the area. The Samburu dress in traditional clothing, which consists of bright red material like a skirt (called a Shukkas) and beaded jewelry. They typically remain more traditional in life and attitude than the Maasai and modern life is undesirable for them. The Samburu speak their own language, Samburu, which is a Maa language similar to Maasai dialects. The Samburu sustain themselves on milk, which is sometimes mixed with blood. Meat is very precious and is only eaten on special occasions. Their religion is mixed, some follow the traditional religion and others practice christianity. They love to sing and dance but do not use instruments during this activity. The sport enjoyed my men is high-jumping from a standing position. The adult men care for the grazing cattle while the women maintain huts, milk cows, obtain water, and collect firewood. The roles of the boys and girls are very similar in that boys heard cattle and goats, learn to hunt, and defend the flocks. The girls help the woman with fetching water and firewood. Both boys and girls go through initiation into adulthood, which includes training into adult responsibilities and circumcision or clitoridectomy. Violence against women is prevalent and polygamy is a common practice. The women are the property of men and have few rights of their own. The biggest challenge to the Samburu is lack of access to clean drinking water.