Meet the Luhya

The Luhya are a Bantu speaking tribal group in Kenya, the second largest ethnic group in the country making up about 14% of Kenya's total population. There are 16 sub-tribes among the Luhya of Kenya, each with a distinct dialect. In Kenya, the principal settlement of the Luhya is the western province neighboring the Rift Valley and Nyanza provinces, and they are the most densely populated group in Kenya.

There are several beliefs as to the origin of the Luhya; however it is commonly accepted that they fled Egypt because of famine, droughts, civil wars, diseases, and Roman taxation before settling in the area of what is now Northern Kenya, Southern Ethiopia, Southern Sudan and Northern Uganda. Before colonization leadership was democratic in nature, and the Luhya ruled over a large geographic area that, comparatively, was equivalent to almost a third of Texas. In 1883, Joseph Thomson was the first European known to pass through Luhya territory on foot. The Luhya strongly resisted British incursions into their territory, and they fought hard to retain their land over the decades that followed. However, the British had machine guns and massacred over a hundred warriors who were armed only with spears, hide shields, and bows and arrows. Eventually, in the 1950s, Nabongo Mumia, the King of the Luhya, was forced to sign treaties with the British after being defeated, allowing the colonial authorities to subject the Luhya to British rule.

Luhya culture revolves around the extended family, and polygamy was allowed and common. About 10 to 15 families traditionally made up a village, headed by a village headman who was also a shaman and/or healer. Within a family, hierarchy was strictly enforced; the man of the home was the ultimate authority, followed by his first-born son. Daughters had no permanent position; they were viewed as other men's future wives, and were brought up to fulfill this role.

The Luhya had extensive customs surrounding death and considered funerals with high regard as a custom to please the ancestors. There would be a great celebration at the home of the deceased, with mourners staying at the funeral for up to forty days. If the deceased was a wealthy or influential man, a big tree would be uprooted and the deceased would be buried there, after the burial another tree would be planted. Nowadays, the mourners stay for shorter periods of time – about one week – and the celebrations are held at the time of burial, with a single closing ceremony to end the forty days.

Today many Luhyas live in urban towns and cities besides their rural homeland. The majority of Luhyas can be found in nearly all urban towns for work, school or economic reasons. Most still maintain their land or property in western Kenya.

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