Wherever you go on the east african safari circuit of southern kenya and northern tanzania, the maasai people are a nearconstant presence. Chyulu conservation responsible tourism campi ya kanzi. There were even times in which the maasai were not allowed to use public means of transportation if. Inpracticeprosecutionisrare,probablybecause of the group e. The maasai are an indigenous ethnic group in africa of seminomadic people settled in kenya and northern tanzania. The maasai tribe is the most authentic ethnic tribe of kenya. The maaspeaking inhabit both kenya and tanzania most of their territory. By choosing campi ya kanzi for your kenya safari youll actively protect them and help the maasai community. Wildlife conservation in kenya and tanzania and effects on. Tanzanian government plans to exclude maasai from some traditional pastoral lands in the name of wildlife conservation have met with protest and global media attention. Documentation of maasai culture field work september december 2016 jennifer sharp and laangakwa twati.
Maasai is a widely spoken language in kenya and tanzania, with at least 5 million speakers. The purpose of this paper will be to explore the use of critical democratic pedagogy through the arts in schools as an educational policy tool to increase critical inquiry, student voice in issues of equity and social justice, and student engagement for maasai youth. Maasai culture maasai society is patriarchical in nature with the elders deciding most matters for each maasai group. Commercial hunting companies, in the villages of lendikenya and selela, use. The maasai has received the most written recognition of all the tribes of this region of africa and prove to be very interesting to study. This was relatively easy as long as the management and ownership of natural resources, including. The deterioration of savanna directly affects maasai. A visit to a maasai tribe is a popular stop on nearly every safari youll take through tanzania and kenya. Maasai culture is unique and their customs are sometimes thought of as controversial. After all, it is the must see tribe to see when going to the serengeti or masai mara. One threat to the maasai has come from from game hunters in the loliondo region of northern tanzania. To understand and document maasai culture in its current form, data was collected under four themes. Unless the ever growing conflict between the two groups can be diminished, park development may only serve to sustain troubled african economies temporarily. The present system of park development may in the end endanger both the wildlife and the maasai.
The maasai people have traditionally viewed the killing of lions as a rite of passage. For the past decades, it has seen continuous growth in highvolume, lowrevenue tourism. Although researchers in kenya claim that maasai hunting of lions is threatening. Maasai agriculture and land use change by andrew conroy, ph. The maasai settled on land stretching from kenya to central tanzania. Mwcts international team of experts works with the maasai community on a knowledgesharing basis to create and implement holistic and comprehensive programs in conservation, health, and education that serve the community, the wilderness, and the wildlife that are so important to us all. Although researchers in kenya claim that maasai hunt. Aug 17, 2019 a visit to a maasai tribe is a popular stop on nearly every safari youll take through tanzania and kenya. Associate professor, university of new hampshire, usa the maasai are a wellknown ethnic group around the world. We evaluated the relationship between agricultural landuse and its spatial correlates using multiple logistic regression on data derived from satellite imageries for the year 2000. But the incredible wilderness and wildlife of africas grasslands and the famous culture of the maasai people both. In the 1550s they moved down along the nile from sudan and egypt and brought with them knowledge on agriculture and cattle breeding. Due to their distinct traditions, customs and dress and their residence near the many national game parks of east africa, the maasai are among the foremost african ethnic groups and are known internationally because of their links. Mostly they retain only the driest and least fertile areas.
Obc is reportedly linked to the united arab emirates royal families. As the maasai are integrated into modern kenyan and tanzanian life, they also participate in. The peoples movement is dictated by the livestocks needs i. The effects of globalisation, technology and governance are just as apparent in maasai lives as they are elsewhere. Lion hunting was symbolically a rite of passage of the past. Growing up maasai on the african savanna by joseph lemasolai lekuton. Here, maasai villages have been burnt to the ground by the authorities, and thousands have brutally evicted to provide a company, otterlo business corporation ltd obc, with more access to land for game hunting. Maasai daytour id29896390 pdfmachine by broadgun software a great pdf writer. Here are 5 things you need to know to get a clearer picture of these fascinating people. If this could be reestablished, by showing to the maasai the economic value of the presence of wildlife in their land, the future of the land, of the wildlife and of the maasai people will be assured. Maasai men are born and raised to be warriors, while the women spend most of their time learning to cook, clean, prepare. Maasai not masai is the correct spelling of this noble tribe. Most spend their days either barefoot or in their traditional shoes made of car tires. For instance, there is the saying naamoni aiyai, which means the she to whom i pray.
Conservationists are increasingly aware of the problems facing east africa. Pdf analysis of a maasai arrow poison researchgate. A maasai herder tends his cattle photo taken by thomson safaris guest, beverly halliwellross. At present, kenyan government has banned the lion hunting so men under 40 years old do not have the experience of hunting a lion. Despite education, civilization and western cultural influences, the maasai people have clung to their traditional way. Natural resources that maasai utilize are plants found in savanna for cattle breeding and firewood and medicinal plants for their own use. A mixedmethods approach was used to verify the his tory of all lion killers, who were identified through their lion names. Perhaps the most revered of the great african nomadic tribes, the maasai originated in the nile basin and migrated. Warriors went as far as eastern tanzania to raid cattle. This migrational wave experienced a peak during the 18th century.
The maasai are the most widely known african ethnic group located in kenya and northern tanzania. Predictors of lion killing by maasai warriors plos. In 1992 the tanzanian government granted the ortello business corporation obc exclusive safari and hunting rights in an area of maasailand called loliondo, in northern tanzania. As the maasai are integrated into modern kenyan and tanzanian life, they also participate in secular nonreligious state holidays. The world increasingly relies on many traditional communities like the maasai to protect the ecological treasures that exist within the land that they own. In the past, a male who turn 18 was circumcised and added to the lion hunters as a rite of passage. The maasai believes believe that he or she is the creator of everything. The maasai occupy a total land area of 160,000 square kilometers with a population of approximately one half million people. Maasailand grew to cover most of the great rift valley in kenya and tanzania. Maasai wilderness conservation trust kenya wildlife. We employed pra techniques, including semistructured interviews. I like the fact that the maasai tribe live a simple life and rely solely on nature for their subsistence. The maasai people are tied to and are very much dependent on land and livestock for their upkeep and livelihood.
Except for some elders living in rural areas, most maasai people speak the official languages of kenya and tanzania, swahili and english. The maasai is a proud and independent tribal community living in southern kenya and northern tanzania, along the great rift valley. The stress this causes to their herds has often been aggravated by attempts made by governments to develop the maasai. It is said to be one of the twelve great languages of the east africa. The first report examines the current day to day life of a married maasai woman. If anyone is about to carry out a lion hunt, the lion guardians try and persuade them not to.
The maasai are an ethnic and semi nomadic tribe that is located in southern kenya and northern tanzania. Historically, lion hunts were done by individuals, however, due to reduced lion populations, lion hunts done solo are discouraged by elders. The maasai maasai a traditional tribe undergoing change the maasai are traditional, seminomadic pastoralists in east africa. The kore, a subgroup of the maasai were captured by the somali people. Maasai hunting of lions in both countries usually occurs without following procedures outlined in the law and seems to be tolerated by the authorities. Conflict and conservation in masai mara, kenya was a three year research and training programme based in and around the masai mara national reserve, kenya.
Maasaidaytour id29896390 pdfmachine by broadgun software a great pdf writer. The positive and negative impacts of ecotourism on african. The maasai culture and traditions maasai wilderness. But the incredible wilderness and wildlife of africas grasslands and the famous culture of the maasai people both face daunting threats to their longterm survival. A glimpse into the culture of the maasai the maasai sometimes spelled masai people compose one of the many diverse tribes of africa, occupying much of southern kenya and northern tanzania. A walking and 4wd expedition to learn about the location. Youll see the brightly colored reds, blues and purples of their shuka sheets worn wrapped around the body, one over each shoulder, then a third over the top of them standing out vividly against the landscape, whether in small mudthatched villages. Unlike those around them, the maasai managed to protect most of their traditions and culture from the outside world.
This pas week the maasai went on the rampage and killed 10 cape buffalo, up wards of 10 elephants of which one was a parks prize, plus a few lions. The maasai thereby lost many tracts of land and they were either expelled from their own land or, were forcibly relocated to special reserves. Despite education, civilization and western cultural influences, the maasai people have clung to their traditional way of life, making them a symbol of kenyan culture. However, many maasai see the national census as government meddling and often miscount. Ngai means sky and can neither be a male nor female however it can have different aspects.
In the past, the maasai and the wildlife simply lived together, in balance. It was a collaborative programme between the university of kent, uk and six kenyan partner institutions. Solo lion hunting required confidence and advance hunting skills. Little is known about their foot structure and gait. The maasai community, with the help of local and foreign conservationists, has created the maasai olympics to replace their lion hunting rite of passage. Information given here is not a manual for lion hunting. Italians have pasta, russians have borscht, and americans have cheeseburgers and cherry pie. Pdf populations of the african lion panthera leo are declining dramatically, with the species survival in. Although they walk long distances of up to sixty kilometers a day, they do not suffer from any foot ailments. This is the tribe that is in all the brochures and magazines. The maasai people of east africa live in southern kenya and northern tanzania along the great rift valley on semiarid and arid lands. The maasai people respect the cows which provide them most of their essential needs such as milk, blood, meat, fat, and hide. At loitokitok in rift valley province, the maasai, who are nomadic herdsmen whose diet had. The laibon or spiritual leader acts as the liaison between the maasai and god, named enkai or engai, as well as the source of maasai herblore.
Today, they speak somali instead of maa, but they still identify as. Maasai tribe masai people of kenya history and culture. Hunting of lion is only permitted when a lion attacks cattle. Local communities have very little to gain from this, while the wildlife has only to suffer. For many years, the maasai communities in kenya and tanzania practiced nomadic pastoralism a highly mobile cattle herding lifestyle in which the irregular wet and dryseason climatic pulses dictated their movement in search of water and pasture. Maasai tribe replaces lion hunting rite of passage with olympics.
For our brothers in the indigenous fraternity, i want to give a brief explanation of our dilemma as indigenous people. The maasai mara reserve is one of the worlds most famous and recognizable safari destinations. We then examined the implications of the agricultural landuse. Maasai people are often viewed as a nomadic tribe who follows their herds to better. The maasai and the lions answers answers to the maasai and the lions exercises. This is exactly what maasai wilderness conservation trust does. Maasai ceremonial feasts for circumcision, excision female circumcision, and marriage offer occasions for festive community celebrations, which may be considered similar to holidays. Maasai introduction, location, language, folklore, religion. Spatial correlates of landuse changes in the maasai steppe. Official fam trip northern circuit kilimanjaro program. Techniques in wildlife management sfs 3710 the school for field studies sfs center for wildlife management studies cwms karatu, tanzania this syllabus may develop or change over time based on local conditions, learning opportunities, and faculty expertise.
Since many of the guardians have killed lions in the past and are very. I learned so much about the maasai tribe since there were many things i was totally clueless about, such as the fact that the maasai tribe of africa, first originated from the nile valley region. Preamble as you depart from the kenya airport for the outside world, you will notice the big billboards advertising mobile phones with a maasai man balancing on one leg, and in full moraan gear, looking greater than the greatest. The maasai tribe or masai is a unique and popular tribe due to their long preserved culture. The maasai believe in one god, whom they call ngai. The maasai are called maasai after their particular speech, maa. The funds are earmarked for wildlife pays, a compensation program where all losses caused by wildlife to the maasai livestock are reimbursed to the community, if predators are not killed. Photographs of the maasai are frequently at the center of tourist guidebooks, as well as documentary films about east africa and its wildlife. Most of what used to be maasai land has already been taken over, for private farms and ranches, for government projects, wildlife parks or private hunting concessions. Brush up your knowledge on the maasai tribe of africa. Critical democratic pedagogy through the arts in indigenous. An arrow poison prepared by traditional methods from acokanthera schimperi in the maasai plains of kenya was shown to contain acolongifloroside k as its major active principle, as well as smaller.