DOCSLIB.ORG

Politics and Nationalism in Colonial Kenya: the Case of the Babukusu of Bungoma District, C

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Politics and Nationalism in Colonial Kenya: the Case of the Babukusu of Bungoma District, C Politics and nationalism in colonial Kenya: the case of the Babukusu of Bungoma District, C. 1894-1963 Peter Weseka To cite this version: Peter Weseka. Politics and nationalism in colonial Kenya: the case of the Babukusu of Bungoma District, C. 1894-1963. Social Anthropology and ethnology. 2000. dumas-01302492 HAL Id: dumas-01302492 https://dumas.ccsd.cnrs.fr/dumas-01302492 Submitted on 14 Apr 2016 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. POLITICS AND NATIONALISM IN COLONIAL KENYA: THE CASE OF THE BABUKUSU OF BUNGOMA DISTRICT, C. 1894— 1963 BY PETER WAFULA WEKESA A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF ARTS H PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS OF KENYATTA UNIVERSITY. JUNE 2000. FRA FRAOO683 OL / c5 Ii Declaration This thesis is my original work and to the best of my knowledge has not been submitted for a degree in any other university. Peter Wafula Wekesa This thesis has been submitted with our approval as University Supervisors Prof. Eric Masinde Aseka tIU DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my parents, Silvester Wafula Wekesa and Loice Nabukwangwa Wafula, my wife J4edwig Joy Ombunda and our son Ian Sirniyu Waflula. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The research and interpretative efforts that resulted in this thesis received great assistance from various people and institutions. Although I cannot sufficiently express my gratitude to all of them for lack of adequate words, space and time, let me take this opportunity to mention a few of them. First, I would like to express my sincere and special gratitude to Kenyatta University and the Department of History for awarding me a scholarship and allowing me to pursue studies for the degree of Master of Arts. It is within the Department of Histoiy that my intellectual abilities were nurtured and developed. In the same vein, I wish to extend my appreciation to the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) for advancing to me a research grant that went a long way in helping me complete the research. Second, my special appreciation goes to my supervisors, Prof. Eric Masinde Aseka and Dr. Mildred A. J. Ndeda for their invaluable advice and guidance at all the stages of the thesis. Their commitment and tireless sacrifice to read, edit, comment, and provide very stimulating and thought provoking suggestions made the conclusion of the thesis feasible. Third, I am deeply indebted to my lecturers in the Department of History, Kenyatta University whose invaluable suggestions and insights into this work continued to be a source of encouragement all through the tenure of the research. They not only provided a scholarly environment that I required but also inspired me both materially and morally. Special mention here should be made of Prof. G. Jal, Dr. H. Kiriama, S. M. V Omwoyo, B. A. Gimode, L. Ngari, D.O. Okello, L. Lemoosa, W. Ndiiri, E. Kisiang'ani, J. Imbisi, F. Kiruthu, W. Musalia, Dr. P. Kakai Wanyonyi and Godwin Rapando Murunga. The latter two deserve additional merit for not only availing to me the relevant literature that broadened my approach to the topic, but also for providing a good forum for academic discussions. They constantly supported me in various ways when the work threatened to stall. Further thanks are expressed to the staff of several libraries that were supportive and helpful during the research. The librarians at the Moi library at Kenyatta University, the Jomo Kenyatta Memorial Library at University of Nairobi, the Macmillan library and the Kenya National Archives deserve special gratitude. Their friendliness and readiness to avail the relevant literature made the work of the thesis a reality. My thanks are also due to all the informants who yielded valuable data in the field. Their constant interest in the work, their warm welcome and openness during the interviews produced useful results for the thesis. Special mention here should be made of Uncle Protus Watima and L. Wangwe for introducing me to various informants in Chwele and Malakisi areas respectively. I am also deeply indebted to members of my family for the support, encouragement and warm hospitality, which they provided to me. To my parents, Silvester Wafula Wekesa and Loice Nabukwangwa Wafula of Lumboka village, I do not know how to thank them well enough. They have always supported my academic pursuits up to this level. It is their sacrifice and foresight that has always opened academic opportunities for me. To my Uncles, Cleophas and Richard Wekesa, sister Phillis vi Wabuke, brother Chrispinus Wafula, Cousin Godfrey Sifuna Wanyonyi and auntie Caro Wamaiwa thank you for your moral and fmancial support. You always ensured that I was comfortable. To my treasured wife Hedwig Ombunda, my thanks are inexpressible. Her patience, understanding and encouragement made this work come to a fruitful completion. To our son Ian Simiyu Wafula I thank him for allowing me to use the books and pens that he always wanted to 'use'. I know how much I deprived him of time and resources in the pursuit of this noble goal. I would also like to register my appreciation to my colleagues and friends. Together we endured the struggle and shared a wide range of academic ideas. My only classmate Maximus Koimbori,, Martin Nabiswa Wasike, Zachary A. Kwena, Musa Olaka Wakhungu and Micheal Wainaina Mwaura continued to be a source of encouragement to me. Finally, my sincere appreciation goes to Metrine Makanda and Mary Khaemba for the tedious work of neatly typing all the chapters of the thesis. I feel proud of their effort to bring the work to its fmal form. Any errors in the work, however, whether of omission or commission are entirely my own. Vill TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE Declaration------------------ - --------------------------------------------------------- ii Dedication----------------------------------------------------------------------------- iii Acknowledgement------------------------------------------------------------------ iv Table of Contents-------------------------------------------------------------------- vii List of Abbreviations---------------------------------------------------------------- x Abstract------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Xi CHAPTER ONE 1.0. Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 1.1 Area of the Study----------------------------------------------------------- 3 Maps------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6 1.2. Literature Review --------------------------- - ------------------------------ 8 1.3. Statement of the Problem------------------------------------------------ 16 1.4. Objectives of the Study ------------------------------------- ------------- 17 1.5. Research Premises-------------------------------------------------------- 17 1.6. Theoretical Framework-------------------------------------------------- 18 1.7. Justification and Significance of the Study--------------------------- 24 1.8. Research Methodology-------------------------------------------------- 25 1.9. Scope and Limitation of the Study------------------------------------- 28 CHAPTER TWO 2.0 THE BUKUSU SOCIETY, ITS POLITICAL ORGANIZATION AND RELATIONS WITH NEIGHBOURING COMMUNITIES ON THE EYE OF THE COLONIAL RULE ------------------------------------29 2.1. Introduction---------------------------------------------------------------- 29 2.2. Migration, settlement and Early History of the Babukusu 30 2.3. The Political and Social organisation of the Bukusu Society 40 2.4. The Bukusu Relations with Neighbouring communities-------------- 55 2.5. Summary ------------------------------------- --------------------------- 62 CHAPTER THREE 3.0. ASPECTS OF THE BUKUSU ECONOMY, RELIGION AND EDUCATION----------------------------------------------------66 3.1. Introduction---------------------------------------------------------------66 3.2. The Economy of the Babukusu-----------------------------------------66 VIII 3.3. The Babukusu Relations with the Arab-Swahili Traders------------70 3.4. Religious activities among the Babukusu ---------------- ------------- 78 3.5. The Bukusu Indigenous education-------------------------------------83 3.6. Summary------------------------------------------------------------------ 91 CHAPTER FOUR 4.0. THE EARLY BUKUSU RESISTANCE TO BRITISH COLONIALISM TO C. 1918---------------------------------------- 93 4.1. Introduction--------------------------------------------------------------- 93 4.2. The European penetration in Western Kenya and the Establishment of colonial Rule ----------------------------------------- 94 4.3. The Lumboka-chetambe war and its aftermath--------------------- 102 4.4. The Bukusu Nationalism after the Establishment of Colonial administration-------------------------------------------- 121 4.5. Summary--------------------------------------------------------------- 153 CHAPTER FIVE 5.0. THE BUKUSU NATIONALIST POLITICS IN THE INTER-WAR PERIOD----------------------------------------------- 156 5.1. Introduction---------------------------------------------------------------
Load more

Recommended publications
  • LCSH Section K
    K., Rupert (Fictitious character) Motion of K stars in line of sight Ka-đai language USE Rupert (Fictitious character : Laporte) Radial velocity of K stars USE Kadai languages K-4 PRR 1361 (Steam locomotive) — Orbits Ka’do Herdé language USE 1361 K4 (Steam locomotive) UF Galactic orbits of K stars USE Herdé language K-9 (Fictitious character) (Not Subd Geog) K stars—Galactic orbits Ka’do Pévé language UF K-Nine (Fictitious character) BT Orbits USE Pévé language K9 (Fictitious character) — Radial velocity Ka Dwo (Asian people) K 37 (Military aircraft) USE K stars—Motion in line of sight USE Kadu (Asian people) USE Junkers K 37 (Military aircraft) — Spectra Ka-Ga-Nga script (May Subd Geog) K 98 k (Rifle) K Street (Sacramento, Calif.) UF Script, Ka-Ga-Nga USE Mauser K98k rifle This heading is not valid for use as a geographic BT Inscriptions, Malayan K.A.L. Flight 007 Incident, 1983 subdivision. Ka-houk (Wash.) USE Korean Air Lines Incident, 1983 BT Streets—California USE Ozette Lake (Wash.) K.A. Lind Honorary Award K-T boundary Ka Iwi National Scenic Shoreline (Hawaii) USE Moderna museets vänners skulpturpris USE Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary UF Ka Iwi Scenic Shoreline Park (Hawaii) K.A. Linds hederspris K-T Extinction Ka Iwi Shoreline (Hawaii) USE Moderna museets vänners skulpturpris USE Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction BT National parks and reserves—Hawaii K-ABC (Intelligence test) K-T Mass Extinction Ka Iwi Scenic Shoreline Park (Hawaii) USE Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children USE Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction USE Ka Iwi National Scenic Shoreline (Hawaii) K-B Bridge (Palau) K-TEA (Achievement test) Ka Iwi Shoreline (Hawaii) USE Koro-Babeldaod Bridge (Palau) USE Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement USE Ka Iwi National Scenic Shoreline (Hawaii) K-BIT (Intelligence test) K-theory Ka-ju-ken-bo USE Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test [QA612.33] USE Kajukenbo K.
    [Show full text]
  • Sporadic Ethnic Violence Why Has Kenya Not Experienced a Full Blown Civil
    Sporadic Ethnic Violence Why Has Kenya Not Experienced a Full-Blown Civil War? 5 MWANGI S. KIMENYI AND NJUGUNA S. NDUNG’U xtreme poverty and the collapse of law and order can become mutually reinforcing, producing a conflict trap (Blomberg et al. 2000; Elbadawi, ENdung’u, and Njuguna 2001). In Sub-Saharan Africa, many countries are caught in such a conflict trap and one out of every five people is directly affected by civil wars (Elbadawi et al. 2001). In Kenya, poverty levels almost doubled in the 1990s, a decade marred by ethnic violence, but the country has avoided the con- flict trap.This chapter analyzes civil conflict in Kenya and asks why the cycles of ethnic conflict have not escalated into a full-blown civil war. A civil war can be said to occur when a trigger factor, or a combination of fac- tors,results in what may be referred to as a “tipping point,”when factions in a soci- ety engage in an all-out armed conflict. Before that tipping point is reached, a country may be characterized by tensions but not by widespread conflict.For many countries, the triggers for a civil war are not strong enough to result in a tipping point;hence such countries are characterized by relative peace,although there may be tensions within the society among different factions. In a number of studies, Paul Collier and his colleagues have sought to explain the determinants of civil wars.They provide a systematic analysis of the causal factors of civil war initiation, duration, and recurrence.
    [Show full text]
  • A Genealogical Linguistic Implication of the Abaluhyia Naming System
    IJRDO-Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research ISSN : 2456-2971 A GENEALOGICAL LINGUISTIC IMPLICATION OF THE ABALUHYIA NAMING SYSTEM David Wafula Lwangale (Egerton University) [email protected] or [email protected] ABSTRACT Most African communities have a systematic way of naming their children. The naming system of a given community speaks a lot about their way of life. Some communities have family names which cannot be attributed to any meaning. Such names may be regarded generally as clan names. Some names may be attributed to some events and seasons. Others may be inherited in a situation where communities name their children after their dead or living relatives. Therefore, names are not only cultural but also linguistic. The study investigated the naming systems of the Luhyia sub-tribes with a view of establishing the genealogical relatedness of the Luluhyia language dialects. The study established three levels of naming children shared by most of the Luhyia sub-nations. These are based on seasons, events and naming after their dead relatives. Key words: genealogical, language, name, male and female Background to the Study Luhyia dialects have been extensively studied over a long period of time. The speakers of Luluhyia dialects are generally referred to as AbaLuhyia who were initially known as Bantu Kavirondo as a result of their being close to Lake Victoria in Kavirondo Gulf. The Luhyia nation, tribe or ethnic group consists of seventeen sub-nations or dialect speaking sub-groups. These include Abakhayo, Babukusu, Abanyala, Abanyore, Abatsotso, Abetakho, Abesukha, Abakabras, Abakisa, Abalogoli, Abamarachi, Abasamia, Abatachoni, Abatiriki and Abawanga.
    [Show full text]
  • Kenya Briefing Packet
    KENYA PROVIDING COMMUNITY HEALTH TO POPULATIONS MOST IN NEED se P RE-FIELD BRIEFING PACKET KENYA 1151 Eagle Drive, Loveland, CO, 80537 | (970) 635-0110 | [email protected] | www.imrus.org KENYA Country Briefing Packet Contents ABOUT THIS PACKET 3 BACKGROUND 4 EXTENDING YOUR STAY? 5 PUBLIC HEALTH OVERVIEW 7 NATIONAL FLAG 15 COUNTRY OVERVIEW 15 OVERVIEW 16 BRIEF HISTORY OF KENYA 17 GEOGRAPHY, CLIMATE AND WEATHER 19 DEMOGRAPHICS 21 ECONOMY 26 EDUCATION 27 RELIGION 29 POVERTY 30 CULTURE 31 USEFUL SWAHILI PHRASES 36 SAFETY 39 CURRENCY 40 IMR RECOMMENDATIONS ON PERSONAL FUNDS 42 TIME IN KENYA 42 EMBASSY INFORMATION 43 WEBSITES 43 !2 1151 Eagle Drive, Loveland, CO, 80537 | (970) 635-0110 | [email protected] | www.imrus.org KENYA Country Briefing Packet ABOUT THIS PACKET This packet has been created to serve as a resource for the KENYA Medical/Dental Team. This packet is information about the country and can be read at your leisure or on the airplane. The first section of this booklet is specific to the areas we will be working near (however, not the actual clinic locations) and contains information you may want to know before the trip. The contents herein are not for distributional purposes and are intended for the use of the team and their families. Sources of the information all come from public record and documentation. You may access any of the information and more updates directly from the World Wide Web and other public sources. !3 1151 Eagle Drive, Loveland, CO, 80537 | (970) 635-0110 | [email protected] | www.imrus.org KENYA Country Briefing Packet BACKGROUND Kenya, located in East Africa, spans more than 224,000 sq.
    [Show full text]
  • Africans: the HISTORY of a CONTINENT, Second Edition
    P1: RNK 0521864381pre CUNY780B-African 978 0 521 68297 8 May 15, 2007 19:34 This page intentionally left blank ii P1: RNK 0521864381pre CUNY780B-African 978 0 521 68297 8 May 15, 2007 19:34 africans, second edition Inavast and all-embracing study of Africa, from the origins of mankind to the AIDS epidemic, John Iliffe refocuses its history on the peopling of an environmentally hostilecontinent.Africanshavebeenpioneersstrugglingagainstdiseaseandnature, and their social, economic, and political institutions have been designed to ensure their survival. In the context of medical progress and other twentieth-century innovations, however, the same institutions have bred the most rapid population growth the world has ever seen. The history of the continent is thus a single story binding living Africans to their earliest human ancestors. John Iliffe was Professor of African History at the University of Cambridge and is a Fellow of St. John’s College. He is the author of several books on Africa, including Amodern history of Tanganyika and The African poor: A history,which was awarded the Herskovits Prize of the African Studies Association of the United States. Both books were published by Cambridge University Press. i P1: RNK 0521864381pre CUNY780B-African 978 0 521 68297 8 May 15, 2007 19:34 ii P1: RNK 0521864381pre CUNY780B-African 978 0 521 68297 8 May 15, 2007 19:34 african studies The African Studies Series,founded in 1968 in collaboration with the African Studies Centre of the University of Cambridge, is a prestigious series of monographs and general studies on Africa covering history, anthropology, economics, sociology, and political science.
    [Show full text]
  • A Collection of 100 Tachoni Proverbs and Wise Sayings
    A COLLECTION OF 100 TACHONI PROVERBS AND WISE SAYINGS By ANNASTASI OISEBE African Proverbs Working Group NAIROBI, KENYA AUGUST, 2017. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I wish to acknowledge and thank the relentless effort for all those who played a major part in completion of this document. My utmost thanks go to Fr. Joseph G. Healey, both financial and moral support. My special thanks goes to CephasAgbemenu, Margaret Ireri and Elias Bushiri who guided me accordingly to ensure that my research was completed. Furthermore I also want to thank Edwin Kola for his enormous assistance, without forgetting publishers of Tachoni proverbs and resources who made this research possible. DEDICATION I dedicate this work to my parents Anthony and Margret Oisebe and the entire African Proverbs working group Nairobi and all readers of African literature. INTRODUCTION Location The Tachoni (We shall be back in Kalenjin) are Kalenjins assimilated by Luhya people of Western Kenya, sharing land with the Bukusu tribe. They live mainly in Webuye, Chetambe Hills, Ndivisi (of Bungoma County) and the former Lugari District in the Kakamega County. Most Tachoni clans living in Bungoma speak the 'Lubukusu' dialect of the Luhya language making them get mistaken as Bukusus. They spread to Trans-Nzoia County especially around Kitale, Mumias and Busia. The ethnic group is rich in beliefs and taboos. The most elaborate cultural practice they have is circumcision. The ethnographical location of the Tachoni ethnic group in Kenya Myth of Origin One of the most common myths among the Luhya group relates to the origin of the Earth and human beings. According to this myth, Were (God) first created Heaven, then Earth.
    [Show full text]
  • Sacred Spaces, Political Authority, and the Dynamics of Tradition in Mijikenda History
    Sacred Spaces, Political Authority, and the Dynamics of Tradition in Mijikenda History A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts David P. Bresnahan June 2010 © 2010 David P. Bresnahan. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled Sacred Spaces, Political Authority, and the Dynamics of Tradition in Mijikenda History by DAVID P. BRESNAHAN has been approved for the Department of History and the College of Arts and Sciences by Nicholas M. Creary Assistant Professor of History Benjamin M. Ogles Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 ABSTRACT BRESNAHAN, DAVID P., M.A., June 2010, History Sacred Spaces, Political Authority, and the Dynamics of Tradition in Mijikenda History (156 pp.) Director of Thesis: Nicholas M. Creary This thesis explores the social, political, and symbolic roles of the Mijikenda kayas in the Coast Province of Kenya. The kayas, which exist today as sacred grove forests, are the original homesteads of the Mijikenda and the organizational units from which the symbolic authority and esoteric knowledge of the Mijikenda elders are derived. As a result, I conceptualize kayas as the physical space of the forests, but also complex networks of political, metaphysical, and symbolic power. While the kaya forests and their associated institutions have often been framed as cultural relics, I use this lens to illustrate how the position of the kayas in Mijikenda life has influenced broader social and political developments. Three main themes are developed: the first theme addresses how the kayas were used in different capacities to create space from the encroachment of colonial rule.
    [Show full text]
  • The Evolution of Mumias Settlement Into an Urban Centre to Circa 1940 Godwin Rapando Murunga
    The evolution of Mumias settlement into an urban centre to circa 1940 Godwin Rapando Murunga To cite this version: Godwin Rapando Murunga. The evolution of Mumias settlement into an urban centre to circa 1940. Geography. 1998. dumas-01302363 HAL Id: dumas-01302363 https://dumas.ccsd.cnrs.fr/dumas-01302363 Submitted on 14 Apr 2016 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. THE EVOLUTION OF MUMIAS SETTLEMENT INTO AN URBAN CENTRE TO CIRCA 1940 BY GODWIN RAPANDO MURUNGA A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MASTER OF ARTS DEGREE AT KENYATTA UNIVERSITY IFRA 111111111111111111111111111111111111 1 IFRA001481 No. d'inventaire Date te0 Cote August 1998 .1 •MS,Har,f..42G. , , (1. R Y 001 l°\1)..j9". E DECLARATION This thesis is my original work, and to the best of my knowlehe, has not been submitted for a degree in any university. GODWIN RAPANDO MURUNGA This thesis has been submitted with my approval as a University supervisor. .4010 PROF.ERIC MASINDE ASEKA iii DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my wife Carolyne Temoi Rapando and to my sons Tony Wangatia Rapando and Claude Manya Rapando for their patience and constant understanding during the long years of working.
    [Show full text]
  • Race for Distinction a Social History of Private Members' Clubs in Colonial Kenya
    Race for Distinction A Social History of Private Members' Clubs in Colonial Kenya Dominique Connan Thesis submitted for assessment with a view to obtaining the degree of Doctor of History and Civilization of the European University Institute Florence, 09 December 2015 European University Institute Department of History and Civilization Race for Distinction A Social History of Private Members' Clubs in Colonial Kenya Dominique Connan Thesis submitted for assessment with a view to obtaining the degree of Doctor of History and Civilization of the European University Institute Examining Board Prof. Stephen Smith (EUI Supervisor) Prof. Laura Lee Downs, EUI Prof. Romain Bertrand, Sciences Po Prof. Daniel Branch, Warwick University © Connan, 2015 No part of this thesis may be copied, reproduced or transmitted without prior permission of the author Race for Distinction. A Social History of Private Members’ Clubs in Colonial Kenya This thesis explores the institutional legacy of colonialism through the history of private members clubs in Kenya. In this colony, clubs developed as institutions which were crucial in assimilating Europeans to a race-based, ruling community. Funded and managed by a settler elite of British aristocrats and officers, clubs institutionalized European unity. This was fostered by the rivalry of Asian migrants, whose claims for respectability and equal rights accelerated settlers' cohesion along both political and cultural lines. Thanks to a very bureaucratic apparatus, clubs smoothed European class differences; they fostered a peculiar style of sociability, unique to the colonial context. Clubs were seen by Europeans as institutions which epitomized the virtues of British civilization against native customs. In the mid-1940s, a group of European liberals thought that opening a multi-racial club in Nairobi would expose educated Africans to the refinements of such sociability.
    [Show full text]
  • The Kenyan British Colonial Experience
    Peace and Conflict Studies Volume 25 Number 1 Decolonizing Through a Peace and Article 2 Conflict Studies Lens 5-2018 Modus Operandi of Oppressing the “Savages”: The Kenyan British Colonial Experience Peter Karari [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/pcs Part of the Peace and Conflict Studies Commons Recommended Citation Karari, Peter (2018) "Modus Operandi of Oppressing the “Savages”: The Kenyan British Colonial Experience," Peace and Conflict Studies: Vol. 25 : No. 1 , Article 2. DOI: 10.46743/1082-7307/2018.1436 Available at: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/pcs/vol25/iss1/2 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Peace & Conflict Studies at NSUWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Peace and Conflict Studies by an authorized editor of NSUWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Modus Operandi of Oppressing the “Savages”: The Kenyan British Colonial Experience Abstract Colonialism can be traced back to the dawn of the “age of discovery” that was pioneered by the Portuguese and the Spanish empires in the 15th century. It was not until the 1870s that “New Imperialism” characterized by the ideology of European expansionism envisioned acquiring new territories overseas. The Berlin Conference of 1884-1885 prepared the ground for the direct rule and occupation of Africa by European powers. In 1895, Kenya became part of the British East Africa Protectorate. From 1920, the British colonized Kenya until her independence in 1963. As in many other former British colonies around the world, most conspicuous and appalling was the modus operandi that was employed to colonize the targeted territories.
    [Show full text]
  • 'Mau Mau' and Colonialism in Kenya
    University of Wisconsin Department of History Fall2001-02 History 861 Thomas Spear 3:30-5:30 Thursday 3211/5101 Humanities 5245 Humanities 263-1807/1784 office hours: Tues 3:30-4:30 tspear@facstaff. wisc.edu 'Mau Mau' and Colonialism in Kenya The seminar will explore the nature of colonialism in Kenya as revealed in the outbreak of the 'Mau Mau' movement. There are two aspects to the problem: one historiographical and the other historical. 'Mau Mau' has generated a huge literature, and it remains a contentious issue in both historical and popular thought. In spite of abundant controversy, however, much of the history remains obscure. We will thus start by surveying and analyzing the literature before engaging in individual research on select historical topics. Requirements: Students will be expected to write two major papers during the course of the seminar: the first a critical review of the literature on one of the topics listed for weeks 2-9, and the second a research paper on a select aspect of the overall topic. In each case, students should distribute copies oftheir paper to the other seminar participants (with two copies to me) by Tuesday noon preceding the relevant class. Research papers will first be presented in class and then revised for final submission at the end of the semester. Students will also be expected to write and present a critique of one of their colleagues' research papers during weeks 12-14. Readings: All required reading is available on reserve at H. C. White. The following are also available at the University Bookstore if you wish to buy them: Ngugi wa Thiong'o, Matigari W.
    [Show full text]
  • 3. Siundu.Pmd 45 31/10/2012, 17:31 46 Afrika Zamani, No
    Afrika Zamani, No. 17, 2009, pp. 45–62 © Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa & Association of African Historians 2012 (ISSN 0850-3079) Strategic Submission as Resistance? Nabongo Mumia in the Struggle for Post-Colonial Kenya’s Histories Godwin Siundu* Abstract This article pursues the debate on the role that various regional leaders in late pre- to colonial Kenya played in their people’s responses to colonialism and its agents, and the contests for moral historical spaces that have continued to be played out in intellectual and public discourse. Focusing on Nabongo Mumia, the political and cultural figure of the Wanga people in western Kenya, the article examines the fluidity between collaboration and resistance as processes that have been presented mistakenly as dialectical oppositions. Situating my argument within the counter-revisionist trajectory, I demonstrate that the earlier presentation of Nabongo Mumia – and indeed a few other leaders – as a ‘collaborator’ largely simplifies the dilemmas that many a leader were confronted with in the wake of colonial violence, and is used in the current political setup to rationalise deliberate forms of exclusion from central political structures in the country. I further show that for regional leaders in colonial Kenya, strategic submission guided by a variety of legitimate considerations, was often misread as ‘collaboration’, a line that was picked up by earlier Africanist inclined scholars whose nationalistic impulses drove them to a search for ‘heroes’, often guided by the matrices of ‘resistance’. Résumé Cet article poursuit le débat sur le rôle que les divers leaders régionaux ont joué pendant la fin des périodes pré-coloniale et coloniale au Kenya par rapport aux réponses de leurs peuples à la question du colonialisme et de ses agents, et dans les combats pour des espaces moraux historiques qui sont toujours interprétés dans le discours intellectuel et public.
    [Show full text]