ISSN 2277-0844, Volume 4, Issue 2, pp 23-27, September, 2015.

Online Journal of Social Sciences Research ©2015 Online Research Journals Full Length Research Available Online at http://www.onlineresearchjournals.org/JSS

The Samburu Pastoralists of North Central Kenya and their Adherence to Female Circumcision *Dr. Beneah M. Mutsotso1, Perpetua Gaciuki2 and Sella Okola Mutsotso3 1

Senior Lecturer, Department of Sociology, University of Nairobi, P. O. Box 30197-00100 Nairobi, Kenya. Email: [email protected] and [email protected] 2 Department of Criminology and Social Work, Kibabii University College, Bungoma, Kenya. Email: [email protected] 3 Lecturer, Shamerere Institute, Kakamega, Kenya. E-mail: [email protected]. Received 10 July, 2015

Accepted 4 September, 2015

This paper presents some of the cultures of the Samburu people of North Central Kenya with respect to their history, current location, and notably, are the female circumcision and the ceremonies involving the rites of passage of their male children. Through focus group discussions and key informant interviews, the elaborate ceremonies through which a Samburu person is processed and the requirement for circumcision as a qualification for participation are well presented. Also discussed in this paper is the strong peer pressure, myths around female circumcision and the link to failure in all aspects for refusal to get circumcised. The strong bonds the moran develop become the bedrock on which female circumcision is embedded. Two case studies are presented as a testimony to show how female circumcision is deeply implicated in the community decision making. Key words: Samburu, female circumcision, lmuget, rites of passage, cultural expectations, age-set, moran. INTRODUCTION In the division of the nomads in tropical Africa, Pierli et al. [1] observed that one group consists of the semipastoralists who also depend on some form of crop production but migrate from time to time in search of better soils and pasture. The Samburu belong to this group. At the geographical level, the Samburu belong to the East Nilotic group that also comprises of the Maasai, Karimonjong and Turkana. In the split of the Maasai and the Iloikop (farmers) Jacobs [2] noted that the Maasai fought with and won against the Iloikop. The Iloikop included the Samburu, Il Chamus, Parakuyo and Arusha. However, Galaty [3] showed that there was no evidence that the Samburu were less pastoral than the Maasai and neither do they recognize themselves on the basis of th crop farming. In terms of origin, by the end of the 16 century the Samburu had split from the Maasai. Subsequently the Samburu expanded to North-East of the Cherangani hills [4]. The descend of the East Pokot from the Cherangani hills into Kerio River valley pushed the Samburu to beyond Tiati Hills where they currently live [5]. Based on oral history as provided by a key

informant (December 13, 2014), myth has it that the Samburu descended from heaven at Malalua in present day Kisima area, about 20km from the County Headquarters of Maralal town. According to Anderson [6] and Sobania [7], the Samburu originated from three different groups. One from the West of Lake Turkana, the second from El Barta and the third from Laikipia. Based on the writings of Fratkin [8] the Samburu, Ariaal and El Molo are the most northerly Maa speaking peoples. He presented the Samburu as cattle pastoralists. In terms of linguistic and cultural unity, there are some deviations between the Samburu and Maasai as reported by Kipuri [9]. Earlier on, Spencer [10, 11] reported that the Samburu – Rendille-Ariaal interaction brought about many Rendille men and women becoming Samburu. Fratkin [8] has shown that Ariaal age-set rituals were adopted from the Samburu. As observed by Sommer and Voseen [12] the Samburu originated from Sudan and are closely related to the Maasai to the point that almost 98% of their language is Maasai. Some of the celebrated classical works on the

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Samburu are done by Spencer (see [10, 11]) in which he elaborately described their social organization including the practices. Spencer [10] also observed that about 30% of the Samburu descended from Rendille families following generations of Rendile migration to join them. Fratkin [13] observed the three dyadic relations between Samburu and their neighbors. The Samburu – Borana relationship was aggressive while Samburu–Rendile was cooperative peacefully. A similar view was reported by Hadley [14]. Administratively and politically, the Samburu people live in Samburu County which is located in North Central Kenya. To the west it borders Turkana County, South and South West it borders Baringo County, to the North it borders Marsabit County while Isiolo County is to the North East and Laikipia to the South East. Some considerable populations of the Samburu people are also found in the neighboring counties of Laikipia and Isiolo. In terms of urbanization, only 17% of the population lives in urban areas compared to the national average of 32%. The county covers an area of 21,000Km 2. It stretches from Ewaso Nyiro river in the South to Lake Turkana in the North West. The total human population is 223,947 (GoK, 2013) [15]. Ceremonies and Rites of Passage The life of a Samburu person is made up of rites of passage and full of ceremonies and celebrations. Each ceremony is attached to the next and to everything about the person. Right from around age 15 one undergoes and participates in a series of ceremonies which all are expected to fulfill without exception. The following sequence of rites of passage and ceremonies as obtained from key informants (prominent Samburu indigenes) and Focused Group Discussions are discussed and the significance of female circumcision in each clearly shown: (a) Ng’orno (the cow milk cream ceremony) After the circumcision of a child (girl or boy around 11-15 years) „muratare‟, the father receives ng’orno (cow milk cream) on his forehead. This event is done a few hours after the child has been circumcised. The purpose of this ceremony is to celebrate the fact that the daughter is fine or normal and had passed the test of premarital pregnancy (which is considered shameful to a parent) before she was circumcised. The shedding of blood during circumcision bestows the girl with full belongingness while the lack of it implies being alien and dirty. Ng’orno is applied on the fathers‟ forehead by one of his age-mates whom have already undergone it. The man‟s wife (mother of the child undergoing the circumcision) is the one who scoops the cream from the guard to the man who applies it on her husband‟s forehead. For a father and mother, it is great honor to

bring up a clean daughter to the age of circumcision. Before the girls are circumcised, the moran (sometimes spelt as murran – these are the unmarried young men who are also the warriors of the community) have the freedom to do anything they wish for they are not under the control of elders. In this period they even engage in casual sex with young girls but the girls must not get pregnant. The girls have to be careful not to embarrass their fathers with pregnancy before circumcision. Any uncircumcised mother cannot participate in the circumcision ceremony of her child. Therefore a mother must be circumcised first in order to pave way for the circumcision of her children. This requirement ensures that all girls are circumcised if they hope to get married and bear children. (b) The Lmuget Complex of Rites of Passage (i) Lmuget loonkweny (removal of feathers ceremony): This ceremony is marked by the removal of feathers from the head-dress and replaced with red ochre. It is performed exactly one month after circumcision and once in every 15 years. All moran who were circumcised 15 years ago are put together to constitute an age-set. The members form alliances with other moran groups in the region. Feelings of affectionate loyalty are taught, they are intense and meant to be permanent. In this ceremony there is a lot of slaughtering of livestock provided by the moran’s families. The slaughtering starts early in the morning and from mid day the eating goes on until dusk. As one informant said: “we slaughter hundreds of goats. In fact on average 150 goats are slaughtered each day for seven days. You see each moran family provides two goats and one cow. But for poor families the clan provides for them. In the last lmuget we had 450 moran graduating. You can count the number of goats and cows and see the scale of feasting.” The requirement is that every mother must have been circumcised to participate in her son‟s celebrations. In this period from circumcision to removal of feathers the moran are not allowed to eat their mother‟s food and they mostly live in the wilderness and were expected to fend for themselves. Sometimes they are given a cow by their parents and sometimes, they steal cows from other communities for food. (ii) Lmuget Lenkarna (age-set naming ceremony): The ceremony is performed at the end of warriorhood /moranhood. At the ceremony, the age-set is given a name. The age-set also proclaims its King (Launoni). However the act of proclaiming a king is a long process that takes over a year. It is the elders who observe the moran and identify the most suitable to be Launoni. It is discreetly done so that even the elect one only gets to know when he is pronounced during this ceremony. The

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Launoni is selected from a family of good standing and parents are respected by all in the society. One informant said: “the parents of Launoni must be good people. They must have good physical health, good teeth, good eyes and their son must have the same attributes. Their son must also be of good conduct, good hearted and likeable by the people.” Spear and Waller [16] commenting on how the leader is selected indicated that in each localized age-set, an informal leader emerges who then becomes the group‟s spokesman. But in the neighborhood comprising of several age-sets, one of them is eventually designated their leader. Once the Launoni is proclaimed, a house is built for him and given nine cows in preparation to start a family. This means that after the graduation ceremony, the moran are allowed to marry. However, they can only marry after Launoni has done so. Spencer [17] reported that among the moran life is ordered in a cycle by ritual and in the collective, but not in individual maturation. Hence, all are eligible and marry at the same time. All of them must marry women that are similar in most respects to them most especially those that have undergone circumcision. Following this ceremony, marriage is ritually opened for the age-group [16]. The mother of Launoni must have fulfilled all cultural requirements including circumcision. Only women who are circumcised including men married to circumcised women participate in the ceremony as discussed earlier. (iii) Lmuget Lalaingo’ni (the bull ceremony): This is a bull ceremony which is marked to give the new age-set authority to become elders. It is held 15 years after graduation and marriage. Each member of the age-set comes to the ceremony with two cowrie shells. The cowrie shells are used to decorate the horn of a kudu antelope. The horn is used to summon age-set members to the meetings. All members of the age-set participate in this ceremony. Participation is by fulfillment of all cultural requirements by women and men including female circumcision for women. In this ceremony, a bull is slaughtered to kick off the festivities.

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for collective action in all they do. In all the lmuget ceremonies, there is feasting, pomp and jubilation. Mothers or women who have not undergone circumcision are not allowed to attend or participate in the ceremonies. In addition, women who were unofficially married (like those to move-in with a man without their parents approval and these are mostly uncircumcised females or those that their mothers were not circumcised) are excluded from participation. Therefore for fear of exclusion from the community, female circumcision becomes compelling to all. To the Samburu, if a woman is not circumcised, then her daughters will not be married by a Samburu man. They could however be married by men from other communities but such a marriage will not be recognized as she will be viewed as a child (ntito) and an outcast. Samburu men do not marry women who have not been circumcised (nkerai’esila). It is taboo to marry nkerai’esila. However, if a married woman is discovered uncircumcised at child birth, she is first circumcised before she is assisted in child delivery. Children born of nkerai’esila are nicknamed lngursanet (incomplete). No woman would stand such a reference to her child just on account of not having been circumcised. The ceremonial and cultural labyrinth around circumcision practices and the expectations are too compelling for a woman to ignore. Equally for men, the cultural expectations are too compelling on them that they choose to marry only those who have been circumcised. For both men and women, fulfillment of the cultural expectations is a requirement that has no compromise or equivalent alternative. In addition to the cultural expectations on women, the strong myths perpetrated around it also compel women to undergo circumcision. One strong myth is that one looses eyesight if she assists an uncircumcised woman during childbirth. Hence no woman would accept to be befallen by such a misfortune when the alternative is to keep off and be safe. The other myth is that children born of uncircumcised mothers become stunted. Certainly no woman would willingly bear a stunted child on the account of not having been circumcised, and, no man would accept such an eventuality when it can be avoided beforehand by marrying a woman who is already circumcised. The Strength of Peer Pressure

(iv) Lmuget Lemowuo (the horn ceremony): This ceremony is held every 7 years. It is held only when all the members of the age-set have married. The cowrie shells are removed from the kudu antelope horn and each member gets back his. Those which belonged to members who have since died are thrown away. At the end of the ceremony, all the members disperse to live independent lives, and for the first time free to pursue individual goals. In all the lmuget ceremonies, ritual villages are created. The ritual villages become and cement the mechanism

The peer pressure exerted on girls by fellow girls compels the skeptical ones to undergo female circumcision. The exceedingly low contempt accorded the uncircumcised girls is too strong to bear. For example, the Samburu have a special contempt for their Turkana neighbors who do not practice circumcision of either male or female. The Turkana also frequently steal cattles from the Samburu, as such, the dislike of the Turkana by the Samburu is therefore multi-pronged and quite strong. Hence the uncircumcised girls are referred to as Turkana. Therefore for fear of being labeled

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Turkana, Samburu girls prefer undergoing the pain of circumcision than the pain of the former. In the focused group discussion held in Marti area, the Samburu‟s contemptuous attitude towards the Turkana was made clear: “You see the Turkana are very dirty people. They live like animals. Among the Turkana, if you kill a circumcised man e.g. a Pokot or Boran, it is an honour. The killer adorns a copper bangle (surutiai) to show greatness. You can count the number of surutiai on a man‟s left hand and conclude the number of men he has killed. But if a Samburu man kills a Turkana, he does not qualify to adorn or deserve a surutiai because he has killed a child. A Turkana is uncircumcised therefore regarded a child. There is no greatness in killing a child or a woman.” Female Circumcision and Public Office To the Samburu people, fulfillment of cultural expectations is a mandatory requirement for ascending to public office. Therefore, for a Samburu man or woman to be supported to hold a leadership position whether administrative, political or even community based, fulfillment of rites around circumcision is a principal determinant [18]. Two cases were narrated by two key informants in Lpus Lelwai area of Samburu East and same was repeated again by other key informants in Sero Olipi region of Waso. In the focused group discussions in Marti, Baragoi has a testimony of how important circumcision is for the Samburu people: Case 1: One educated Samburu woman who was born in an educated and prominent Christian family previously held high positions in the society; however, she was not successful in all aspects. She also managed a nongovernmental organization through which she initiated developmental projects but all failed woefully. The failure of her developmental projects is attributed to her failure to fulfill cultural expectations especially the refusal to be circumcised. She is now used as a bad example and as a testimony of what is likely to befall any girl that chooses to be uncircumcised. The lack of success is interpreted to mean the negative consequences of refusal to be circumcised. Therefore no girl would wish to follow her path. Case 2: A popular and rich male Samburu politician vied for parliamentary elections in 1992, 1997, 2003 and 2007 but in all cases lost miserably. He is married to a nonSamburu wife who is strongly believed to be uncircumcised. All the time he declared interest in elective office, his people told him to his face that he needed to marry a real wife before he could ask for their votes because in the people‟s eyes he was yet to marry. He did not initially take it serious until in the 1992 election he received only 603 votes while his „real‟ Samburu challenger received tens of thousands of votes. The poor

performance in subsequent elections followed the pattern of the first election. The main reason for his serial failure was that he was not considered a full Samburu since he had a non-Samburu wife and who was also uncircumcised. Such a person cannot get support of the people. To the Samburu for one to be a leader, fulfillment of cultural expectations especially those related to circumcision is non-negotiable. Moranism among the Samburu The moran as described before, are the unmarried young men who are also the warriors of the community. They defend the community and raid neighboring communities for livestock. As reported by Spencer [10], the basis of moranism is solidarity, comradeship, togetherness, eat in a group, raised in a group, suffer as a group and unquestionable loyalty to the group. Hence what is approved by all is good for each individual and what each individual does is what every other individual does. The togetherness is what makes deviance from group norms unimaginable; hence in the context of female circumcision, the requirement that each must uphold their culture including female circumcision is followed by all without exception or reflection. Morans are characterized by congeniality, hospitality, respect and obedience which is obtained between age mates [16]. These values are acquired through an intense process of socialization. A new age-group is created every seven years and an age set every 15 years. The new age-set however respects the earlier age-set that ushered them into moranhood as they themselves graduated. An age-set may occupy a particular neighborhood, hence there are many age-sets or moranhood groups among the Samburu. Conclusion The question of female circumcision has been a daunting task for government and other partners to government for a long time in Kenya. In spite of the legal, policy, administrative provisions and other pronouncements, it has remained elusive while the prevalence is high. Given its entanglement into all aspects of culture, a more persuasive approach aimed at mind changing may be a more acceptable strategy for the abolishment of female circumcision. Also, the interaction between the law and culture needs to be well integrated and properly understood. Moranism would be a key entry point for successfully eliminating female circumcision as mindsets are made at this stage. References [1] Pierli F, Mwaniki TW, Methu PM (eds). The Pastoralists: A Challenge to Churches, State, Civil Society. Tangaza Occassional Papers No. 20. Paulines. Nairobi. 2006. [2] Jacobs A. The Traditional Political Organization of the Pastoral

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Maasai. Phd Thesis. Oxford. 1995. [3] Galaty JG. Maasai Expansion and the new East African Pastoralism in Spear T and Waller R. (eds) Being Maasai. Ethnicity and Identity in East Africa. James Currey. Oxford. 1993. [4] Galaty JG. The Eye that Wants a Person, Where Can It Not See? Inclusion, Exclusion and Boundary Shifters in Maasai Identity in Spear T and Waller, R. (eds) Being Maasai Ethnicity and Identity in East Africa. James Currey. Oxford. 1993. [5] Mutsotso BM. The East Pokot on the precipice: Conflict and Social Change in a pastoralist Community. PhD Thesis, Department of Sociology and Social Work, University of Nairobi. 2010.

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[12] Sommer G, Vossen R. Dialects,Sectiolets or simply Lects? The Maa Language in Time Perspective, In Spear, T. and Waller, R. (eds) Being Maasai. Ethnicity and Identity in East Africa. James Currey. Oxford, 1993. [13] Fratkin E. Stability and Resilience in East African Pastoralism: The Rendille and the Ariaal of Northern Kenya. Human Ecol, 1986; 14(3): 269 – 286. [14] Hadley CS. No one can kill the drought: Understanding Complexity in the relationship between drought and conflict amongst pastoralists in northern Kenya. Phd Thesis. Durham University, 2012. [15] GoK (Government of Kenya). Samburu County Development Profile 2013-2018. Government Printer. Nairobi. 2013.

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[6] Anderson DM. Some Thoughts on the 19 Century History of the Il Chamus of Baringo District. Institute of African Studies, Paper No. 149, 1981. [7] Sobania N. The Historical Tradition of the Peoples of the Eastern Lake Turkana Basin. 1840-1925. PhD Thesis (SOAS) London. 1980. [8] Fratkin E. Maa Speakers of the Northern Desert: Recent Developments in Ariaal and Rendile identity in Spear T and Waller R. (eds) Being Maasai. Ethnicity and Identity in East Africa. James Currey. Oxford. 1993. [9] Kipuri NM. Oral Literature of the Maasai. Heinemann. Nairobi. 1983. [10] Spencer P. The Samburu. Routledge and Kegan Paul. London. 1965. [11] Spencer P. Nomads in Alliance. Oxford University Press. London. 1973.

[16] Spear T and Waller R. (eds) Being Maasai: Ethnicity and Identity in East Africa. James Currey. Oxford. 1993. [17] Spencer P. Becoming Maasa, Being in Time, in Spear T and Waller R. (eds) Being Maasai: Ethnicity and Identity in East Africa. James Currey. Oxford. 1993. [18] UNFPA (united Nations Fund for Population Activities). GOK/UNFPA/UNICEF/FGM/C Programme. A Study on Socio-cultural dynamics and community structures that promote FGM/C in Samburu and Baringo Counties.UNFPA. 2011.