Where is Kit Mikayi located? Kit-Mikayi, also known as Kit Mikayi, Kitmikayi, and Kitmikaye, is a tor that stands around 120 metres high and is located in western Kenya, 29 kilometres west of the town of Kisumu. The distance from the Kisumu-Bondo road is around 1 kilometre. The entry to Kit Mikayi Primary School is through N’gop-Ngeso Primary School, and the sign board is on the gate.
In Dholuo, the Luo language, kit-Mikayi means “the stone of the first woman” or “stone of the first wife”.
Barrack Gumba, a well-known youth advocate knowledgeable about reproductive health and rights, resides in Kit-Mikayi in Kisumu County’s East Seme ward. Barrack Gumba is a well-known figure on social media and a licenced public health officer.
The governor of Kit Mikayi, in Kisumu County, is Professor Peter Anya’ng Nyong’o, the father of Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o. Kit Mikayi is located in this county. Senior Chief Melchizedeck Nindo, a former colonial chief who is associated with various educational projects including Ngere High School among others, is another well-known individual from the region. The local member of parliament, career physician, and paediatrician consultant is Dr. James Nyikal.
The story of Kit Mikayi
The origin story for Kit Mikayi, also known as “the stone of the first wife” in Luo dialect, goes as follows: A long time ago, an elderly man by the name of Ngeso fell deeply in love with the stone. He could enter the cave hidden within the stone every morning when he awoke and remain there all day, forcing his wife to bring him food every day for breakfast and lunch. The elderly man was deeply in love with this stone to the point where, whenever his wife was questioned about his movements, she would respond that he had gone to visit his first wife (Mikayi), thus the name of the stone (Kit Mikayi).
An explanation for the unusual stone’s shape is that it represents a polygamous Luo family, where the first wife’s house (Mikayi) was built first, followed by the second wife’s house (Nyachira), and the third wife’s house (Reru), which was built on the opposite side of the homestead. This rock is also depicted as having a nuclear family, with the father (Ngeso) being the middle stone, the bulky Mikayi (first wife), Nyachira (second wife), Reru (third wife), and further in front, the child who is representing Simba (which is the house for the first-born boy in the homestead). The people have traditionally considered this stone to be a spiritual site that they can turn to for comfort in difficult times.
The cultural importance
The Luo-Kakello clan is the name given to the locals who live close to the stones. The location is linked to numerous traditions from before Christianity, including those that explain the origin of the name, as well as sacrifices.
A number of sizable rocks are piled on top of one another to form the striking and stunning rock formation. The Luo people regard it as a holy location because they think their ancestors once lived there and it has spiritual significance.
Due to its natural beauty and cultural significance, Kit Mikayi has grown to be a well-liked safari destination in Kenya. Visitors can explore the location, enjoy the beautiful vistas, and discover the local legends and customs connected to the area.
Kit-Mikayi is a popular tourist destination in the area, particularly among the surrounding Luo tribes. For members of the Legio Maria sect, who visit the rock for extended periods of fasting and prayer, it has also grown in popularity as a local pilgrimage destination.
On December 11th, 2019, UNESCO added it to the list of intangible cultural heritage that requires immediate protection under the ICH 2003 Convention.
Luo culture
The Nilotic ethnic group known as the Luo of Kenya and Tanzania is indigenous to western Kenya and the Mara Region in northern Tanzania in East Africa. After the Kikuyu (17.13%), the Luhya (14.35%), and the Kalenjin (13.37%), the Luo (10.65%) make up Kenya’s fourth-largest ethnic group. According to estimates, there will be 3.4 million Luo people in Tanzania by 2020, up from 1.1 million in 2001. They belong to a broader community of closely related Luo peoples who live in South Sudan, south-western Ethiopia, northern and eastern Uganda, south-western Kenya, and northern Tanzania.
The Luo people have always had a patriarchal society and a decentralised form of administration. In the absence of the father, the family was run by the son or the first wife Makai. To form the clan anyuola, which primarily brought together the heads of various households as people of the same ancestry, jokang’ato, many families that had blood links joined together.
A number of clans merged to establish the settlement of gweng, which was administered by an elder known as dodo or jaduong’ gweng’. Traditionally, elders were men of prestige who had attained it via trade, riches, military prowess, or eloquence. A sub-tribe made up of several villages gathered together and was led by the eldest son Ruoth, who had a hereditary chieftaincy. Ruoth had an organisation of elders, galamoro mar jodongo or jodong gweng, from every village in their region, which strengthened the Luo government structure at the sub-tribe level. At the level of the sub-tribe, where Osumba Mrwayi, a member of the council of elders, served as commander, the Luos organised their defence and protection. Additionally, the council had a spokesperson who spoke on its behalf during rituals and religious and cultural events that Ruoth presided over, as well as at village market meetings. Due to the Luo people’s lack of a central authority, connections between sub-tribes were ad hoc.
During crises, conflict, and natural disasters like drought, hunger, and floods, sub-tribes banded together to aid one another. Sumo, the practise of sharing produce with those suffering from famine, was widespread, and Kisumo was one of the well-known marketplaces where individuals suffering from starvation never missed the kindness of their Luo counterparts. When the Luo Union was established in 1947 with the intention of uniting all East Africans of Luo descent, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga was the one who first proposed the idea of a Luo monarch ship.
The very first Luo Ker was Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. One of the requirements was that a Luo Ker would not enter national politics; as a result, when Jaramogi Oginga Odinga entered national politics in 1957, he had to renounce his Ker status. This was done in order to distinguish a tribal leader from a national leader.
Since Raila Odinga replaced Ker Riaga Ogalo with Willis Opiyo Otondi in 2010, various factions of the Luo Council of Elders have been vying for the position of Luo Ker. As opposed to Opondo Otondi, the Ker was traditionally elected by a Council of Elders rather than appointed, and a Luo Ker could only resign or die while in office. While Opiyo Otondi contended that he was the lawfully elected Ker of the Luo people, Ker Riaga Ogalo countered that neither his resignation nor death justified the appointment of another Ker. When they were on good terms, Ker Riaga Ogalo represented Raila in a number of political venues and assisted in advancing his political career in opposition to the council’s needs.
Ker Riaga Ogalo is credited with having the most progressive ideas of all contemporary Luo Kers by advocating for the circumcision of Luo men to aid in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Although circumcision was against the Luo tradition, his influence convinced many people to adopt the new ways. In addition, Ker Riaga Ogalo held the position of Vice-Chairman of the National Council of Elders.
He said that Raila was preventing the Luo People from developing democratically and economically during the final years of his rule. Ker Riaga Ogalo passed away in 2015 at the Kenyatta National Hospital after a renal infection. After his death, the Council’s disputes persisted, with Ker Nyandiko and Willis Opiyo Otondi both asserting that they are the genuine kers.
