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The Year in Gusii: The Naming of Months in Ekegusii
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Abagusii, buna banto bande bonsi bare ense eye, imbabwate enchera yokoroberia chingaki ao ao. Rituko, buna ande onsi ase erioba rikoraba, igo riaye gochake ekemambia ka bokogia naende riaera mogoroba ka bwairire. Kobara amatuko igo bare gochaka na ‘rero’ babara gochia magega gose motwe.
Emetienyi eyare kobwatia okoraba kw’omotienyi (omweri), ekagera omwaka okaba emetienyi ikomi na ebere. Korende amarieta y’emetienyi ao ao igo are kobwatia gose n’engaki y’embura, omobaso gose omorakera na komenta gose n’engaki gokorema, gosimeka gose kogesa.
Ayio onsi n’oyokworokia buna Abagusii bare komanya buna ingaki ki ere egere baroberie keria bagwenerete gokora.
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Abagusii, like all other communities across the world, had a way of relating with time. While the day was dictated by sunrise and sunset, days were separated relatively, with ‘today’ being the anchor relative to other days. Months, on the other hand, followed the moon’s cycle and hence the twelve months of the year. Months were named relative to the weather of the time and the activities it dictated. For this reason, the names of months were largely descriptive.
This provides an overview of the concept of time in Gusii and the rationale for naming the months in the manner they were.
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Totems of Abagusii of Kenya
Ebimanyererio nigo bire bi'echingencho ao ao ase abanto ao ao. N'enchera eyemo abanto b'ororeria oromo bakomanyana na kwemanyia ase abanto bande. Ase abande n'enchera y'ogwetogia. N'abande begenete buna ebimanyererio n'enchera eyemo y'okobeka okwegena ase chinkoro chi'abanto. Komenta nayio, ebimanyererio nigo bigokonya abanto koinyora ing'ai barwete nechimbwa chiabo. Soma egetabu eke egere omanye igoro y'ebimanyererio bi'Abagusii.
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Throughout the world, totems are used variously, including linking people with each other and defining the relationships among many people or groups of people. They can represent the connection between people and the spiritual world. Further, totems help people preserve their culture and history. This book presents totems of Abagusii and explains how they came to be, based on oral history passed down generations.
A Historical and Cultural Analysis of Women Land Rights in Kisii Count, Kenya, 1895- 1970
In most societies in different parts of the world, there are gender inequalities in access to productive resources such as land, and other social, economic, and environmental resources that are critical for people’s sustenance. However, in many instances, not much research has been conducted on those critical gender issues and perceived unfairness in the ownership, access, and utilization of critical societal resources, particularly, in Africa in general, and Kenya in particular.
In this regard, the need to improve access to land and strengthen women’s land rights in Africa provided the main rationale for undertaking this research, with specific reference to the Gusii of Western Kenya. In particular, the book examines the changing and/or evolving responses of women over time to land access, ownership, control, and usage. Further, the book analyzes the relationship between indigenous land tenure systems and gendered relations; and the effects of colonial land policies on gendered relations. It also examines gender rights with respect to land access and ownership in the post-colonial period in Kisii.
Overall, this study provides pertinent information on the following critical issues. What was the relationship between pre-colonial land tenure systems and gender relations in Kisii? What were the effects of colonial and post-colonial land policies on gender relations in Gusii? How did Gusii women respond to gendered land rights and ownership in the pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial periods?
Beyond the Blackboard: A Testimonial
Beyond the Blackboard – A Testimonial is more than a teacher’s tale. It is the odyssey of a dream that refused to be silenced, carried across the Gusii highlands, the valleys, chalks and blackboards that became windows of opportunity for many Kenyans. Born in colonial Kenya to a family that did not have much, Mwalimu Nyong’a Obuba’s first classroom door opened only when he was ten. Though late, he was armed with grit, faith, and the unwavering support of his uncle, Meshack Nyanchama, rising to become a high school principal who shaped the future of many.
After serving as primary and high school teacher, Nyong’a was elevated to the principalship of a nascent Kiabonyoru High School. For two decades at the helm, he transformed challenges into triumphs, nurturing students who later went on to stride into boardrooms, science laboratories, classrooms, and other positions of power and influence. Beyond being an educator, his students regarded him as a compass, mentor, and a father as the school became a powerhouse in academic and extracurricular activities.
Now in retirement, Nyong’a looks back with gratitude. He bears witness to the quiet, world-changing power of teaching. This book is a tribute to resilience. It is an anthem to the nobility of education, and a reminder that the truest legacy is not inscribed in stone, but in the lives of others.
What Others Say
“This inspirational autobiography offers a deeply personal and motivating account of his teaching and life experiences. The author’s engaging writing style makes one feel as if one were hearing the story firsthand, leaving one inspired and motivated.” – Sylvia Okweba, Editor.
“Mwalimu’s life as lived and documented reveals the outcomes of compassion, diplomacy, and fairness. His lessons in kindness and firmness will inspire the readers and change the mindset of others.” – James Maganda, Regional Manager, Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) - Kisii Cluster.
Mbio za Sakafuni
kili ikawa haimtulii. Aache mabanati warembowarembo wa chuo kikuu na kwingine waliomfuata, wakamlazimisha kula zabibu akakataa, aje kusalitika kwa mambeta? Ndivyo walivyo akina mama wa siku hizi. Hawaoni soni hata katika kula kifaranga wao wenyewe. Ikiwa basi mvuto hutoka juu mbinguni basi hakuwa na hiari. Atanyoosha mikono aupokee. Mpanzi ni Mungu.
Ni kipi kinachomfanya Kijakazi kuwaacha wasichana wa rika lake kisha akasalitika kwa mambeta, mwanamke wa umri wa mama yake? Zebaki anaamua kula kifaranga wake? Hatima ya uamuzi huu ni gani? Jipe uhondo kamili.
The Eye of Mayenga by Jaspher Rori
The Eye of Mayenga is a heart-throbbing novel centred in a remote, rural African village of Mayenga. The village is a lethargic place that appears to have been left behind with respect to world trends and realities. Its residents seem trapped in times gone, dwelling on beliefs like witchcraft and other archaic practices. There seems to be neither vision nor mission, and stuck in antiquated beliefs. Its residents' pastime is drinking cheap illicit liquor, and engaging in pessimistic village gossip, which presents its own challenges. Their own son, Vincent Senta, a practising lawyer in Nairobi, 'sees with his heart' the predicament of the village, and resolves to apply his knowledge, skills and connections to bring change to the village. He successfully organises a women's group and initiates an eye-catching water project, which some people appreciate and see him as the "Eye of Mayenga." However, petty gossip and a troubled family life take their toll on him. To escape the harsh reality, he finds solace in his sentimental secretary. The relationship is ill-fated with him testing HIV-positive of which he eventually dies. Despite the medical exposition on the cause of death, blame is squarely placed on his hard-to-understand neighbours who, due to their religious beliefs, lead lives of solitude. Most residents of Mayenga believe he has been bewitched by the neighbours. In a "revenge mission", the neighbours are burnt alive in broad daylight right in the presence of the local chief. Though rumours were rife that these neighbours carried the cross of Senta's death, nobody had answers to the chief's torrential questions: Who? When? Why? What? How? And what and in the future? And future? The Eye of Mayenga captures a community at a cross-road and illustrates the clash of cultures and the struggle between the past and modernity.
"The Eye of Mayenga is a wonderful piece of art that touches on many aspects of our lives. It tackles contemporary issues of the developing world undergoing social change.These are issues that offer challenges to development." - Elijah Ogoti, English Teacher, Kenya.
"Apart from being an excellent story to read, it is a commendable book for students in community development." - Joseph A. Awino, Lecturer, University of Nairobi, Kenya.
"Jaspher Rori's work is a pretty juicy, practical, and interesting story that is set in a traditional African society, and is interwoven with unique practical challenges, exciting themes and characters that leave the reader yearning for more." - Sakaja Yona, Lecturer, University of Nairobi.
The Gusii of Kenya by John S. Akama
The Gusii of Kenya: Social, Economic, Cultural, Political & Judicial Perspectives provides in-depth topical insights of the Gusii (also known as the Kisii) of Kenya. The book captures historical aspects of the Gusii and how they ended up occupying their present lands. It enunciates the group’s cultural, political and economic organization that are core to the group’s identify and overall survival. Reading the book would provide understanding of some noticeable elements of these perspectives that persist to date. Cultural aspects such as the rites of passage and weddings, part of core identity elements of a people, are well articulated. Social organization, starting at the homestead to clan to community level, was intricately woven to form a coherence whole that defined the Gusii. Indeed, this also formed a basis of core elements of code of conduct (chinsoni) and justice as traditionally administered.
The book also raises a number of questions regarding the core character of the Gusii such as lack of central authority and the implications this has had on the community over time. One can only speculate the trajectory of history that would have been had the Gusii organized themselves differently.
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