 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(November 2016) |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 198,653 [1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Kenya | |
| Religion | |
| African Traditional Religion, Christianity, Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Mijikenda, other Bantu peoples |
| Part of a series on the |
| Culture of Kenya |
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| Cuisine |
The Chonyi, also referred to as Achonyi (A person from this tribe may also be referred to as an Mchonyi), are one of the smaller tribes of the Mijikenda on the coast of Kenya.
Their populations can be found in the villages of Swerelanka - Mwembe Swere, Lutsangani, Chidutani, Kolongoni, Dzitsoni, Bungu, Bundacho, Ziani, Karimboni, Chasimba, Galanema, Mwele, Bodoi, Chigojoni, Dindiri, Junju, Katikirieni, Podzoni, Mwarakaya, Pingilikani, Vwevwesi, Mafisini, Ng'ombeni, Chizingo, Chikambala, Chengoni, Chije, Banda-ra-Salama, Gongoni, Bomani, Dindiri, Shaurimoyo, Mbomboni, chilobole and Mbuyuni. They are also found in recent settlements areas of Kilifi District like Chumani, Roka, Maweni, Vipingo, Takaungu and Mtwapa.[ citation needed ]
According to a Chonyi myth, the Achonyi originated in Singwaya (or Shungwaya), which was to the north of the Somali coast. They were driven south by the Oromo until they reached their present locations along the ridge, where they built their kayas within a protective setting.
The historical accuracy of this myth is a point of controversy between those who believe that the Mijikenda originated from a single point in the north and those who believe that they do not have a single origin, but migrated primarily from the south.
Where "kiti" means chair in Swahili, "Kihi" is Giriama and "Chihi" is Chonyi. Similar, but recognizably different languages. Like the other Mijikenda tribes, the Chonyi live in settlements known as "Kaya." The original "Kaya Chonyi" is located on a forested hill top. In the center of the Kaya were shrines where the elders or "atumia" would pray to god or "Mulungu".
The Chonyi's traditional music, known as the Chiring'ong'o, features the xylophone, rare in Kenyan music. [2]
Most Chongyi are farmers. They cultivate crops like maize and raise cattle. Some Chongyi also work in cotton, sugar cane, or sisal plantations. [3]
The naming of the chonyi people is symbolic, for example, MBEYU is a name of a girl mbeyu meaning seeds for planting. TSUMA means a boy who is a provider. NYAMVULA is a girl name meaning a rainy season, born during times of rains. MNYAZI being a girls name meaning a sower. MOKOLI is a boy name meaning a person who is helpful. Names are also often repeated in the family. The names of the father's uncles and aunts would become the names of his children, this would be repeated with the mother's side of the family.
Once the names from both sides of the family have been used the parents can choose original names. Another interesting fact about names is that the first name of the father will become the last name of the rest of the family. An example would be if one's name is MUNGA JIRA, MUNGA would be the last name of his children and wife. Although it is a tradition to name your family in this way it is a practice that is slowly fading.
The Kamba or Akamba people are a Bantu ethnic group who predominantly live in the area of Kenya stretching from Nairobi to Tsavo and north to Embu, in the southern part of the former Eastern Province. This land is called Ukambani and constitutes Makueni County, Kitui County and Machakos County. They also form the second largest ethnic group in 8 counties including Nairobi and Mombasa counties.
Mijikenda are a group of nine related Bantu ethnic groups inhabiting the coast of Kenya, between the Sabaki and the Umba rivers, in an area stretching from the border with Tanzania in the south to the border near Somalia in the north. Archaeologist Chapuruka Kusimba contends that the Mijikenda formerly resided in coastal cities, but later settled in Kenya's hinterlands to avoid submission to dominant Portuguese forces that were then in control. Historically, these Mijikenda ethnic groups have been called the Nyika or Nika by outsiders. It is a derogatory term meaning "bush people."
The Giriama are one of the nine ethnic groups that make up the Mijikenda.
Kenya is a multilingual country. The Bantu Swahili language and English, the latter being inherited from colonial rule, are widely spoken as lingua franca. They serve as the two official working languages. Including second-language speakers, there are more speakers of Swahili than English in Kenya.
Takaungu is a historic Swahili town located on the Kenyan Coast between Mombasa and Malindi, in Kilifi County.
The Pokomo people are a Bantu ethnic group of southeastern Kenya. The population in Kenya was 112,075 in 2019. They are a distinct ethnic group with their own sub-clans/tribes. Despite their proximity, they are not of the nearby Mijikenda people. They are predominantly agriculturalists and both freshwater and ocean fishermen living along the Tana River in Tana River County. They speak the Pokomo language, which is similar to Swahili.
The Digo are a Bantu ethnic and linguistic group based near the Indian Ocean coast between Mombasa in southern Kenya and northern Tanga in Tanzania. In 1994 the Digo population was estimated to total 305,000, with 217,000 ethnic Digo living in Kenya and 88,000 in Tanzania. Digo people, nearly all Muslims, speak the Digo language, called Chidigo by speakers, a Bantu language. They are part of the greater Mijikenda ethnic group of people which contains nine smaller groups or tribes, including the Duruma, Giriama, and others.. The Digo in Tanzania are the native inhabitants of Mkinga and Tanga districts of Tanga Region and are a major cultural group there.
Kilifi County is a county of Kenya. It was formed in 2010 as a result of a merger of Kilifi District and Malindi District. Its capital is Kilifi and its largest town is Malindi. The county has a population of 1,453,787. It covers an area of 12,245.90 km2 (4,728.17 sq mi).
The Jibana or Dzihana people are an ethnic group from Kenya and a subgroup of the Mijikenda. There are 38,466 of them, all speakers of Kijibana. The Jibana community lives in Kaloleni subcounty of Kilifi county. Like the other Mijikenda communities, they have an organized clans which trace their origin from the ancient ancestors.
The Segeju are a Bantu ethnolinguistic group mostly based in Tanzania's Tanga Region and Kenya's Kwale County. Most Segeju reside in the small coastal strip between the Tanzanian city of Tanga and the Kenyan-Tanzanian border. However, some Segeju have migrated to urban areas in other parts of Tanzania or Kenya, in hopes of better employment opportunities and quality of life. Segeju migration to urban areas often results in severance of community ties, leading to a lack of transmission of important cultural traditions and language.
Mnyazi wa Menza, also known as 'Mekatilili Wa Menza or Makatilili (1860s-1924) was a Kenyan independence activist who led the Giriama people against the colonial administration of Kenya between 1912 and 1915.
The Embu are a Bantu people inhabiting Embu county in Kenya. They speak the Embu language as a mother tongue. To the south of Embu are to be found their cousins, the Mbeere people. In essence Embu county encompasses the ethnic Kîembu dialect, from whom the Embu county's name derives, and the Kimbere dialect spoken by their Mbeere counterparts who inhabit the lower reaches of the county. Historically, both were just referred to as the Embu people. To the west, Embu neighbours are the closely related Kikuyu in Kirinyaga, Nyeri, Kiambu, Muranga and Nyandarua counties. The Meru people border the Embu to the East.
The Taita people are a Kenyan ethnic group located in the Taita-Taveta County. They speak Kidawida or Kitaita which belongs to the Bantu languages. The West-Bantu moved to the area of the Taita-Taveta County first approximately in 1000-1300.
Kigango is a carved wooden memorial statue erected by the Mijikenda peoples of the southeastern Kenya coast. The vigango, which can be stylized, abstracted human-form effigies and are placed vertically rising out of the earth, honor a dead member of the secret Gohu society, or the "Society of the Blessed".
Mwanzele is a dance style originally performed during funerals by the Mijikenda tribe of the Coast Province of Kenya.
Mijikenda is a Bantu dialect cluster spoken along the coast of East Africa, mostly in Kenya, where there are 1.9 million speakers but also in Tanzania, where there are 100,000 speakers. The name Mijikenda means "the nine settlements" or "the nine communities" and refers to the multiple language communities that make up the group. An older, derogatory term for the group is Nyika which refers to the "dry and bushy country" along the coast.
Kaya is a sacred forest of the Mijikenda people in the former Coast Province of Kenya. The kaya forest is considered to be an intrinsic source of ritual power and the origin of cultural identity; it is also a place of prayer for members of the particular ethnic group. The settlement, ritual centre, and fortified enclosure associated with the forest are also part of the kaya. In the present day, the kaya is also referred to as a traditional organizational unit of the Mijikenda. Eleven of the approximately 30 separate kaya have been grouped together and inscribed as the Sacred Mijikenda Kaya Forests, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Fingo is a protective talisman of the Mijikenda people in Coast Province, Kenya. Fingo are believed to attract guardian spirits (djinns). It is commonly buried in the kaya. Kaya elders take care of the fingo, which is said to have come from Shungwaya, the ancestral home of the Mijikenda. Considered to be interesting objet d'art, many fingo are stolen, while others are lost. The Giriama use large stones as fingo while other Mijikenda use a large pot of medicine. The pottery vessel contains not only medicine but also magic charms. It serves to protect the kaya and its inhabitants, one buried at the entrance and exit of each kaya.
African divination is divination practiced by cultures of Africa.
Kaya Mudzi Muvya is a coastal lowland dry deciduous forest in Kilifi County of southern Kenya. It became a World Heritage Site in 2008. A large portion of the forest is an area protected by the Kenya Forest Service under The Forests Act of 2005, and as a national monument under the Antiquities and Monuments Act Cap 215. The forest is sacred to the local Mijikenda people, known as the Rabai. The forest has suffered deprevation over the past hundred years.
