| Cheptalel | |
|---|---|
 Contemporary illustration of Cheptalel | |
| Affiliation | Kalenjin mythology and folklore |
| Personal information | |
| Parents | unnamed |
| Siblings | none |
| Consort | unnamed |
| Children | unknown |
Cheptalel [1] [2] (also Cheptaleel) is a heroine found in the folklore of the Kipsigis [3] and Nandi [4] sections of the Kalenjin people of Kenya. She became a folk hero as a result of being offered as a sacrifice (actually or symbolically) to save the Kalenjin sections from a drought that was ravaging their land.
The name Cheptalel in Kalenjin mythology was the second most common name given to the supreme being, it denotes an attribute that gives the meaning 'controller of all things'. The similar sounding name Cheptalil gives the thought of a supreme being endowed with glory (lilindo). The two names, Cheptalel and Cheptalil, though false cognates are used interchangeably in common parlance. [3]
Cheptalel is commonly seen to derive from the feminine prefix Chep (or fully Chepto meaning girl) and the word 'lel' meaning white. A similar naming convention is found in the name Koitalel, where koita means stone. However, when used to denote the supreme being the prefix does not denote a female supreme being. Rather it is associated with one aspect, that of creation and prosperity of life as opposed to the masculine which was associated with destruction. [5]
It has also been postulated that the name derives from a Sudanic name for the sun 'Tel', as of Chee-po-Tel or Tie-po-Tel, thus the girl of Tel i.e. She of the Sun. [6]
There is little in the legend about Cheptalel's background though certain aspects of her early life appear in all traditions. Notably, she is understood to have been a virgin and in some accounts the only child in her family. In all accounts she had a boyfriend who plays a significant role in saving her life. [4]
In the legend, there came a time when rain disappeared for many years leading to a severe drought such that the elders held a meeting to decide on what to do. It was decided that a young girl would be offered as, or would go and offer, a sacrifice to the owner of the sky so that he would allow rain to fall. A young virgin girl was thus selected to go to a body of water (usually the home of Ilat) to pray for rain.
Her boyfriend found out about the plan and determined to follow her surreptitiously as she went on her mission. When she arrived at the lake (in some accounts waterfall), she stood at the shore and sang thus;
"Tulog tuloei, tulo tuloei,
I was sent by the age-mates
Of my father and my mother
To go to the shore of a lake
So that it can rain" [4]
As she sang, it began to drizzle and when she sang again it began to pour. When she sang a third time, it began to rain heavily and at the same time Ilat, in the form of lightning, struck but before he could get the girl, her boyfriend jumped out of his hiding place and killed Ilat thus rescuing Cheptalel. [4]
In one version of the legend, a pure white goat was taken along with her to the water and there the goat was sacrificed and the girl spared. [3]
Christian missionaries adopted the name as a name for God. [3] The name remains in common use today. [7]
The Kipsigis or Kipsigiis are a Nilotic group contingent of the Kalenjin ethnic group and speak a dialect of the Kalenjin language identified by their community eponym, Kipsigis. It is observed that the Kipsigis and another aboriginal group native to Kenya known as Ogiek have a merged identity. The Kipsigis are the biggest sub tribe within the Kalenjin community. The latest census population in Kenya put the Kipsigis at 1,972,000 speakers, accounting for 45% of all Kalenjin speaking people. They occupy the highlands of Kericho stretching from Timboroa to the Mara River in the south and the Mau Escarpment in the east to Kebeneti. They also occupy parts of Laikipia, Kitale, Nakuru, Narok, the Trans Mara District, Eldoret and the Nandi Hills.
The Kalenjin are a group of tribes indigenous to East Africa, residing mainly in what was formerly the Rift Valley Province in Kenya and the Eastern slopes of Mount Elgon in Uganda. They number 6,358,113 individuals per the Kenyan 2019 census and an estimated 273,839 in Uganda according to the 2014 census mainly in Kapchorwa, Kween and Bukwo districts.
The Bukusu people are one of the 17 Kenyan tribes of the Luhya Bantu people of East Africa residing mainly in the counties of Bungoma and Trans Nzoia. They are the largest tribe of the Luhya nation, with 1,188,963 identifying as Bukusu in the 2019 Kenyan census. They speak the Bukusu dialect.
The Nandi are part of the Kalenjin, a Nilotic tribe living in East Africa. The Nandi ethnic group live with close association and relation with the Kipsigis tribe. They traditionally have lived and still form the majority in the highland areas of the former Rift Valley Province of Kenya, in what is today Nandi County. They speak the Nandi dialect of the Kalenjin language.
The Elgeyo language, or Kalenjin proper, are a dialect cluster of the Kalenjin branch of the Nilotic language family.
The Orkoiyot occupied a sacred and special role within the Nandi and Kipsigis people of Kenya. He held the dual roles of King spiritual and military leader, and had the authority to make decisions regarding security particularly the waging of war. Notable Orkoiik include Kimnyole Arap Turukat, Koitalel Arap Samoei and Barsirian Arap Manyei.
Kavirondo is the former name of the region surrounding Kavirondo Gulf as well as of two native peoples living there under the regime of British East Africa. Broadly, this was defined as those who dwelt in the valley of the Nzoia River, on the western slopes of Mount Elgon, and along the northeast coast of Victoria Nyanza.
The Elgeyo are an ethnic group who are part of the larger Kalenjin ethnic group of Nilotic origin. They live near Eldoret, Kenya, in the highlands of the former Keiyo District, now part of the larger Elgeyo Marakwet County. The Elgeyo originally settled at the foothills of the Elgeyo escarpment, in the area between Kerio river to the east and the escarpment to the west. Due to drought and famine in the valley, the Keiyos climbed the escarpment and started to settle on the highland east of Uasin Gishu plateau. When the British came, the Keiyos were pushed to settle in clusters called reserves.
The Marakwet are one of the groups forming the ethnolinguistic Kalenjin community of Kenya, they speak the Markweta language. The Marakwet live in five territorial sections namely Almoo, Cherangany, Endoow, Sombirir (Borokot) and Markweta. Cutting across these territorial groups are a number of clans to which each Marakwet belongs. There were 119,969 Marakwet people in 2019.
Koitalel arap Samoei was an Orkoiyot who led the Nandi people from 1890 until his assassination in 1905. The Orkoiyot occupied a sacred and special role within the Nandi and Kipsigis people of Kenya. He held the dual roles of chief spiritual and military leader, and had the authority to make decisions regarding security matters particularly the waging of war and negotiating for peace. Koitalel was the supreme chief of the Nandi people of Kenya. He led the Nandi resistance against British colonial rule.
Traditional Kalenjin society is the way of life that existed among the Kalenjin-speaking people prior to the advent of the colonial period in Kenya and after the decline of the Chemwal, Lumbwa and other Kalenjin communities in the late 1700s and early 1800s.
Kalenjin mythology refers to the traditional religion and beliefs of the Kalenjin people of Kenya.
The Settlement of Nandi was the historical process by which the various communities that today make up the Nandi people of Kenya settled in Nandi County. It is captured in the folklore of the Nandi as a distinct process composed of a series of inward migrations by members from various Kalenjin ortinwek.
Kalenjin folklore consists of folk tales, legends, songs, music, dancing, popular beliefs, and traditions communicated by the Kalenjin-speaking communities, often passed down the generations by word of mouth.
Kalenjin names are primarily used by the Kalenjin people of Kenya and Kalenjin language-speaking communities such as Murle in Ethiopia, Sebei of Uganda, Datooga, Akie and Aramanik of Tanzania.
The Chemwal people were a Kalenjin-speaking society that inhabited regions of western and north-western Kenya as well as the regions around Mount Elgon at various times through to the late 19th century. The Nandi word Sekker was used by Pokot elders to describe one section of a community that occupied the Elgeyo escarpment and whose territory stretched across the Uasin Gishu plateau. This section of the community appears to have neighbored the Karamojong who referred to them as Siger, a name that derived from the Karimojong word esigirait. The most notable element of Sekker/Chemwal culture appears to have been a dangling adornment of a single cowrie shell attached to the forelock of Sekker women, at least as of the late 1700s and early 1800s.
The Siger people were a community commonly spoken of in the folklore of a number of Kenyan communities that inhabited regions of northwestern Kenya at various points in history.
The Lumbwa Treaty event took place on 13 October 1889, in Lumbwa in Kericho between the Kipsigis led by Menya Araap Kisiara and the British East Africa administration. It was based on a cultural practice of oath taking in Kipsigis called Mummek or Mummiat or Mumma. Mumma means "to do something impossibly disgusting". It involves two parties taking an oath and invoking a preemptive curse if the oath is to be broken by any party taking the oath. There usually would also be a performance of black magic; and on this particular event a coyote was savored in two halves with each party burying its part and making the oath never to harm each other in any way.
The Kalenjin are a Nilotic people living in Kenya. They speak Kalenjin language which is spoken in dialects specific to individual contingent tribes and/or sub-tribes. The system observes that every name of a person, object or place has a meaning. The system has been subject to westernization and attrition to linguistics due to the Kenyan adoption of Swahili language as a lingua-franca and the dynamic view that indigenous languages are provincial and irrelevant.
Diana Chemutai Musila, known by her stage name, Chelele, was a Kalenjin secular music singer songwriter. She sang in Kipsigis, a dialect of Kalenjin language. The Kalenjin are a Southern Nilotic ethnicity that inhabits the former Rift Valley Province of Kenya and a number of districts in the Mount Elgon area in Uganda. Chelele's songs were ranked top the charts on Kalenjin radio and TV stations during her years of fecund music production. She is reminisced for her feisty demeanour during all her recording and stage performances.