Trans-Nzoia District was an administrative district of Rift Valley Province, Kenya, located between the Nzoia River and Mount Elgon with its centre at the town of Kitale.
The district origin go back when the region was transferred from Uganda in 1902. The area remained unclassified,but considered part of Kisumu Province, until 1905 or 1906 when it was admitted to the Naivasha Province as Uasin Gishu District. It contained Trans-Nzoia and later in 1912, when Elgeyo joined, and Marakwet in 1917. In 1919, the colonial authorities split Trans Nzoia from Uasin Gishu District, where two years later, it became an extra-provincial territory. In 1929, Trans-Nzoia and Uasin Gishu districts formed Nzoia Province, only for the province to be absorbed into the Rift Valley Province. The two districts will be joined ageing in 1945, then settled, were split up sometime later in 1949. [1] Trans-Nzoia was maintained during review of district boundaries in 1962. It became one of the forty districts of Kenya, 1963. [2]
It had an estimated population of 575,662 in 1999. [3]
By the 2000s, Trans Nzoia District had ceased to exist as it had split into Kwanza, Trans Nzoia East and Trans Nzoia West districts. The three districts had a total population of 818,757, with a predominantly rural population across the districts. [4]
In 2010, after the promulgation of the new constitution of Kenya, counties were to be created based on the districts of Kenya that existed as at 1992. This effectively led to the creation of Trans-Nzoia County.
Historically the area had been inhabited by the Kalenjin people. After independence many of the farms vacated by white settlers were bought by individuals from other ethnic groups in Kenya.
The district had three constituencies:
Local authorities (councils) | |||
Authority | Type | Population* | Urban pop.* |
---|---|---|---|
Kitale | Municipality | 86,055 | 63,245 |
Nzoia | County | 489,607 | 0 |
Total | - | 575,662 | 63,245 |
* 1999 census. Source: |
Administrative divisions | |||
Division | Population* | Urban pop.* | Headquarters |
---|---|---|---|
Central | 147,992 | 42,884 | Kitale |
Cherangany | 52,974 | 0 | Cherangani |
Endebess | 61,481 | 0 | Endebess |
Kaplamai | 89,858 | 0 | |
Kiminini | 64,685 | 0 | Kiminini |
Kwanza | 88,727 | 0 | Kwanza |
Saboti | 69,945 | 0 | Saboti |
Total | 575,662 | 42,884 | - |
* 1999 census. Sources: , , |
Eldoret is the fifth largest city in Kenya. In the Rift Valley region, it serves as the capital of Uasin Gishu County. The town was referred to by white settlers as Farm 64 and colloquially by locals as 'Sisibo'. As per the 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census, Eldoret is the fifth most populated urban area in the country after Nairobi, Mombasa, Nakuru and Ruiru. Lying south of the Cherangani Hills, the local elevation varies from about 2,100 metres (6,900 ft) at the airport to more than 2,700 metres (8,900 ft) in nearby areas. The population was 289,380 in the 2009 Census, and it was the fastest growing city in Kenya with 475,716 people according to 2019 National Census. Eldoret was on course to be named Kenya's fourth city, but was edged out by Nakuru in 2021.
Trans-Nzoia County is a county in the former Rift Valley Province, Kenya, located between the Nzoia River and Mount Elgon, 380 km northwest of Nairobi. At its centre is the town of Kitale which is the capital and largest town. The county borders Bungoma to the west, Uasin Gishu and Kakamega to the south, Elgeyo-Marakwet to the east, West Pokot to the north and the republic of Uganda to the Northwest. Trans Nzoia covers an area of 2495.5 square kilometres.
Uasin Gishu County is one of the 47 counties of Kenya located in the former Rift Valley Province. Eldoret has the county's largest population centre as well as its administrative and commercial centre. "It lies between longitudes 34 degrees 50' east and 35 degrees 37' West and latitudes 0 degrees 03' South and 0 degrees 55' North. It is a highland plateau with altitudes falling gently from 2,700 meters above sea level to about 1,500 meters above sea level. The topography is higher to the east and declines gently towards the western border".
Kimnyole Arap Turkat was the Nandi Orkoiyot who predicted the arrival of Europeans and the railways ; two events that were to forever alter the history of the Nandi.
Nandi County is a county in Kenya in the North Rift, occupying an area of 2,884.4 square kilometres. Its capital, Kapsabet, is the largest town in the county while other towns include Mosoriot, Tinderet, Kobujoi, Kaiboi, Kabiyet and Nandi Hills. According to a 2019 census, the county had a population of 885,711, made up of a number of Kenyan communities, the majority of whom belong to the native tribe called Nandi.
Moi's Bridge is a small town that has its roots both in Uasin Gishu County, Trans Nzoia County and Kakamega County, Kenya. It is a town that has since grown as an agricultural center with the third largest NCPB in East Africa. Moi's Bridge is an electoral ward of the Soy Constituency and Uasin Gishu County. It is an important Kenyan area, often named as the 'bread basket' of Kenya. Moi's Bridge is also a location in the Soy division of Uasin Gishu District.
Sub-counties, also known as Districts, are the decentralised units through which government of Kenya provides functions and services. At national level, sub-counties take a more administrative function like security, statistical purposes, provision of government services, etc. Even though the sub-counties are divisions of counties, powers to create new national sub-counties lies with the national government. As of 2023, there are 314 sub-counties, compared to 290 constituencies. A deputy county commissioner is appointed by the state to lead each sub-county. The sub-counties are further divided into divisions, locations and sub-locations.
Elgeyo-Marakwet County is one of Kenya's 47 counties, which is located in the former Rift Valley Province with its capital and largest town as Iten. It borders the counties of West Pokot to the north, Baringo County to the east, southeast and south, Uasin Gishu to the southwest and west, and Trans Nzoia to the northwest.
West Pokot District, formerly known as West Suk or Kacheliba District, was an administrative district in the Rift Valley Province of Kenya. Its capital town was Kapenguria.
Uasin Gishu District, also known as Eldoret District, was one of the districts of Kenya, located in the Rift Valley Province. The town of Eldoret was its capital, administrative and commercial centre. It bordered the Trans-Nzoia District.
Samburu District was a district in the Rift Valley Province of Kenya. It covered an area of roughly 21,000 km2 (8,000 mi2) in northern Kenya where the Samburu tribe live. The district had a population of 143,547 in the 1999 census. It stretched north from the Wuaso Ng'iro River to the south of Lake Turkana and also includes Mount Kulal which lies just east of Lake Turkana.
Nandi District was an administrative district in the Rift Valley Province of Kenya. Its capital town was Kapsabet.
Laikipia District was a district of Kenya, located on the Equator in the Rift Valley Province of the country. The district had two major urban centres: Nanyuki to the southeast, and Nyahururu to the southwest. Its capital was Nanyuki.
Paul Kiplimo Boit was a prominent KANU politician during the Moi Regime. He was the Chairman of Sirikwa County Council (which later came to be divided to Nandi County, Uasin Gishu County, Trans Nzoia County, West Pokot County Elgeyo Marakwet County from 1964 to 1971 and later became the Chairman of Wareng County Council one of five Councils split from Sirikwa covering Uasin Gishu. He was best known for his excellent farming skills which earned him many awards and a visit from the former Tanzanian president Ali Hassan Mwinyi
Sirikwa holes are saucer-shaped hollows found on hillsides in the western highlands of Kenya and in the elevated stretch of the central Rift Valley around Nakuru. These hollows, each having a diameter of 10–20 metres and an average depth of 2.4 metres, occur in groups, sometimes numbering fewer than ten and at times more than a hundred. Archaeologists believe that construction of these features may have begun in the Iron Age.
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.
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 Sirikwa culture was the predominant Kenyan hinterland culture of the Pastoral Iron Age, c.2000 BP. Seen to have developed out of the Elmenteitan culture of the East African Pastoral Neolithic c.3300-1200 BP, it was followed in much of its area by the Kalenjin, Maa, western and central Kenyan communities of the 18th and 19th centuries.
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.
Elgeyo-Marakwet District, also referred to as Tambach District during the colonial period, was one of the districts of Kenya, located in the Rift Valley Province. Its capital was Tambach.
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