Kikuyu

Kikuyu, Bantu-speaking people who make up the largest tribal group in Kenya. Traditionally an agricultural people, the Kikuyu long resided in separate family homesteads raising crops of millet, beans, peas, and sweet potatoes. Some groups also raised animals to supplement their diet, but little or no hunting or fishing took place. In these family homesteads, the basic social unit has consisted of a patrilineal group of males, who are polygamous, and their wives and children.

During the early 1950s the Kikuyu led a movement to violently overthrow the British colonial government. The resulting warfare became known as the Mau Mau rebellion. The leader of that movement, Jomo Kenyatta, was elected prime minister after Kenya gained its independence from Britain in 1963. Since that time the Kikuyu have been an influential part of Kenyan society. Today they are some of the most educated and prosperous people in Kenya. Many live and work in Nairobi and other cities, often in government or business.