THE LIVING HERITAGE OF THE MIJIKENDA COMMUNITY

 Along the southern coast of Kenya, the sacred kaya forests of the Mijikenda tribes are a living legacy of the people’s history, culture, and religion.

The Mijikenda Community is a community that is found in most parts of the Coastal region of Kenya. In Swahili, ‘Mijikenda’ loosely translates to ‘nine homesteads’. So the Mijikenda is a community that is made up of nine tribes. They include Digo, Giriama, Rabai, Chonyi, Duruma, Jibana, Kambe, Kauma, and Ribe.

This community is believed to be among the Bantu group who migrated from the northern coast of Somalia in the Shungwaya area due to attack from their neighborhood communities, the Somali and later on decided to settle in the kaya forests which is almost located along the coastal regions.

“Planting in one generation for generations to come”