Rift Valley
Uasin Gishu
The high-altitude plateau around Eldoret has produced generations of world-champion distance runners; Uasin Gishu is also a wheat, maize and dairy powerhouse and a growing industrial hub.
What you'll hear
The people
Keiyo
The Keiyo people inhabit the southern and central parts of the county, living primarily along the high altitude plateau, escarpment ledges, and lower valley zones. Historically pastoralists who adapted to high-altitude crop farming, they developed resilient agricultural practices suited to the steep terrain. Their identity is tightly woven with age-set traditions, physical endurance, and strong community solidarity. In modern times, they form a key demographic around administrative hubs like Iten and Tambach.
Kikuyu
The Kikuyu community forms a significant demographic presence in Kajiado's northern peri-urban centers, including Ngong, Ongata Rongai, Kitengela, and Kiserian. Beginning with colonial-era migration into the Ngong region, they played a key role in expanding commercial farming, transport networks, and urban real estate. Today, they are deeply integrated into Kajiado's economic landscape, driving trade, retail enterprises, and urban development across the county's northern corridor.
Uasin Gishu Maasai
The Uasin Gishu Maasai (Illwuasin-kishu) are the historic pastoralist section whose former grazing territory gave the county its enduring name. Though their dominant physical presence was reduced during late 19th-century inter-tribal wars and colonial land alienation, their cultural legacy survives in geographical names, river titles, and local historical memory. Descendants remain integrated within the broader social and historical fabric of the Rift Valley.
Nandi
The Nandi are a Kalenjin ethnic group with a dominant, long-standing historical presence across Uasin Gishu County. They are primarily large-scale grain farmers, dairy producers, and livestock keepers with rich cultural traditions centered around age-sets and communal land stewardship. Their language, traditional rites like tumdo, and rich oral heritage form the backbone of the county's dominant social fabric.
Food & Cuisine
Kipsegeit
Kipsegeit is a traditional fermented grain drink made through a labor-intensive malting process using finger millet or sorghum. Grains are soaked, allowed to sprout in dark conditions, sun-dried, ground into fine malt, and then boiled into a thick liquid before undergoing fermentation. The finished beverage delivers a tangy, lightly effervescent flavor profile that reflects the high quality of local grains. It is traditionally served out of hollowed gourds or clay pots during communal elders' assemblies, harvest celebrations, and ancestral rites. The sharing of kipsegeit represents unity, mutual respect, and social bonding among village elders when settling local matters.
Mursik
Mursik is a traditional Kalenjin fermented milk dish prepared in a specialized calabash gourd known as a sotet. The gourd is cleaned and scrubbed inside with hot embers from specific hardwood trees, particularly senetwet, which imparts a distinct smoky aroma and dark speckling. Fresh cow milk is poured into the treated gourd and allowed to ferment naturally over several days in a cool dark area. It is traditionally served cold alongside stiff maize ugali or served as a ceremonial drink to honor esteemed guests, returning world-record athletes, and during bride-wealth negotiations. Beyond its refreshing taste, mursik holds immense cultural prestige as a symbol of hospitality and endurance across Uasin Gishu.
Isagek (Spiderplant Greens)
Isagek, commonly known as spiderplant or African spider flower, is an indigenous leafy vegetable widely cultivated in homestead gardens across Uasin Gishu. The fresh green leaves are hand-picked, washed thoroughly, and boiled to soften their natural bitterness before being sautéed with onions, tomatoes, and fresh milk or cream. Often cooked together with nightshade greens to harmonize the intense earthy flavors, it creates a rich nutrient-dense side dish. Isagek is served hot alongside kimnyet during everyday family meals as well as formal traditional gatherings. It is especially prized for its therapeutic properties, frequently served to nursing mothers and recovering elders to rebuild strength.
Kimnyet
Kimnyet is the traditional stiff porridge that forms the foundational staple dish for households throughout Uasin Gishu County. It is crafted from finely ground millet, sorghum, or maize flour whisked continuously in boiling water using a flat wooden stick called a kisiat until thick and firm. Cooked slowly over a hearth fire, it develops a smooth texture and rich grain flavor that sustains farmers through long working days. Kimnyet is almost always served hot at family dinner tables paired with sautéed indigenous leafy vegetables or stewed meats. It is customarily accompanied by a cup of chilled mursik, forming the quintessential traditional meal of the region.
Music & Sound
Chepkesem
Chepkesem is an energetic call-and-response song and dance tradition led predominantly by Kalenjin women during joy-filled public events. The performance features high-pitched lead vocals answered by a rhythmic chorus, complemented by coordinated hand clapping and soft foot stamping. Dancers wear bright traditional shoulder wraps known as lessos and beaded neckpieces that sway rhythmically with their movements. It is regularly performed during homecoming receptions for Olympic athletes, wedding celebrations, and cultural festivals throughout Uasin Gishu. The distinctiveness of Chepkesem lies in its infectious celebratory spirit, uplifting harmonies, and communal participation.
Kamari Performance
Kamari is an ancient oral storytelling tradition where solo musicians or small ensembles sing praise songs and historical epics. Performers accompany themselves using traditional Kalenjin string instruments like the kigengeng, a plucked lyre that creates melodic, rhythmic patterns. The compositions record historical events, praise heroic figures, recount romantic tales, and offer witty commentary on daily life in Uasin Gishu. Kamari is performed during evening social gatherings around the hearth, cultural exhibitions, and community barazas. What makes it distinct is its role as a living historical repository, preserving local memory through poetic lyrics and continuous musical innovation.
Tumdo Initiation Songs
Tumdo initiation songs constitute a sacred musical tradition performed during seasonal rites of passage for young adults transitioning to adulthood. Performed across rural villages in Uasin Gishu, these songs are divided into sacred chants sung inside seclusion camps and public melodies sung by family members. The vocal delivery relies on deep, solemn solo chants met with powerful unison responses from initiates wearing specialized ankle bells called chepkesiet. The lyrics function as an oral classroom, passing down tribal history, moral virtues, and communal duties to the new age-set. The distinct sound of these bell-accented rhythms echoing across the plateau marks a major seasonal milestone in community life.
Traditions & Customs
Koito (Formal Dowry and Engagement Negotiation)
Koito is a traditional, structured engagement and dowry negotiation ceremony held between the families of a prospective bride and groom. The groom's family sends a delegation of elder representatives to the bride's home, where they engage in formal verbal discourse to agree upon bride price. Gourds of fresh mursik are presented and consumed throughout the ceremony as a token of goodwill, mutual respect, and honest intention. Once negotiations conclude successfully, elders perform blessings using sprigs of the sacred sinendet plant to bind the two families together. Koito is rigorously observed by households in Uasin Gishu, serving as a pillar of social structure and family alliance.
Kagwan / Emet Blessing Ceremony
Kagwan is a sacred communal blessing ceremony convened by clan elders during times of environmental distress, such as prolonged droughts or livestock illness. Elders assemble beneath sacred trees, like the mogotio or oet, to build ceremonial fires with specific woods and pour libations of milk and honey. Facing the eastern horizon, the elders chant prayers to Asis, the Supreme Creator, asking for rain, abundant crops, peace, and health across the land. Attendees receive symbolic blessings as elders sprinkle fresh milk onto their foreheads using leafy branches. This tradition highlights the community's deep spiritual connection to nature and reliance on elder guidance.
Tumdo (Rite of Passage and Initiation)
Tumdo is the sacred initiation process that marks the transition of youth into adulthood, formally inducting them into traditional Kalenjin age-sets. Initiates enter a period of seclusion in special forest huts called menjos, located away from family homesteads. During seclusion, respected elders instruct the young initiates in moral codes, clan history, personal discipline, and family responsibilities. The ceremony culminates in a joyous public emergence ritual where initiates are anointed with fresh cream, dressed in fine clothing, and blessed by the entire community. It remains a deeply honored rite across Uasin Gishu, strengthening character, social unity, and inter-generational continuity.
Korosiot Harvest Celebration
Korosiot is an annual post-harvest Thanksgiving ceremony celebrated after the main maize and wheat crops are gathered from the fields. Farming families bring portions of their newly harvested grain, leafy greens, and calabashes of fresh mursik to a designated central ground. Elders lead prayers of thanks for the favorable rains and protection from crop diseases throughout the growing season. Portions of the shared harvest are distributed to vulnerable community members, reinforcing social equity and communal care. The day concludes with singing traditional songs, dancing, and communal feasting to celebrate the fruits of collective labor.
Heritage Sites
Koromosho Falls
Koromosho Falls is a stunning 70-meter waterfall located along the Kipkaren River in the southwestern reaches of Uasin Gishu County. The river plunges dramatically over a sheer basalt cliff into a lush, forested gorge filled with native vegetation and bird species. Historically, the site carried profound spiritual weight and local folklore associated with ancient Kalenjin judgment traditions and spiritual cleansings. Visitors to Koromosho navigate scenic farmland trails before reaching the cliff brink, where they experience roaring cascades and mist-filled gorge views. It remains one of the county's most captivating natural heritage sites, connecting spectacular landscape geography with deep ancestral oral history.
Kesses Dam (Lake Lessos)
Kesses Dam, often referred to as Lake Lessos, is a major man-made reservoir constructed in the mid-20th century near present-day Moi University. Spanning hundreds of acres, the water body was built to support regional agricultural irrigation, livestock watering, and civic water needs. Over decades, it evolved into a thriving freshwater wetland habitat that attracts various bird species, freshwater fish, and aquatic plants. Visitors to Kesses Dam can enjoy calm boat rides, sport fishing, and lakeside bird watching against the backdrop of surrounding farmland. It serves as an impressive landmark of water engineering that fundamentally transformed local ecology and agrarian life in Uasin Gishu.
Eldoret Railway Station
Eldoret Railway Station is a historic red-brick transportation terminal established in 1924 during the construction of the Uasin Gishu Railway line to Uganda. The station features classic colonial architectural design with stone platforms, pitched corrugated roofs, and original mechanical railway signaling gear. Its opening transformed Farm 64 from a sleepy administrative outpost into the economic and commercial powerhouse of the North Rift region. A visitor today can walk along the historical platforms, observe working freight yards, and view vintage rail infrastructure that launched modern trade in western Kenya. It stands as a pivotal historical milestone marking Uasin Gishu's integration into East Africa's broader economic network.
Sergoit Hill
Sergoit Hill is a prominent granite rock outcrop rising dramatically above the agricultural plains northeast of Eldoret town. Historically, the hill served as an indispensable strategic lookout post for indigenous pastoralists and early European settlers watching over livestock grazing lands. Today, the surrounding private conservancy harbors Rothschild's giraffes, impalas, zebras, and numerous highland bird species. Visitors hiking to the summit are rewarded with sweeping 360-degree views extending across green wheat fields toward the Cherang'any Hills. The site offers a unique combination of natural wilderness, wildlife conservation, and panoramic views of Uasin Gishu's landscape.
History
Colonial
The Afrikaner Boer Trek and the Establishment of Farm 64 (1908)
In 1908, a landmark event occurred when a trek of 47 Afrikaner (Boer) families led by Jan van Rensburg arrived on the plateau from Nakuru. Seeking rich agricultural land in the British White Highlands, these families marked out large cattle and wheat farms across the rolling grasslands. The nascent administrative center established to service these farming plots was officially named Farm 64, designating its distance in miles from the railhead at Kibigori. By 1912, the British colonial government formally gazetted Farm 64 as Eldoret, deriving the name from the Maasai word Eldore, meaning stony river, in reference to the Sosiani River running through town. This wave of settlement permanently transformed Uasin Gishu into Kenya's premier large-scale grain farming sector.
Colonial
Railway Arrival and Urban Boom (1924)
The completion of the Uasin Gishu Railway line extension from Nakuru through Eldoret to Uganda in 1924 catalyzed rapid economic development across the plateau. Before the railway arrived, farmers relied on slow ox-wagon transport over treacherous dirt roads to get crops like wheat and maize to market. The railway provided rapid transport to coastal ports, prompting the immediate construction of massive grain silos, timber mills, and commercial banks in Eldoret. South Asian merchants established vibrant commercial shops along Kenya Road, transforming the town into a bustling trading hub. This vital transport corridor solidified Uasin Gishu's status as the indispensable economic center of western Kenya.
Pre-colonial
The Era of the Uasin Gishu Maasai and Kalenjin Expansion
Prior to the late 19th century, the rolling high plateau of modern Uasin Gishu was primary grazing territory for the Illwuasin-kishu section of the Maasai ethnic group. The county takes its name directly from this community, derived from the Maasai phrase Ouas Nkishu, which translates to striped cattle in reference to their distinctive herd markings. Mid-19th-century inter-clan conflicts, known as the Iloikop Wars, severely weakened the Illwuasin-kishu's hold on the region. Consequently, neighboring Kalenjin sub-groups, most notably the Nandi and Keiyo, expanded their agricultural and pastoral presence across the plateau. This shift established the foundational indigenous cultural and social geography that defines the county today.
Post-independence
The Million Acre Settlement Scheme and Land Redistribution (1963–1970s)
Following Kenya's independence in 1963, the national government launched the ambitious Million Acre Settlement Scheme to buy out European settlers and redistribute farmland to African families. In Uasin Gishu, thousands of Kalenjin, Kikuyu, and other local smallholders purchased sub-divided farm plots across the high plateau. The government introduced high-yielding hybrid maize varieties and established the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) depot network to store local harvests. Small-scale dairy farming cooperatives expanded rapidly beside large-scale grain production, creating a prosperous African agrarian middle class. This era successfully converted former colonial estates into a highly productive smallholder agricultural network, earning Uasin Gishu its title as Kenya's breadbasket.
Post-independence
Rise of the City of Champions and Modern Educational Hub (1990s–Present)
During the late 20th and early 21st centuries, Uasin Gishu achieved international fame as the global capital of long-distance running. High-altitude training centers built in and around Eldoret produced generations of world champions, including Kipchoge Keino and Eliud Kipchoge, earning Eldoret the nickname City of Champions. Prize money earned on the international athletic circuit was heavily reinvested into modern commercial real estate, hotels, and agricultural enterprises across the county. Concurrently, the growth of Moi University and the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital established Eldoret as a top-tier medical and tertiary education hub in East Africa. Today, Uasin Gishu seamlessly combines its historic agricultural identity with cosmopolitan commerce and global sports excellence.