Dorobo used to occupy central Kenya. A gikuyu man found a dorobo boy covered in ashes.( what is called mbuu ya mwaki). So they named him Mbuu. Eventually, a clan merged called mbari ya mbuu. It was a very rich clan that occupied present day Kikuyu town and other areas. it’s good to marry other tribes or other areas usijipate ulioa your ‘cousin’
was told kiambu mean place of screams. there was conflict between kikuyu and maasai people so the screams due to the violence became place of screams.
It was an area inhabited by the Mbuu family thus the name Kia Mbuu shortened to Kiambu. Just like we have Kia Maina (kiamaina) an area inhabited by Maina clan, Kia Nyaga (kianyaga), Kia Njogu (kianjogu), Kia Njokoma (kianjokoma) etc.
Source?
Interesting though prior to the British creating districts people south of southern Chania were Kabete people not Kiambu people. Kiambu was just a village in the area with the govt offices and golf club
I remember posting something about this a while back…let me find the link
Levin Opiyo, a budding historian wrote this on his fb page a while back
The area now known as Kiambu was occupied by the Dorobo who owned it on the basis of hunting rights.
It was later acquired by Kikuyus who got it by outright purchase from them…
Because Dorobos lived in forests most of the land sold was uncut forest which they called “githaka”,and it was the duty of the purchaser to cut down the trees.
The prices varied according to the size of “githaka”.The lowest price was 30 goats going up to 300 or more .As they were hunters and gatherers ,meaning they never kept animals, all the goats paid by the buyer were taken to a relative, that is a Mkikuyu in whose family they had married for herding ,and whenever they required meat they would go and get them.
A man wishing to purchase Dorobo’s “githaka” first bought alcohol which they all drank while discussing the sale.once the transaction was made the buyer would be treated as a relative as in marriage and if there was a fight between them ,then a goat would be killed and both parties smeared with dung.
When Europeans started arriving in Kenya, Kiambu was amongst the first areas that were granted to them.This made Kikuyus to appear before the Kenya Land Commission of 1932 to present their land grievances.
While appearing before the same commission, John Ainsworth ,the man credited with building Nairobi, consistently opposed the notion by the Kikuyus that they owned Kiambu by purchasing it from the Dorobo.
In his opinion ,Kikuyus only started purchasing land from the Dorobos after they realised that as the land was not theirs, they would need to prove some title in future,to show that they obtained it from someone.
He claimed that the payments made by the Kikuyus to the Dorobo were “hongo” (bribery) “for a peaceful footing ,freedom from molestation and compensation for disturbance of rights to hunt and collect honey” ,also arguing that there was no way the Dorobo could sell their land to the extent of being landless.
One Dorobo called Turuthi Githira in an affidavit sworn before Mr J.D Mckean the District Commissioner Kiambu claimed:
"I am head of the Ndorobo.When Bwana Hall came to Fort Hall (Muranga) i was already a warrior
"I agree we sold land to the Kikuyu tribe .The land was sold outright ,but we could always return from time to time to the purchaser and get something as in a marriage case.Once selling a piece of land it was our custom to move off the piece sold but sometimes we did not move, but there was no trouble about it.
“The general way of marking out a boundary was to show the purchaser our game pits and telling him which ones he could not pass .Where there was no game pits,trees were marked and where there were no trees lillies were planted.We intermarried with Kikuyus they also married our girls.”
The following conversation also took place between the Chairman Kenya Land Commission and another Dorobo witness,
"Chairman: Can you tell us whether Dorobo were a subdivision of the Kikuyu or whether they were related to Kikuyus?
Witness: They have got some sort of relationship .My father told me that according to what he had always heard ,the Kikuyu and Dorobo were of the same race.
Chairman: Did your father sell any land ?
Witness: Yes where Mr Cane’s house is and other places where Europeans live .My father’s eldest brother was named Gitutu.As matters stand today we are like Kikuyu ,but my father and his brothers were true Dorobos."
https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=odhiambo%20levin%20opiyo%20dorobo
Some of the comments from the thread
Julius Kigombe Thanx Odhiambo.I’m a fifth generation descendant of Turuthi (Ntorosi aka Torosei) and the Maasai /Ndorobo lineage is factual.My grandfather hailed from Githirioni ,Lari sub county ,Kiambu county. The Turuthi family is still there best represented by post independence former member of parliament Mr Turuthi Mungai.For further reading on southern Kikuyu’s land acquisition ,read Professor Godfrey Muriuki’s book ‘The Agikuyu 1500_1800’ .Century. Once again a gem of history which the younger or even older generation don’t know.The ndorobo and Athi heritage amongst the southern Kikuyu’s (Kiambu) is factual.
They associated closely with the dorobo.in In Nyeri county at a place called mutwe wa thii,in mukurueini there lived the Dorobo known as the Ngumba,very short people with large heads they are also known to live in Congo forest today
Daniel Gitau Contrary to belief, the Agikuyu were a Semitic tribe that descended from Ethiopia. They met the Gumba, a Bantu tribe from whom they were assimilated and adopted the Bantu language. They also married the dorobo (Maasai) and athi ( probable kambas) which changed their originality. That is why you find varied colors, heights and features. From very light color to very dark color. From short stocky to lanky and tall. From Cushitic looking to Congo Bantu features.
Kiminja Muiruri I live in kiambu and fellowship in st.paul Anglican. among our brothers we have people who trace their origins from the dorobos. this you can confirm with bishop Timothy ranji. they speak kikuyu and were it not for bishop ranji I would not have known this.
Olivia Mukora My great grandfather was among those who started the church. He was Dorobo. Apparently they were assimilated into the Kikuyu tribe. That is why we speak the language.
Kabuchi Wanjau Nyeri kikuyus assimilated athi gumba and maaasai… Tetù is a maasai name and its an area in Nyeri
Sonyo N Cheter I was told that when my forefather came to ngemwa it was inhabited by dorobo
A forest dwelling people
Then then Wangengi and kiruku who had come from mukurwe chased the dorobo away and occupied the land we now call home
All the dorobo were assimilated into kikuyu.
Does anyone know this story?
Kungu Chege I have heard this history from my roots. My great grandfather called Kung’u wa Wanyangi came to Kagwe- Kiambu in 1700 and ‘purchased’ land from Dorobos. He paid through a couple of goats. That’s how my family found themselves around Kagwe tea factory in Kiambu.
Kabuchi Wanjau Kagwì in Githùngùri was also ndorobo country… actually… the wholr of kiambu… westlands…karura mbagathi dagoretti was ndorobo country
Simon Kibiro My grandfather was called Bubi,and then my father is called Kibiro this are great Dorobo names and I am a great Dorobo. Turudishiwe mashamba
which years…mbuu clan is old
Kwa hivyo Jungu’s were reading thru the debacle between Okuyu and Ndorobo, and decided to take Okuyu to the cleaners, it was a continuation to a pattern that was in existence.
Anyone out there, who can list Ndorobo names will be much appreciated.
in 1700-1800, there was still Ogiek groups which were very much active in central Kenya and uncorrupted as evidenced by early missionaries which proves the theory the migration theory of the Kikuyu arriving in groups and from the North
So what fucking right did a white have in asking Africans about their affairs. The nerve of those colonists to even pretend their opinion mattered in the affairs of people living there is fucking disgusting.
Their motive was already set …they would just make up some other funny reason to steal the land
Nani amefanya ancestry dna? I did it for kicks and it ended messing me up more than I care to admit. However they recently updated their database and the middle eastern part came up as Ethiopia. I now understand why a lot of my relatives have aquiline noses. The kikuyu are a mixed lot.
I have traced my lineage to circa 1600 without DNA…still ongoing. I have written a lot about this with proof if you trace my earlier posts, Gikuyu came from the North…ndo maana ata unaona many gikuyus with ‘kimira’ hair
Ndorobo were the original inhabitants that were slowly pushed out because they did not till the land. They accepted small payments to allow the kikuyu to clear forests and till the land. I mean africa was endless forest and game so they didn’t see any reason to refuse land cultivators.
The miiru expansion occasioned the push southwards. The miiru did not negotiate with nturubu/ntorobo. The ntorobo represented the lowest rung of society and were expelled. It’s actually an insult to call someone a ntorobo in miiru. They great miiru society was from the conquest of Egyptian tribes in the north.
Kikuyus are original Africans and do not have curly hair.
My grandfather grew up in Kiambu an area called Ngemwa and was from that family of Kiruku. I heard that his grandfather was agikuyu but his grandmother was from Dorobo community since the two communities interacted and intermarried. This is 100% first hand information since its family information.
Sema tu ukweli. Some female in your lineage aligawia msumari
This is muguka gossip. Where did he get this from? Otherwise it is similar to the other Luo historian prof. Ogot who has been saying that Mau Mau did not exist