Chimbakha nambakhaani  – Good tales bring social ties.               In my father’s land, you don’t just get up in a gathering, and words find their way into your mouth. Leading a public is an art that requires prowess, experience and confidence, for people need to chew and choke on your words.  And so it is in many other African communities. A public speaker is a court poet who involves words full of ancient wisdom in proverbs and riddles, jokes, and metaphors that appeal to commoners. The Ashanti of Ghana call this court poet Kwandwumfo, griot in Mandinka, the Rwandese call him/her an umusizi while the Zulu of Mzansi calls him Imbongi. In Bukusu land, such a person has no specific name, depending on the type of gathering that one speaks. For instance, in Khuswala Kumuse (a rare and an elaborate ritual in honor of a respected Bukusu elder), he i...

Nandakambilwa alikona Khumwanda Kwenjoli (An inadvisable one would lay his life on a damned path)      This proverb comes from the story of a young man, Nandakambilwa originally called Silikhaya from Bang’ale clan, a tribal fold within Bukusu sub-nation. His father was Wamafwi, strict and principled. He was a former blacksmith and wealthy man, well-endowed with cattle and other livestock. Despite being brought up in a well nurtured home, Silikhaya grew rude and obedient. One day, he bade farewell to the family and told his father he will set up his own home in a land far away. He felt he could live in peace and do anything just like his father.  He travelled for many days and nights, covering a huge span of distance. He arrived at a certain place and erected a blacksmith’s hut (lirumbi), right in front of a path that ran down the river. No sane person would build a hut on a path that elephants (chinjoli) passed by to go drinking. His smithery nevertheless flourished ...

  1.         Enjofu efutara bakikhoma mumania (It’s only the elephant has turned its back that the ugly behinds are abused; A backbiter will wait until you leave then descend down upon you). 2.         Nandakambilwa kakona khumwanda kwe enjoli (The one who refused advice slept on the path frequented by elephants; At times people stubborn to advice should be left to be taught a lesson by life’s experiences) 3.         Enjofu seria lusambu lwo mwana ta (The Elephant fears not a child’s garden; One with an arrogant character is destructive and knows no limits) 4.         Enjofu yasena omusindikhe (The Elephant trampled over he who pushed it; Do not sit on the way of danger and not expect to be harmed) 5.         Walekha enjofu wauna sichakha (You’ve missed the elephant and stabbed the thicket; Don’t miss the real...

  BELIEVES ABOUT UNITY       Today, isn’t a lesser sin not to have well-written accounts of Bukusu culture and heritage than having few existing accounts having been written by outsiders? So, the Bukusu Sub-nation suffers from self-inflicted pain. For every elderly man or woman we bury, the further away we move from the pride of our heritage preservation. We have fallen short of writing poems, songs, stories and even pieces of performing art that would tell accurate stories about our way of life.    Karl Marx’s notion of consciousness was that of making political sense of life and self-awareness from which enormous pride of a people stems from. And we got to stop defining political identity in terms of voters but embrace a wider understanding of the Bukusu identity. A typical millennial from Western Kenya in the city street gets embarrassed in replying to greetings in the Native Bukusu language. Is the adoption of Western Culture (and language) the new norm...

 1.Globalization is a current trend and has a great impact on hospitality industry.     Accordingly, people with diverse backgrounds work even more together and there are a great amount of new perspectives of executing events. In a corporate world this is an advantage in order to differentiate from other businesses within the industry. However, diverse cultural backgrounds can create a lot of conflicts. Hospitality industry, particularly, has great dimen-sions with cultural diversity. Due to its phenomenal dimensions, managing the diverse workforce in an effective way can be seen as successful tool to meet the corporate goals.  The aim of this article to provide valuable facts about advantages and challenges of cultural diversity, and present effective ways how to improve cultural diversity in the hospitality business. The research question of this study is: How does culturally diverse workforce influence the hospitality business and how can it be managed? Additional...

(Ask Kitimule who was first at Buyumbu) This is a saying among the Bukusu of Western Kenya. The moral is that before you try anything new, you better consult those who have preceded you and have experience. The Narrative: During 1780's before British invasion, the BaBukusu were involved in tribal warfare. It was a period of instability despite their unmatched military prowess. One day, the Bukusu living in Ebwayi noticed smoke rising from a distant hill. They became suspicious that an alien (Barwa) community might have settled there that might be aggressive and threaten the peace of the community. Wisdom of the old says that the community appointed a young man, Kitimule as the chief diplomat to lead expedition to find more about the mysterious smoke. Best being well built, the son of the soil was born-orator who melted people’s hearts. He was the son of Wetosi of the Watukwika Bakitang’a Cluster. Kitimule was a man of caliber and had even been endorsed by Namunyulubunda, the c...

  POWER SHIFT IN BUKUSU LEADERSHIP Before analyzing the rise of Sudi, it is important to mention his arch-rival and supposedly-community leader Wandabwa, son of Namunyulubunda. But to understand Wandabwa well, we have to time-travel back as far as 900 A.D (The Year of Our Lord). As far as memories can grasp, Walumoli the son of Sioka (Omubuya) was the pioneer community leader. Walumoli together with his son Wabutubile takes the community from the plains of Silikwa to Ekukumayi through Sengeli, Namanajalala, and Namarare.  His leadership is succeeded by Sioka a prominent Omulako. Later leadership drops among the Bakhurawra taken by Matukutuku who was a great ancestor of Mango, circumcision reformist. When Matukutuku dies at Esilangilile, power returns to the house of Omubuya as Sanjamolu leads the community up until Bukaya. Batukwiika Bakitang’a then succeeds the community leadership as Maina (II) son of Nalukale, the famed leader arises to power. After decades in rein, he pass...