The Legacy of Empire: Kikuyu Penetration of Chuka and Its Implications, 1908- 1940

Abstract

The colonial moment in Africa had far reaching social, political and economic implications for the colonized. It unleashed forces that continue to haunt formally colonized societies half a century after formal independence. In Kenya, it has been rightly noted that the colonial political architecture was nothing but a ‘conquest state' that employed unprecedented violence to coerce African communities into submission. To achieve its objective of pacification of natives, inter and intra-ethnic relations were altered fundamentally. Indeed, prior to their invasion, the peoples who occupied the territory that came to be known as Kenya did not even identify themselves as tribes (ethnic groups); they were porous communities that had coexisted for centuries. The ‘invention of tribes' was an imperial project .To effectively understand and govern the' natives', it was necessary to first define them. Race and ethnicity become the new markers of identity in the configuration of power in the colonies. Language was elevated as the sole definer of ethnicity. Some ethnic groups and hence the languages they spoke assumed a higher hierarchy than others in the new colonial order. Unfortunately, little research has been to explain the colonial roots of subordination of certain languages by others in formerly colonized territories. Yet, this phenomenon outlived the Empire and its implications continue to unfold. Through a combination of both primary and secondary sources, the study attempts to address this gap by considering the case of Gikuyu language among the Chuka of Eastern Kenya. Ideas from the Subaltern school of thought has been appropriated to interpret data.