Determinants of Peaceful Cross-Border Co-Existence between the Maasai and the Gusii in Kenya: A Historical Perspective, 1890-2002

Abstract

The re-introduction of multi-party politics in Kenya in the early 1990s contributed to inter-ethnic violence and clashes. These clashes have preoccupied Kenyan scholars for a long time and, as a result, have created the wrong perception that politics is the main historical determinant of ethnic cross-border relations between Kenyan ethnic communities. Ethnic clashes and conflicts have predated politically instigated ethnic clashes in Kenya. By relying on archival, oral, and secondary data, this study examined other historical determinants of cross-border ethnic relations between the Maasai and the Gusii.