Legacies of Kenya Essays

During the 15th century, Christopher Columbus along with several of his men went in search of finding a direct water route (Europe to Asia). Instead, Columbus and his men stumbled upon the Americas, thus marking the beginning of European intervention and globalization. While this intervention brought together several diverse cultures, the Europeans dominating nature encouraged several conflicts between countries. Nzinga Mbemba, a 16th century ruler of the Kingdom of Kongo, urged the King of Portugal to respect their alliance and to exert control onto his subjects as expressed in his writing Letters to the King of Portugal (1562). While in the work Commentary on Foreigners (ca. 1420) He Ao, a Ming official, suggested that Europe should be put under strict government control.

There was a great question asked by numerous individuals in the eighteenth century with what happens to people’s lives when their country is a colony of another country. This was very important to Americans when they were being ruled by Great Britain, and even to this day it remains important when countries find themselves controlled by more powerful outsiders. But what is colonialism? Colonialism occurs when one nation takes control of another. Kenya’s experience as a colony of Great Britain gives us more of an idea of what being colonized meant both to the people being controlled and to those who control them. Although it seems hard to believe, Kenya was created by the Europeans and generally this had a positive on effect on Kenyans because it began development.

During the time period 1850-1914, even though Britain imperializing, Kenya was, in turn, very beneficial for the inhabitants of Kenya. However, the direct rule of Britain put Kenya through a massive transition from being independent to being colonial dominant, in which the natives of Kenya had lesser rights than did before and were treated inhumanely. Before being imperialized, Kenya was already divided into forty-two tribes. The two main kinfolks to be known are the Masai and the Kikuyu. These tribes helped in making the country's diversity, rich culture and heritage. Nonetheless, Kenya didn’t have much global contact; however, they did trade with the Arab merchants but kept it limited because they wanted to preserve their traditional

Colonialism in Kenya changed the Kenyans beliefs because europe was in control of Kenya they established rules that were against their religious beliefs and their norms. In exchange for raw materials, cash crops(coffee, tea, etc.), diamonds, and gold the Europeans gave the Kenyans and Africans their Christian religion, a “superior” government, and (to the Europeans) a more developed civilization.

British Imperialism is a monstrous, militarized, and advanced system of oppression. British imperialism in Africa destroyed indigenous peoples lives and land. Once the slave trade became illegal, Britain's economy was in shambles. Therefore, Britain's imperialists went to Africa seeking wealth from its raw materials. The British was able to overthrow an already weakened governments, and put in place settler colonies. They installed authoritarian governments and exploited Africans by forcing them to do strenuous labor for Britain's profit. British imperialism in Africa is important today because it provides an answer as to why an entire continent is suffering for mass poverty, famine , and underdevelopment.

From what my mom told from her time in Kenya. She stayed on a base located in Nairboi and went out several times on safari to visit multiple villages. She described the people “as vibrant as you can imagine” and “the highest spirited people with lots of faith”. She also told me in certain areas they have very specific traditions. For example, the Kenyan people love to dance, their dancing style is known as “benga”. The food has a wide range of ethnic diversity. My mom tried a plate called “irio” which is basically made up of green peas and potatoes. These ingredients are boiled together after which corn is added to give the meal texture and is usually served with beef stew. One thing Kenyan people cherish above al is family and friendship. Kenyan families tend to be on the larger side including many members of the extended family. Even when times are tough Kenyan families usually welcome guests as if they were family. However, the guest is expected to help with the daily chores just as the family does. The Kenyan people are made up of different tribes. Each tribe has strong tribal beliefs for instance it is easy to distinguish one tribe from another by the way they dress. For example the Samburu tribe, the tribe my mom visited, wore traditional clothing of bright red material that is wrapped around like a toga. The women as well as the men accessorize their toga with beaded necklaces, bracelets

British Imperialism in Kenya Colonialism is when one nation takes control of another. The British wanted the raw resources in Africa such as diamond, gold, copper, tin, and wool. They also wanted new market where they could sell their products. The Europeans solution to this was stealing the African’s land and making the people produce the resources for them. The colonization in Africa changed the African society, economy, intellect, and politics by stripping culture, expanding railroads, and making new laws.

Kenyatta has worked at WF for many years and understands the workflow and structure of the home. She assists new staff with this information and always provides her coworkers with input and work related discussion.

The occupation of Britain in Kenya affected the country in many aspects but still withheld tradition. British colonialism affected the nation of Kenya in an upsurge in population, a corrupt restrictive government, and a drastic change in culture and beliefs. Kenya

My names are Shadrack Maritim. I am a Kenyan born but currently USA military member. I graduated from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore with BS in Biology Pre-Med in 2011. I have been an active duty army since then due reasons too much to be narrated in this forum. I am a family man as of now with two beautiful kids, boy and girl and a lovely wife. I am taking this class for the reason that it is a requirement towards my major and the fact that it is a very important skill to master towards my career. I have a tone of hobbies but, three are the most interesting to me; sports, travelling and most of them all, watching theoretical physics documentary. I glad to be a member of this class and looking forward to an educative session. Good

The initial goal of European countries was to maximize the economic potential of their colonies. Colonial rule in Africa was quite the same as Southeast Asia, most European governments ruled their new territories in Africa with the least effort and expense possible, the Europeans rule on Africa was indirect. Indirect rule meant that relying on existing political elites and institutions, the British had especially followed this approach and in some areas the British simply asked a local ruler to accept their authority and to put their flag over every official building. Indirect rule led to some negative consequences, the British were basically fraud because their administrators made all the major decisions. The colonial powers endeavored to minimize the costs of their empires.

Social consequences of imperialism were most significant because their ways of life were drastically changed. In Kikuyu, their laughter, belief in Ngai, love, and the fullness of life were diverted to a more modern form of life. In the last decade of the nineteenth century, the British brought laws, new clothes, disputes, arguments, and danger to them and colonized them by conquest from one end of the continent to the other (Moradi, 2009). The Britains had an innate distrust of the educated natives and decided to grant resources and autonomy to more traditional tribal chieftains, whose intent was on pursuing local, not national, interests (Goucher, 1998). The Africans were also deprived of their farming lands, being conformed to “native reserves,

Jomo Kenyatta, son of Muigai and Wambui, was born as Kamau Ngengi in the 1890s into the Kikuyu community that dwelt in an area of cane and pasture for cattle within the central part of Kenya (Kariuki, 2015). His birth date was, however, uncertain because birth records were absent at that time plus his parents were illiterate. His family comprised of farmers who grew crops and bred cattle mainly sheep and goats and that explained their source of wealth. He was brought up by the traditional custom of his community and taught the skills essential for looking after the family cattle. Kenyatta would, later on, become an anti-colonial activist and politician who worked hard to change Kenya via negotiation and change of political arena in spite of being detained because of the Mau Mau rebellion which he was accused of championing and the reason behind his imprisonment.

Though Kenya’s impoverished and underdeveloped conditions were certainly not highlighted in the film, I believe it is important to observe. These conditions are best displayed by the state of the primary school. In the film, students were forced to sit 5 students to a desk and were crammed into a tiny room. Moreover, the Kenyans were highly grateful for the concept of free education. This highly contrasts the state of American schools, which are typically well funded. Americans are used to the concept of free education, so much so, that people now desire free higher education. I believe this theme is important to note because it is the key difference between the Kenyan and American

The paper seeks to understand the political, social and cultural variables that have thrown Kenya into the geo-political limelight insofar as the so-called ‘War on Terrorism’ is