Digital resources in the Social Sciences and Humanities OpenEdition Our platforms OpenEdition Books OpenEdition Journals Hypotheses Calenda Libraries OpenEdition Freemium Follow us

IFRA Seminar – Paying for past debts: Re(connecting) family at a time of increased cultural consciousness

Join Dr. Kennedy Gitu from British Institute in Eastern Africa this Friday for his presentation on ‘Paying for past debts: Re(connecting) family at a time of increased cultural consciousness’

In 2017, the extended family of former president Uhuru Kenyatta initiated a process to pay dowry for his great- grandmother Mosana, a Maasai woman that was abducted about 200 years ago. This case is one among many in the recent past where generational cultural transmission and a rise in group consciousness about their shared origins. The practice, which has been reported mainly within the Maasai and the Gikuyu communities can in one way been attributed to an increase in social events such as ruracio, koito among others, and popularity of radio programs on culture. Historically the two communities exchanged women and men either peacefully or through raids- leading to cultural ties that through the (re) awakening of the past in many communities around dowry and re(payment) as a way of reconnecting to the past as a way ‘inheriting’ blessings from the ancestors.

Date: 10th April 2026
Time: 2-4pm EAT
Location: BIEA Seminar Room, Laikipia Road, Kileleshwa

To attend, register at: info@ifra-nairobi.net


OpenEdition suggests that you cite this post as follows:
IFRA Nairobi (April 2, 2026). IFRA Seminar – Paying for past debts: Re(connecting) family at a time of increased cultural consciousness. IFRA Nairobi. Retrieved April 11, 2026 from https://doi.org/10.58079/160zn


You may also like...