5th August, 2018
Turkana tribe is part of the Nilotic tribes and constitutes the second largest pastoralist community in Kenya after the Maasai
The eldest son in this community is allowed to inherit his father's property including his stepmother in the event the father passes on
The community is clustered into over twenty clans, which fall in two dominant age-sets. The Ngirisai (leopard) and Ngimor (stone or mountain)
Women automatically belong to the age-set of their fathers until they marry, after which they take their husbands grouping…the group determines the kind of feathers a man will wear in his headpiece
Bride-price is extraordinarily high among the Turkana the usual bride-price payment could also include 30 to 50 cattle, 30 to 50 camels, and 100 to 200 small stock
The high bride-price also requires that the prospective groom collects livestock from all his relatives,….. Alternatively inherits from his father when he passes on.
Polygamy is acceptable in Turkana culture and a man can marry as many wives…as long as he can afford to pay the bride price and deliver the herd of cattle required