Marsabit
Marsabit is a town in the northern Marsabit County in Kenya. It is situated in the former Eastern Province and is almost surrounded by the Marsabit National Park. The town is located 170 km east of the centre of the East African Rift at an elevation of between 1300 and 1400 metres. It serves as the capital of Marsabit County, and lies southeast of the Chalbi Desert in a forested area known for its volcanoes and crater lakes and others.
Marsabit is an outpost of urban civilization in the desert of northern Kenya. The town is situated on an isolated extinct volcano, Mount Marsabit, which rises almost a kilometer above the desert. The hills here are heavily forested, in contrast to the desert beyond, with their own "insular" eco-system. The town has a population of about 5,000. The town is mainly inhabited by the Cushitic-speaking the Rendille- an Afro Somaloid speaking ethnic community, the Borana Oromo people, Gabra, Sakuye and Dasenach.There are also very few Nilotic Turkana and Bantu Ameru residents. Additionally, there are also few non-Cushitic-speaking traders.
Marsabit has an airstrip and a mountain peak (Mount Marsabit), with "singing" wells just outside the town. Elephants can also often be seen in the local wildlife refuge that surrounds the town, occasionally breaking down fences and causing damage to local farmers' crop beds.
The name is possibly from the Amharic word 'Marsa bet' (Meaning Marsa's home/house) and is believed to have been named after a farmer named 'Marsa' (ethnically Burji) who was brought to Marsabit from Mega (in Ethiopia) by the Consul to assist in consolidation of farming and permanent settlement on the slopes of Mount Marsabit. However, Colonial explorers occasionally interacted with locals, the herdsmen to point to the mountains on their expedition while in the lowlands. The Cushitic speaking Rendille of Marsabit pronounce the place as indication of dark clouds engulfing the top peak of the mountains, thus Mar-sabich. ‘Mar’is a rainy/drizzling clouds, sabich is engulfing. In addition the same communities also at some point refer first explorers to have named the place; Mar-a-bit. This is an olden English word; Mar means (impair the quality or appearance of; foggy/ hazzy) describing higher cold altitude. (Mar:a:bit). The mountains nature are engulfed and mar a bit with dark clouds and this is where when locals could interact with explorers when ask where they came from, they in return reply pointing to the dark mountains Mar-a-bit.
On the other hand, it is claimed that "Marsa" was a governor and was sent there by Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia at that time when the area was part of Ethiopia. The castle on the top of the hill on the outskirt of the town is believed to be where Governor Marsa lived (Muktar Osman Shumbe-Oromo historian).
Marsabit is an outpost of urban civilization in the desert of northern Kenya. The town is situated on an isolated extinct volcano, Mount Marsabit, which rises almost a kilometer above the desert. The hills here are heavily forested, in contrast to the desert beyond, with their own "insular" eco-system. The town has a population of about 5,000. The town is mainly inhabited by the Cushitic-speaking the Rendille- an Afro Somaloid speaking ethnic community, the Borana Oromo people, Gabra, Sakuye and Dasenach.There are also very few Nilotic Turkana and Bantu Ameru residents. Additionally, there are also few non-Cushitic-speaking traders.
Marsabit has an airstrip and a mountain peak (Mount Marsabit), with "singing" wells just outside the town. Elephants can also often be seen in the local wildlife refuge that surrounds the town, occasionally breaking down fences and causing damage to local farmers' crop beds.
The name is possibly from the Amharic word 'Marsa bet' (Meaning Marsa's home/house) and is believed to have been named after a farmer named 'Marsa' (ethnically Burji) who was brought to Marsabit from Mega (in Ethiopia) by the Consul to assist in consolidation of farming and permanent settlement on the slopes of Mount Marsabit. However, Colonial explorers occasionally interacted with locals, the herdsmen to point to the mountains on their expedition while in the lowlands. The Cushitic speaking Rendille of Marsabit pronounce the place as indication of dark clouds engulfing the top peak of the mountains, thus Mar-sabich. ‘Mar’is a rainy/drizzling clouds, sabich is engulfing. In addition the same communities also at some point refer first explorers to have named the place; Mar-a-bit. This is an olden English word; Mar means (impair the quality or appearance of; foggy/ hazzy) describing higher cold altitude. (Mar:a:bit). The mountains nature are engulfed and mar a bit with dark clouds and this is where when locals could interact with explorers when ask where they came from, they in return reply pointing to the dark mountains Mar-a-bit.
On the other hand, it is claimed that "Marsa" was a governor and was sent there by Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia at that time when the area was part of Ethiopia. The castle on the top of the hill on the outskirt of the town is believed to be where Governor Marsa lived (Muktar Osman Shumbe-Oromo historian).
Map - Marsabit
Map
Country - Kenya
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| Flag of Kenya | |
Kenya's earliest inhabitants were hunter-gatherers, like the present-day Hadza people. According to archaeological dating of associated artifacts and skeletal material, Cushitic speakers first settled in Kenya's lowlands between 3,200 and 1,300 BC, a phase known as the Lowland Savanna Pastoral Neolithic. Nilotic-speaking pastoralists (ancestral to Kenya's Nilotic speakers) began migrating from present-day South Sudan into Kenya around 500 BC. Bantu people settled at the coast and the interior between 250 BC and 500 AD. European contact began in 1500 AD with the Portuguese Empire, and effective colonisation of Kenya began in the 19th century during the European exploration of the interior. Modern-day Kenya emerged from a protectorate established by the British Empire in 1895 and the subsequent Kenya Colony, which began in 1920. Numerous disputes between the UK and the colony led to the Mau Mau revolution, which began in 1952, and the declaration of independence in 1963. After independence, Kenya remained a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The current constitution was adopted in 2010 and replaced the 1963 independence constitution.
Currency / Language
| ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| KES | Kenyan shilling | Sh | 2 |
| ISO | Language |
|---|---|
| EN | English language |
| SW | Swahili language |