Maasai tribe
The authentic people of Kenya - a tourist favorite
Maasai tribe is the most authentic, ethnic tribe of Kenya. 
Maasai tribe (or Masai) are a unique and popular tribe for their long preserved culture. Despite education, civilization and western cultural influence, the maasai people, unlike other tribes of Kenya, have clung to their traditions and way of life making them a symbol of Kenya culture.
Their distinctive culture, dress and their strategic territory along the game parks of Kenya and Tanzania have made them famous internationally as a tourist attraction to E. Africa.
Maasai people are found in both Kenya and Tanzania living along the borders of the two countries. They make up about 0.7% of Kenya's population, with another 0.7% living in Tanzania. Masais speak Maa, a nilotic ethnic language from their origin, the Nile region of North Africa. The Samburu tribe is the closest to Maasai in both language and authenticity of culture.
History of the Maasai tribe
Masaai ancestors are thought to have originated in North Africa, migrating south along the Nile Valley and arriving in Northern Kenya in the middle of 15th century. They continued southward, conquering all the tribes in their path extending through the rift valley and arriving into Tanzania at the end of 19th century. As they migrated, they attacked their neighbors and raided cattle along the way. At the end they had taken over almost all the land in the rift valley and adjacent land from Mt. Marsabit to Dodoma, where they settled to graze their cattle.
Masai historical changes
At the turn of the century, tragedy struck the maasai tribe. An epidemic of killer diseases struck and killed large herds of the maasai animals. This was shortly followed by severe drought due to lack of rain for years. Over half of the maasais and their animals perished during this period. Soon after more than two thirds of maasai land in Kenya would be taken away by the British and the Kenya Government to create settler ranches and what are now the wildlife reserves and national parks of both Kenya and part of Tanzania.
The Amboseli, Nairobi National Park, Masai Mara, Samburu, Lake Nakuru, Tsavo in Kenya and the Manyara, Ngorongoro, Tarangire and Serengeti in Tanzania all stand on what was once the territory of the Maasai tribe.
Today the masai people live in a smaller piece of land in Kajiado and Narok Districts surrounded by the fine game reserves of Kenya. They practice nomadic pastoralism while others have been absorbed into modern day jobs working in tourism where they perform their culture to visiting tourists.
Masai culture
Of importance and pride in Maasai culture is the warrior. To be a maasai is to be born into one of the world's last great warrior cultures. From boyhood to adulthood, young Maasai boys begin to learn the responsibilities of being a man (helder) and a warrior. The role of a warrior is to protect their animals from human and animal predators, build kraals (Maasai home) and provide security to their families. Through rituals and ceremonies, including circumcision, masai boys are guided and mentored by their fathers and other elders on how to become a warrior. Although they still live their carefree lives as boys; raiding cattle, chasing young girls, game hunting, a maasai boy has to learn all the cultural practices, customary laws and responsibilities he'll require as an elder.
An elaborate ceremony eunoto is usually performed to "graduate" the young man from the moran and carefree lifestyle to a warrior. Beginning life as a warrior means he can now settle down and start a family, acquire cattle and become a responsible elder. In his late years, the middle-age warrior will be elevated to a senior and more responsible elder during the olng'eshere ceremony.
[You can watch this video below to get a glimpse of maasai culture. These are masai warriors(young men) doing the jump around dance. The dance is part of how they find a mate. The highest jumper gets the girls].
Since Maasai children enter into a system of "age-sets" with peers where various life stages such as circumcision are marked with ritual and ceremonies, between the ages of 14, girls are initiated into adulthood through an official circumcision ceremony known as emorata. Presently, female circumcision ritual is outlawed in Kenya and its use is diminishing from the maasai women culture. Thus young maasai girls are taught other functional roles like how to build houses, make beadwork, cook and clean their homes by their mother and other older women. When they come of age, their parents "book" them a warrior from a respectable clan as an appropriate husband for their daughter.
Maasai home
As Maasai lead a semi-nomadic life, their houses are loosely constructed and semi-permanent. They are usually small, circular houses build by women using mud, grass, wood and cow-dung. The men build the fences and sheds for the animals.
Maasai and their love for Cattle
The maasai tribe has a deep, almost sacred relationship with cattle. They are guided by a strong belief that God created cattle especially for them. That they are the sole custodians of all the cattle on earth. This bond has led them into a nomadic way of life following patterns of rainfall over vast land in search of food and water for their large herds of cattle.
Maasai tribe wealth is measured by the number of cattle and children one has.
Clothing & beauty
From dressing in animal skins, 
typical maasai dress today is red sheets, shuka, wrapped around the body and loads of beaded jewelry around the neck and arms. These are worn by both men and women and may vary in color depending on the occasion. Ear piercing and stretching earlobes are part of Maasai beauty, and both men and women wear metal hoops on their stretched earlobes.
Women shave their heads and remove two middle teeth on the lower jaw (for oral delivery of traditional medicine). Often maasai walk barefooted or wear simple sandals made of cow-hide.
Faith & Religion
In their monotheistic traditional belief, their god Enkai or Engai was manifested in two forms; there was the Black god who was benevolent and a Red god who was vengeful. Today most of the Maasai tribe are Christians with a minority as Muslims.
Masai Food
All Maasais' needs for food are met by their cattle. They eat the meat, drink the milk, and on occasion drink the blood. Bulls, oxen and lambs are slaughtered for meat on special occasions and ceremonies. The by-products of the animals; skin and hides are used as beddings while the cow-dung is used for building (smearing) on the walls. Maasai's entire way of life truly revolves around their cattle.
The Maasai tribe today
The effects of modern civilization, education and western influence have not spared this unique and interesting tribe. Some of the Maasai tribe deep-rooted culture is slowly fading away. Customs, activities and rituals such as female circumcision and cattle raiding have been outlawed by modern legislation. Masai children now have access to education. Some have moved out of their homeland into urban areas where they have secured jobs.
The Maasai tribe now occupies a much smaller land in Kajiado and Narok districts as their vast territory has been taken up by some of the game reserves of Kenya. Masai territory now overlaps with the Serengeti plains in Tanzania and Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya - an area all famous for the huge wildebeest migration that take place every year, when up to a million of the animals move from the north end of the plains and back to the south. Masai's authentic and intriguing culture is a tourist attraction on its own.
Maasai Cultural Tours
As visiting Safari tourist and Kenyans alike enjoy the wildlife, they also get a chance to explore the rich masai cultural heritage by taking cultural tours to masai homes and attending masai cultural shows in various game reserves.
This is also an ideal opportunity to do the masai dance and buy their traditional jewelry, art and crafts to take home as souvenirs.
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