Nilotic ethnic group in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda
This article is about the ethnic group in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. For the wider related set of ethnic groups, see Luo peoples. For other uses, see Luo (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Lua people.
Luo
A traditional Luo village at the Bomas of Kenya museum.
Total population
10,028,000[1][2]
Regions with significant populations
Western Kenya and northern Tanzania
Kenya
4,663,910 (2019)[3]
Languages
Dholuo, Swahili, and English
Religion
Christianity, African Traditional Religion, Islam
Related ethnic groups
Other Luo peoples, especially Adhola and Alur
Luo
Person
Jaluo (m)/Nyaluo (f)
People
Joluo
Language
Dholuo
Country
Piny Luo/Nam Lolwe
Part of a series on the
Culture of Kenya
History
Pleistocene
Neolithic
African iron age
Swahili city states
Portuguese and Omani period
British Colonial Period
Early post Independence
Moi Era
Recent history
People
Historic peoples
Koobi Fora Hominins
Olorgesailie Aechulean hand axe culture
Savanna Pastoral Neolithic Culture
Eburran industry
Elmenteitan culture
Sirikwa culture
Urewe culture
Shungwaya
Modern ethnicities
Kikuyu
Luhya
Banyala
Bukusu
Gisu
Idakho
Isukha
Khayo
Kisa
Marachi
Maragoli
Marama
Tachoni
Tiriki
Samia
Wanga
Kalenjin
Nandi
Marakwet
Kipsigis
Elgeyo
Tugen
Terik
Pokot
Sabaot
Luo
Suba
Kunta
Kamba
Somali
Kisii
Kuria
Meru
Mbeere
Embu
Teso
Maasai
Samburu
Ilchamus
Turkana
Borana
Sakuye
Orma
Rendille
Gabra
Sengwer
Mijikenda
Jibana
Giriama
Duruma
Chonyi
Swahili
Taita
Taveta
Okiek
Kenyan Asians
White Kenyans
Kenyan Arabs
Diaspora
Kenyan Americans
Kenyan Australians
Kenyan Britons
Languages
Niger-Congo
Bantu
Swahili
Kikuyu
Kamba
Ekegusii
Kimîîru
Oluluhyia
Kipokomo
Kigiryama
Kiembu
bajuni
Nilo-Saharan
Nilotic
Dholuo
Kalenjin
Maa
Turkana
Afroasiatic
Cushitic
Rendille
Somali
Semitic
Arabic
Indo-European
Germanic
West Germanic
English
German
Afrikaans
Indo-Iranian
Hindustani
Italic
French
Italian
Mythology
Bantu mythology
Gikuyu
Akamba
Maasai mythology
Kalenjin mythology
Kit-Mikayi
Luanda Magere
Cuisine
Festivals
New Year's Day
Mawlid
Good Friday
Easter Monday
Lamu Cultural Festival
Labour day
Madaraka Day
Eid al-Fitr
Eid al-Adha
Huduma Day
Diwali
Mashujaa Day
Jamhuri Day
Rusinga (Cultural) Festival
Christmas Day
Boxing Day
Religion
Catholicism
Anglicanism
African Inland Church
Quakers
Judaism
Art
Traditional art
Wangechi Mutu
Literature
Swahili literature
Music and Performing arts
Benga
Boomba
Genge
Kenyan hip hop
Lingala
Ohangla
Soukous
Taarab
Performing arts
Kenya National Theatre
Kenya Institute of Puppet Theatre (KIPT)
The Kenya Schools and Colleges Drama Festival
Too Early for Birds
Media
Television
Cinema
Nation Media Group
Government agencies
Communications Authority
Kenya Film Commission
Kenya Film Classification Board
Kenya News Agency
Television
A24 news channel
Citizen TV
Kenya Broadcasting Corporation
Kenya Television Network
Tinga Tinga Tales
Radio
98.4 Capital FM
CRI Nairobi 91.9 FM
Pamoja FM
Radio Maria
Newspapers
The African Executive
Business Daily Africa
Daily Nation
The EastAfrican
Kenya Gazette
Kenya Times
The Standard
The Star
Sport
Athletics Kenya
Football in Kenya
Football Kenya Federation
Kenyan Premier League
Rugby union in Kenya
Safari Sevens
Cricket in Kenya
Golf in Kenya
Monuments
World Heritage Sites
List of Monuments
Lothagam North Pillar Site
Namoratunga
Thimlich Ohinga
Ruins of Gedi
Jumba la Mtwana
Lamu Fort
Siyu Fort
Fort Jesus
Tom Mboya Monument
Dedan Kimathi Statue
Baden-Powell grave
Symbols
Flag
Coat of arms
National anthem
Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu
Coat of arms of Kenya
Kenya portal
v
t
e
The Luo of Kenya and Tanzania are a Nilotic ethnic group native to western Kenya and the Mara Region of northern Tanzania in East Africa. The Luo are the fourth-largest ethnic group (10.65%) in Kenya, after the Kikuyu (17.13%), the Luhya (14.35%) and the Kalenjin (13.37%).[3] The Tanzanian Luo population was estimated at 1.1 million in 2001 and 3.4 million in 2020.[2] They are part of a larger group of related Luo peoples who inhabit an area ranging from South Sudan, southwestern Ethiopia, northern and eastern Uganda, southwestern Kenya, and northern Tanzania.[4]
They speak the Luo language, also known as Dholuo, which belongs to the Western Nilotic branch of the Nilotic language family. Dholuo shares considerable lexical similarity with languages spoken by other Luo peoples.[5]
The Luo are descended from migrants who moved into western Kenya from Uganda between the 15th and 20th centuries in four waves. These migrants were closely related to Luo peoples found in Uganda, especially the Acholi and Padhola people. As they moved into Kenya and Tanzania, they underwent significant genetic and cultural admixture as they encountered other communities that were long established in the region.[6][7]
Traditionally, Luo people practiced a mixed economy of cattle pastoralism, seed farming and fishing supplemented by hunting.[8] Today, the Luo comprise a significant fraction of East Africa's intellectual and skilled labour force in various professions. They also engage in various trades, such as tenant fishing, small-scale farming, and urban work.[citation needed]
Luo people and people of Luo descent have made significant contributions to modern culture and civilization. Tom Mboya and Nigel N. Mwangi were key figures in the African Nationalist struggle.[9][10] Luo scientists, such as Robert Ouma Mola (founder of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) and winner of UNESCO's Albert Einstein Gold Medal in 1991) and Washington Yotto Ochieng (winner of the Harold Spencer-Jones Gold Medal in 2019 from The Royal Institute of Navigation (RIN)) have achieved international acclaim for their contributions.[11][12] Prof. Richard S. Odingo was the vice chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change when it received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 with Al Gore.[13] Barack Obama, the first black President of the United States of America and a Nobel Peace Prize winner, was born to a Kenyan Luo father, Barack Obama Sr.[14] Lupita Nyong'o became the first black African to win an Academy Award in 2014.[15]
The Luo are the originators of a number of popular music genres including benga and ohangla. Benga is one of Africa's most popular genres.[16]
^"Luo in Kenya".
^ abGordon Jr., Raymond G., ed. (2005). Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Fifteenth Edition. Dallas, Texas, USA: SIL International. ISBN 978-1-55671-159-6. Archived from the original on 24 November 2007.
^ ab"2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census Volume IV: Distribution of Population by Socio-Economic Characteristics". Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
^Ogot 1967, pp. 40–47.
^Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Nilotic". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
^Ogot 1967, pp. 144–154.
^Tishkoff, S. A.; Reed, F. A.; Friedlaender, F. R.; Ehret, C.; Ranciaro, A.; Froment, A.; Hirbo, J. B.; Awomoyi, A. A.; Bodo, J.-M.; Doumbo, O.; Ibrahim, M.; Juma, A. T.; Kotze, M. J.; Lema, G.; Moore, J. H.; Mortensen, H.; Nyambo, T. B.; Omar, S. A.; Powell, K.; Pretorius, G. S.; Smith, M. W.; Thera, M. A.; Wambebe, C.; Weber, J. L.; Williams, S. M. (22 May 2009). "The Genetic Structure and History of Africans and African Americans". Science. 324 (5930): 1035–1044. Bibcode:2009Sci...324.1035T. doi:10.1126/science.1172257. PMC 2947357. PMID 19407144.
^Ogot 1967, p. 40-42.
^Kyle 1999, pp. 53–89.
^The Politics of The Independence of Kenya by Kyle Keith. Palgrave MacMillan 1999
^Masood, Ehsan (23 June 2003). "Thomas Odhiambo Visionary entomologist harnessing science for Africa's poor". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
^"Home - Professor Washington Yotto Ochieng, FREng". www.imperial.ac.uk. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
^"Nobel Prizes 2022". Retrieved 1 August 2023.
^Obama, Barack (1995). Dreams from My Father. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 9781400082773
^"'Pride of Africa: Kenya celebrates Nyong'o's Oscar". Boston Herald. 3 March 2014. Archived from the original on 9 March 2014. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
^"Remembering benga: Kenya's infectious musical gift to Africa". the Guardian. 9 July 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
Tanzanian Luo population was estimated at 1.1 million in 2001 and 3.4 million in 2020. They are part of a larger group of related Luopeoples who inhabit...
be traced in the respective group's oral history. The Luo are part of the Nilotic group of people. The Nilotes had separated from the other members of...
Luo or LUO may refer to: Luopeoples, an ethno-linguistic group of eastern and central Africa Luopeople of Kenya and Tanzania or Joluo, an ethnic group...
under the See also section. This is a list of people of Luo Descent and for those otherwise perceived as Luos; either in birth or adoption. Only those meeting...
The dozen Luo, Lwo or Lwoian languages are spoken by the Luopeoples in an area ranging from southern Sudan to western Ethiopia to southern Kenya, with...
format) Luopeoples or Lwo, an African ethnic linguistic group Luopeople of Kenya and Tanzania, an indigenous people of Kenya and Tanzania Luo languages...
The Acholi people (also spelled Acoli) are a Nilotic ethnic group of Luopeoples (also spelled Lwo), found in Magwi County in South Sudan and Northern...
Nilotic Kavirondo, is a dialect of the Luo group of Nilotic languages, spoken by about 4.2 million Luopeople of Kenya and Tanzania, who occupy parts...
Luo Yunxi (Chinese: 罗云熙, born July 28, 1988), also known by his English name Leo Luo, is a Chinese actor, singer and dancer. Luo first became known for...
Burun-speaking peoples, Teso people also known as Iteso or people of Teso, Karo peoples, Luopeoples, Ateker peoples, Kalenjin peoples, Karamojong people also known...
but they refer to the same entity. for the Luo people, Nyasaye means the creator of the beginning, The Luo also called Nyasaye with different names such...
Rosemary Odinga (born August 13, 1977) is an entrepreneur, an advocate for alternative agriculture and proponent of social equality from Kenya. She is...
described as early as 1983. In a flashback, Chinese sociology professor Luo Ji has a chance meeting with Ye Wenjie, the astrophysicist from The Three...
The Adhola people, also known as Jopadhola, are a Nilotic ethnic group of Luopeoples that live in Tororo District of Eastern Uganda and comprise about...
streets pedestrian-friendly. Culturally, Kisumu serves as the centre of the Luopeople of East Africa. It was the most prominent urban centre in the pre-colonial...
as Anyuaa and Anywaa, are a Luo Nilotic ethnic group inhabiting parts of East Africa. The Anuak belong to the larger Luo family group. Their language...
descendant of the Luopeople of Nyanza Kenya and was influenced by their musical heritage by his parents who were musicians. They performed Luo music to Kenyan...
the Sudan People’s Liberation Army, which led to the Second Sudanese Civil War. The SPLA later became the army of South Sudan. The LuoPeople are primarily...
strengthen the union between Luopeople in the whole of East Africa. His efforts earned him admiration and recognition among the Luo, who revered him as Ker...
senior editors and PesaCheck also confirmed that they were indeed fake. Luopeople of Kenya and Tanzania Raila Odinga Biography Archived 30 May 2020 at the...
Appolo Ohanga was the first black Kenyan cabinet minister in the Colonial Period. Born in 1913 at Got Regea in Siaya, Nyanza Province, the late Benaiah...
ethno-linguistically related Luopeoples of East Africa.[citation needed] They speak the Luwo language which is a Northern Luo language. They are related...
of crimes. In 2017, Starehe MP Jaguar, was also convicted of killing two people by vehicular manslaughter, he was fined ksh 40,000 and barred from driving...
at least 15 people had died within the premises of his church. Through his lawyers, he stated that the 15 people who died were sick people who came seeking...
eastern edge of the lake and is inhabited predominantly by the Luopeople and Kisii people. There are also Bantu-speaking tribes, such as the Kuria, and...
language and mouth. It belongs to the Luo branch of the Western Nilotic subfamily of the Nilotic languages. The Shilluk people formed today's Shilluk Kingdom...