Emily Nyaimbo - Ng'at Mahero Lyrics Translated from Luo language of Kenya (Translations are bracketed). Nyathi gi Ajuma atumo nduma   (Ajuma's sibling, I start my song) Nyaimbo akelo rumba-na mos ji-miela   (Nyaimbo I deliver my rumba slowly as people dance) Akelo wer mos, kawero wuoyini wuoyi mahero nyakwar Agunda bii inena , ( I deliver the song slowly as I sing about this man whom I love, I call him the 'grandson of Agunda' come and see me) Awach ang'o mamori herana, tiwinjo Amilo nyakwar Owili mosiepi?   (What can I say to make you happy, my friend, since you can hear me, I'm your lover, the granddaughter of Owili?) Yuora rateng' to muol   (He is black and polite) Mamoro ja-choir nayiero Odero Dier chuo te noromo    (I chose him among many men becaouse he's perfect) Atim ang'o?   (What can I do?) Tiromona wuoyi   (You're the perfect man for me) Nyiri madwari ochung' chien mondi   (All the ladies that clamor for your love can stand aside)...

There is this popular song by Emily Nyaimbo, sang mainly in Luo Language (Dholuo), which I have come to love so much. The song tittled "ng'ama ahero" or "ng'at mahero" speaks about the persona's lover who is apparently trying to leave her. The lyrics go like... Nyathi gi Ajuma Atumo nduma, Nyaimbo akelo rumba-na mos ji-miela, Akelo wer mos kawero wuoyini - wuoyi mahero nyakwar Agunda bi inena, Awach ang'o mamori herana tiwinjo Amilo nyakwar Owili mosiepi? Yuora rateng' to muol, mamoro ja-choir nayiero Odero edier chuo te noromo, Atim ang'o, tiromona wuoyi, Nyiri madwari ochung' chien mondi gikethona hera, Orudo kakethona hera none masira None Atur Margaryian gi guogine. Aweyi kamano, Topar chien kaka newachako  chakruok Hera jirwenyoga Takoni kama: Ibed motang josem aneno oluoro nge'wa jogi ketho herawa, Takone josem nilos dalani kisha kitieko loso kari ekinyalo wacho ng'ato, Ka ng'ato ohero ng'ate tuneno malit kata makosa...

Luo names generally begin with "O" for males and "A" for females. However, there is an emerging trend among young generation of Luos to adopt non-a/non-o variants as they shy away from names that easily give away their tribal identity. For that reason we have tried to include a good mix of the A/O names with their non "A/O" varients. Anyango - girl born innthe mid morning Aywa - girl name meaning "industrious" Alwa -  girl name meaning "surprise" Aliwa - girl name meaning "surprise" Achar - girl name meaning "white" Amor - "happy" Achie - girl name for girls born in the day time / diminutive for Achieng Atoti - girl name, no clear meaning Buore - Boy name meaning "born abroad" Bala - "Born in a place where salt is mined" Bade - means "strong handed" Bolo - means "abandoned" Banja - Means "crooked" Sabiano - means "foreign" Sianga' - Means ...

 Luo language is a group of closely related languages spoken by River-Lake Nilotes, who trace their origin in the area we today call Republic of South Sudan. The language calls itself "Dholuo" or "Lep Luo" in other dialects and is spoken by the Acholi of Uganda, Luo of Kenya, Jopadhola, Lango, Alur among other tribes. I have painstakingly compiled a list of some Luo words which I think you've most probably come across and would like to know what they mean. Let's get right into it, shall we? 1. Hera - Hera means love. It is both a noun and a verb. It is the first Luo word that anybody interested in learning the language usually encounters. From album titles, song titles to subtitles, it pervades everything. Hera remo, hera mwandu, hera bungu, hera mudho and hera apilo are all music titles by various luo artistes. Hero remo translates to love is blood (the word "is" or its Luo equivalent "en" remarkably doesn't have to be used often...

 I was going through our online sister-magazine "The Kenya Con" a while ago and came across this article written in 2019 tittled "The Ruto Conspiracy" and just thought to myself, "This is interesting." The article analyses what the writer purports to be a well-orchestrated conspiracy aimed at derailing any chances of Dr. William Ruto succeeding Mr. Kenyatta as Kenya's president. The writer does a good job detailing the plan of the "Deep State" to finish the deputy president. Given that this was written well before the fact, it is hard to deny that the writer more than accurately predicted the outcome of the grand plan of "the establishment" to tame the one-time firebrand politician. Let's read together.. The articles starts on a solemn note, " If you had asked any Kenyan just one year ago who they thought was best placed to succeed Uhuru Kenyatta as Kenya’s next president, many would have picked William Samoei Ruto. Ask a...

I have never been a fan of politics but whenever I want to have a really good laugh, I tune to Kenyan politicians and watch their endless bickering, name calling and character assassination. I see right through their lies. Truth be told, none of these politicians have any of our interests at heart.   That is well documented. But what really puzzles me in this election is the amount of copy-pasting our leading presidential candidates have done from American politics. Kenya Kwanza translates to "Kenya First", a direct copy of Donald Trump's "America First" campaign slogan. In the context of American politics, the slogan and its resulting policy stance generally emphasizes nationalism and non-interventionism. William Ruto's watered-down version of the slogan has nothing to do with foreign policy or attitude towards globalization and international organizations. No, Willam Ruto uses the term to mean that he’ll put the interest of ordinary Kenyans first rathe...

 Kenyans will be heading to the polls yet again on the 9th of August, 2022. There will be over 50 presidential candidates to choose from, but let's be honest, the real contest is between Raila Odinga and William Samoei Arap Ruto. The other are just page boys and flower girls. Ruto enjoys a slender lead in opinion polls with little over 100 days to the elections. No matter what happens between now and August ninth (barring death to either of the two front-runners- God forbid) we're set to have one of these folks running the country. Little is however expected to change. At least not positively. Ruto promises a "bottom up" approach while Raila has been all about "upward social mobility". They roughly mean the same thing. What they aren't telling us is "what exactly they're going to do". It is one thing to throw around technical jargon and slogans and another thing altogether to spell out concise policy directions backed up with pragmatic appr...

Kenya has made itself a footballing laughing stock. We were all shocked when Confederation of African Football (CAF) banned Kasarani Stadium late last year from hosting international games as the stadium "lacked several Caf criteria and requirements in order to properly host international senior competitions.." Before we even recorvered from the shock, FIFA followed suit and banned the country - for different reasons - from participating in any international games. It must have come as a shock to many, but we should have seen all these coming. Kenyan football has flirted with danger for so long.  Kenya's football administration is a joke. Our elite, top tier league is non-televised, and until recently, lacked a sponsor. Think about that for a second. Think about it again. Nigerian Premier League, South African Premier Soccar Legue, Ethiopinan League and even Zmbian Premier Legue is beamed all over the continent. Even the third tier league in England is broadcasted all ove...

Let me admit it upfront; most Luo names begin with the letter "O". Onyango, Otieno, Odhiambo, Okoth.. and the list goes on. The unwritten law in Luoland is that male names begin with "o" while female ones begin with "a". So many names conform to this norm that one may be excused to think that there are no names that don't. Far from it. They may be rare - and may even seem outdated - but there are indeed Luo names that do not conform to this unwritten law. And there aren't few. And I dare say they used to be more common then their "o-counterparts" in the past.  The fact that most people living day have grandfathers and great grandfather bearing the non-o variation is a testament to the fact that the non a/o names were more common in the past than they are now. Another fact that support this theory is the names of places and clans (which are obviously named after patriarchs) normally bear names that do not necessarily begin with "o...