Kericho is the biggest town in Kericho County located in the highlands west of the Kenyan Rift Valley. Standing on the edge of the

Mau Forest Mau Forest is a forest complex in the Rift Valley of Kenya. It is the largest indigenous montane forest in East Africa. The Mau Forest complex has an area of . The forest area has some of the highest rainfall rates in Kenya. Mau Forest is the lar ...

, Kericho has a warm and temperate climate making it an ideal location for agriculture and in particular, the large scale cultivation of tea. The town is strategically located along Kenya's western tourism circuit with access to Lake Victoria, the Maasai Mara National Reserve and Ruma National Park. As of the 1999 census, the town has a population of 150,000. Kericho is the home town of the Kipsigis, who are a part of the Kalenjin people. Teapickers-near-kericho

Etymology

The etymology of Kericho is unclear. One theory has it that it was home to the region's first hospital, built by the colonial British at the start of the 20th century. This is in reference to , the word for medicine in the Kipsigis language. Other theories have it that the town was named for a local medicine man called Kipkerich or after a Maasai chief, Ole Kericho who was killed in the 18th Century by the Abagusii.

History

The settlement at Kericho was founded in 1902 by British settlers. Kericho hosts Africa's largest

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

Gurudwara and the second largest Catholic cathedral in Kenya. Gurdwara Sahib is built on the site of the home and workshop of Kericho Wagon Works founder Sant Baba Puran Singh Ji of Kericho. The site is currently a place of worship for the Sikh community and a museum

gazette A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspaper ...

d by the

Government of Kenya , image = , caption = Coat of arms of Kenya , date = 1963 , jurisdiction = Republic of Kenya , url = http://www.mygov.go.ke/ , legislature = Parliament of Kenya , meeting_place ...

as a place of spiritual significance. It is dedicated to the memory of Sant Baba Puran Singh Ji, founder of the international charitable organization, Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha which promotes the spirit and practice of selfless service ("nishkam sewa") in the name of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of the

faith.

Chandarana Records Chandarana Records is a record company from Kericho, Kenya. The company was known throughout Africa for releasing several thousand 45-rpm singles (on at least 15 different labels) featuring a wide range of Kenyan (Luo, Luhya, Kipsigis, Swahili ...

a pioneer of

Benga music Benga is a genre of Kenyan popular music. It evolved between the late 1940s and late 1960s, in Kenya's capital city of Nairobi. In the 1940s, the African Broadcasting Service in Nairobi aired a steady stream of soukous, South African kwela, ...

and the Kenyan music recording industry is based in Kericho town. Kericho is home to Olympic winning long distance athletes and hosts

Zoo Kericho F.C. Zoo Kericho Football Club is a football club based in Kericho, Kenya. The club first participated in the Kenya Premier League in 2017, the highest level of the Kenyan football league system. On 4 May 2021, Football Kenya Federation announced t ...

a football club competing in the Kenyan Premier League and Kericho R.F.C. competing in the Nationwide League. Other notable places of interest include Chagaik Arboretum, Chelimo Arboretum, Tagabi Arboretum, Uhuru Garden and the vast scenic tea estates with high ground view points.

Geography

Kericho is reputed to hold the record for the highest number of hail occurrences in a year, either at 132 days with hail or 113 days in 1965. Kericho has up to 50 days of hail each year, but large hail is rare.

Government

Kericho town
is the headquarters of Kericho county, which is itself made up of six constituencies/sub-counties including B Bureti, Belgut, Ainamoi, Soin/ Sigowet, Kipkelion East, and Kipkelion West.

Transport

Kericho is accessible by road through the B1 road (Kenya) that links Mau-Summit, Kericho to Kisumu and Busia. In addition, the C25 Kapsoit-Sondu road connects Kericho to the

A1 road (Kenya) A list of roads designated A1, sorted by alphabetical order of country. * A01 highway (Afghanistan), a long ring road or beltway connecting Kabul, Kandahar, Herat and Mazar * A1 motorway (Albania), connecting Durrës and Kukës * A001 highw ...

linking Isebania to Lokichoggio through Kisumu and Kitale. The Nakuru-Kisumu railway line passes through Kericho County with railway stations at Mau Summit, Londiani, Kedowa, Lumbwa, Kipkelion and Fort Ternan. Fort Ternan was previously used as a halfway point for passenger and goods trains between Nakuru and Kisumu. Private airstrips operated by tea estates have a more regular use for purposes of crop spraying.http://aeroclubairfields.com/go.php?mod=public&loco=airstrips

Communication and media

Kericho town has access to a high-speed fiber-optic Internet connection, fixed line, and mobile telecommunications. There are several local FM radio stations includin
Kass FMChamgei FMKBC Kitwek FMRadio Injili
Sayare Radio
Light and Life FM
Sema Radio and The Just FM.

Tertiary education

Kericho hosts several satellite campuses and colleges providing certificate, diploma and degree courses. *

University of Kabianga The University of Kabianga is located in Kabianga Division in Kericho West District. The university is situated in the Kabianga Complex, comprising the then Kabianga Famers Training Center, Kabianga High School and Primary School and the Kipsig ...

Kenya Highlands Evangelical University Africa Gospel Church * Kenyatta University * The University of Nairobi * Kericho Teachers Training College offers degree courses under agreement with Moi University * Eland College run jointly by Kabarak University and Eland Schools * Mospen Institute of Development Studies(MIDS) * African Institute of Research and Development Studies (AIRADS) * Nishkam Saint Puran Singh Institute (NSPSI) * Kericho Technical Institute * Kericho School of Professional Studies * Kenya Institute of Management *Rift Valley Institute of Business Studies

Secondary education

Kericho is home to Litein High School, Kapsoit high school, Kabianga High School, Kericho High school, Moi Tea Secondary, Kipsigis Girls High School, Cheptenye Boys High School, Kericho Tea Boys, Tengecha schools and others

Religion

Kericho is home to followers of the Africa Gospel Church, Seventh-day Adventists,

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The ter ...

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

, African Inland Church,

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

and Anglicans.

Notable people

* Dr. Taitta Toweett * Joseph Cheruiyot arap Chewen * Joginder Singh *

Hannington Apudo Hannington may refer to: Places in England *Hannington, Hampshire * Hannington, Northamptonshire *Hannington, Wiltshire People * James Hannington (1847–1885), English bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa * Henry Hannington (1797–1870), English ...

, the first indigenous military pilot in the

Kenya Air Force The Kenya Air Force (KAF) or sw, Jeshi la Wanahewa is the national aerial warfare service branch of the Republic of Kenya. The main airbase operating fighters is Laikipia Air Base in Nanyuki, while Moi Air Base in Eastleigh, Nairobi is the ...

Wilson Kiprugut Wilson Arap Chuma Kiprugut (1938 – 1 November 2022) was a Kenyan sprinter and middle-distance runner. He competed at the 1964 Tokyo and 1968 Mexico Olympics and won two medals in the 800 metres event; in 1964 he also ran 400 metres, but fail ...

Moses Kiprono arap Keino Moses Kiprono arap Keino (September, 1937 – November 4, 1998) was Speaker of the Parliament of Kenya from 1988 until 1991. Education and early life Between 1962 and 1967, Keino attended Hochschule fur Ökonomie (University of Economics), Karlh ...

Joyce Chepchumba Joyce Chepchumba (born 6 November 1970 in Kericho) is a long distance athlete from Kenya. Achievements *1995 ** Tilburg Ten Miles winner ** Parelloop 10Kwinner Arrs.netList of Parelloop winners/ref> *1997 **London Marathon winner *199 ...

Edwin Soi Edwin Cheruiyot Soi (born 3 March 1986) is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who specialises in the 3000 and 5000 metres. He is a two-time Olympian for Kenya. His earliest honours were team gold medals with Kenya at the IAAF World Cr ...

* Kipngeno arap Ng'eny *

David Kimutai Too David Kimutai Too (August 23, 1968 – January 31, 2008) was a Kenyan politician affiliated to the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM). He was a high school teacher and then a principal from Kericho in Rift Valley, Kenya before being elected to the N ...

* Ayub Kiprotich Siele, The longest serving mayor of Kericho

References

{{Coord, 00, 22, 09, S, 35, 17, 02, E, region:KE_type:adm2nd_source:nlwiki, display=title Kericho County Populated places in Rift Valley Province County capitals in Kenya