The Akiek are an ethnic and linguistic group in
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
and
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
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, capital = Nairobi
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, largest_city = Nairobi
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, living in the
Arusha Region
Arusha City is a Tanzanian city and the regional capital of the Arusha Region, with a population of 416,442 plus 323,198 in the surrounding Arusha District Council (2012 census).
Located below Mount Meru on the eastern edge of the eastern ...
in northern Tanzania and in southern Kenya, with an estimated population of 3,700 people.
The Akiek language is said to be a
moribund language
An endangered language or moribund language is a language that is at risk of disappearing as its speakers die out or shift to speaking other languages. Language loss occurs when the language has no more native speakers and becomes a "dead langua ...
: only a few elderly speakers are left.
The Akiek in Tanzania now speak
Maasai Maasai may refer to:
*Maasai people
*Maasai language
*Maasai mythology
The Maasai mythology or Maasai religion are the traditional beliefs of the Maasai people of Kenya and Tanzania. In Maasai culture, nature and its elements are important facets ...
, and those in Kenya speak
kalenjin Kalenjin may refer to:
* Kalenjin people of Kenya
** keiyo people
** Kipsigis people
** Marakwet people
** Nandi people
** Pokot people
** Terik people
** Tugen people
** Sebei people
* Kalenjin language
* Kalenjin languages
The Kalenjin lang ...
.
The Akiek are a subgroup of the Ogiek or
Okiek Okiek or Ogiek may refer to:
*the Okiek people
*the Ogiek language
Ogiek (also Okiek and Akiek)The initial vowel varies by dialect. The first consonant is , but is pronounced or between vowels. is a Southern Nilotic language of the Kalenjin fa ...
, who intermarried and lost contact with the core of the Ogiek. The terms Akiek and Okiek are sometimes used interchangeably and confusingly. The correct name of the original people is Ogiek.
See also
OGIEK*
Ogiek language
Ogiek (also Okiek and Akiek)The initial vowel varies by dialect. The first consonant is , but is pronounced or between vowels. is a Southern Nilotic language of the Kalenjin family spoken or once spoken by the Ogiek peoples, scattered groups of ...
*
List of ethnic groups in Tanzania
There are more than 100 distinct ethnic groups and tribes in Tanzania, not including ethnic groups that reside in Tanzania as refugees from conflicts in nearby countries. These ethnic groups are of Bantu origin, with large Nilotic-speaking, mod ...
References
Ethnic groups in Kenya
Ethnic groups in Tanzania
{{Tanzania-ethno-group-stub