The Tugen are a sub tribe of the Kenyan Kalenjin people. They fall under the highland nilotes category. They occupy Baringo County and some parts of Nakuru County and Elgeyo Marakwet County in the former Rift Valley Province. Daniel Arap Moi, the second president of Kenya (1978–2002), came from this sub-tribe. The Tugen people speak the Tugen language. The Tugen population was 197,556 as of 2019.[1]
Tugen is more diverse in culture and language than other Kalenjin sub tribes. It was divided as Aror, Lembus,Torois and Samor. Aror and Samor follow Tugen circumcision rites and Lembus and Torois followed Nandi circumcision rights. Aror have a strong connections with Marakwet people while Samor have connections with Lembus and Nandi. The Lembus and Torois later disowned that they are Tugen and won court case. Under population census 2019 they were counted separately.
The oral traditions of the Tugen indicate three areas of origin located north, west and east of remaining Tugen homelands. The bulk of the population originated from the west, from Sumo, which is located between Mount Elgon and Cherangany Hills. The northern and eastern migrations came from Suguta (Lake Turkana) and Koilegen (Mount Kenya) and brought with them non-Kalenjin speaking people from northern Kenya and the highlands to the East of the Rift Valley, respectively. Folklore states that some Tugen are remnants of Masaai pastoralists.[2] [3]
The Tugen are subdivided into two subgroups known as Arror and Samor:
Initially Lembus and Torois was part of Samor.
Traditionally, like other Kalenjin people, the Tugen prayed to Asis (sun). Other gods are Chepokipkoyo (god of harvest), Cheptengeryan (god of love), and Cheponamoni. Most have converted to Christianity. Islam flourished in major towns. Pagans are present among Tugen along with practitioners of African traditional religions.
Tugen social organisation centres on the age set, or ipindo. The seven age-sets (ipinwek) are rotational, meaning at the end of one age-set new members of that generation are born.
Some Kalenjin peoples, include an age-set called Maina. However, among the Tugen, this age-set is extinct. Legend has it that the members of this ipindo were wiped out by the Keiyo, in a skirmish near Cheploch gorge. To avoid a recurrence, the community decided to retire the age-set.
Ipindo was given out at initiation. By simple arrangements, there ought to be one ipindo between father and son. For example, a korongoro cannot beget a kipkoimet. Tugen don't consider a woman to have an age-set, hence she can marry any age-set except her father's. The Tugen say ma tinyei ipin Korgo, meaning they can marry any age-set, but they have their own age-set such as chesiran, masinya, and chepigwek. Age-sets:
In each age-set, initiates are bundled into siritie or what can be understood as a 'team'. There are three siritoik in an age-set (ibindo) namely: