Kisumu
Kisumu is the fourth-largest city in Kenya after the capital, Nairobi, Mombasa and Nakuru and sixth largest urban center following Ruiru and Eldoret. It is the third-largest city after Kampala and Mwanza in the Lake Victoria Basin.
Apart from being an important political city, it is one of the premier industrial and commercial centres in Kenya. The city is currently undergoing an urban rejuvenation of the downtown and lower town which includes modernizing the lake front, decongesting main streets, and making the streets pedestrian-friendly.
Culturally, Kisumu serves as the center of the Luo people of East Africa. It was the most prominent urban centre in the pre-colonial, post-colonial, and modern eras for natives of the Kavirondo region. It was briefly renamed Port Florence, before its name was reverted back.
The city serves as the capital of Kisumu County and was the immediate former capital of now-defunct Nyanza Province. It is an important link in the trade route between Lake Victoria and Mombasa because of its water and rail connections. It is also the chief terminus for the agricultural produce of Nyanza and Western regions. Kisumu International Airport has regular flights to Nairobi and other neighboring cities such as Mombasa. According to the United Nations, Kisumu is now recognized as a key city and a "Millennium City" – the first of its kind in the world and also in East Africa.
Its elevation is 1131 m above sea level. Kisumu is about 320 km northwest of Nairobi and is located on the shores of Lake Victoria. It lies at the northeastern edge of the Winam Gulf, a long, shallow arm that protrudes from the main body of Lake Victoria. Kisumu is 24 km south of the equator and has, due to its elevation, moderate temperatures.
The metropolitan region comprises the city and its suburbs and satellite towns of Maseno, Kondele, and Ahero.
When Europeans first settled in the area in the late 19th century, Kisumu became a trading post – attracting Luo people from as far as Migori and Siaya County. The Kisumu region was then occupied by the Luo community. A person going to Kisumu at that time would say, "Adhi Kisuma" to mean I'm going to trade. Derived from the word "Kisuma", the word for a trading post in Luo is "Kisumo", and in Nandi, "Kesumett". The current name Kisumu is an English corruption of the word "Kisumo" or "Kesumett".
An opposing theory states that Kisumu acquired its name from 'Kusuma', the Maragoli word for 'trading'. Because, before Luo arrived in the area, the Maragoli were already trading with other people in the area like the Nandi and the Maasai. Some Luo words were acquired from the Maragoli.
Apart from being an important political city, it is one of the premier industrial and commercial centres in Kenya. The city is currently undergoing an urban rejuvenation of the downtown and lower town which includes modernizing the lake front, decongesting main streets, and making the streets pedestrian-friendly.
Culturally, Kisumu serves as the center of the Luo people of East Africa. It was the most prominent urban centre in the pre-colonial, post-colonial, and modern eras for natives of the Kavirondo region. It was briefly renamed Port Florence, before its name was reverted back.
The city serves as the capital of Kisumu County and was the immediate former capital of now-defunct Nyanza Province. It is an important link in the trade route between Lake Victoria and Mombasa because of its water and rail connections. It is also the chief terminus for the agricultural produce of Nyanza and Western regions. Kisumu International Airport has regular flights to Nairobi and other neighboring cities such as Mombasa. According to the United Nations, Kisumu is now recognized as a key city and a "Millennium City" – the first of its kind in the world and also in East Africa.
Its elevation is 1131 m above sea level. Kisumu is about 320 km northwest of Nairobi and is located on the shores of Lake Victoria. It lies at the northeastern edge of the Winam Gulf, a long, shallow arm that protrudes from the main body of Lake Victoria. Kisumu is 24 km south of the equator and has, due to its elevation, moderate temperatures.
The metropolitan region comprises the city and its suburbs and satellite towns of Maseno, Kondele, and Ahero.
When Europeans first settled in the area in the late 19th century, Kisumu became a trading post – attracting Luo people from as far as Migori and Siaya County. The Kisumu region was then occupied by the Luo community. A person going to Kisumu at that time would say, "Adhi Kisuma" to mean I'm going to trade. Derived from the word "Kisuma", the word for a trading post in Luo is "Kisumo", and in Nandi, "Kesumett". The current name Kisumu is an English corruption of the word "Kisumo" or "Kesumett".
An opposing theory states that Kisumu acquired its name from 'Kusuma', the Maragoli word for 'trading'. Because, before Luo arrived in the area, the Maragoli were already trading with other people in the area like the Nandi and the Maasai. Some Luo words were acquired from the Maragoli.
Map - Kisumu
Map
Country - Kenya
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| Flag of Kenya | |
Kenya's earliest inhabitants were hunter-gatherers, like the present-day Hadza people. According to archaeological dating of associated artifacts and skeletal material, Cushitic speakers first settled in Kenya's lowlands between 3,200 and 1,300 BC, a phase known as the Lowland Savanna Pastoral Neolithic. Nilotic-speaking pastoralists (ancestral to Kenya's Nilotic speakers) began migrating from present-day South Sudan into Kenya around 500 BC. Bantu people settled at the coast and the interior between 250 BC and 500 AD. European contact began in 1500 AD with the Portuguese Empire, and effective colonisation of Kenya began in the 19th century during the European exploration of the interior. Modern-day Kenya emerged from a protectorate established by the British Empire in 1895 and the subsequent Kenya Colony, which began in 1920. Numerous disputes between the UK and the colony led to the Mau Mau revolution, which began in 1952, and the declaration of independence in 1963. After independence, Kenya remained a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The current constitution was adopted in 2010 and replaced the 1963 independence constitution.
Currency / Language
| ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| KES | Kenyan shilling | Sh | 2 |
| ISO | Language |
|---|---|
| EN | English language |
| SW | Swahili language |