Kikuyu

or Gikuyu

Bantu-speaking people who live in the highland area of south-central Kenya, near Mount Kenya. Numbering some six million, they are the largest ethnic group in Kenya. They traditionally lived in separate domestic family homesteads, but during the Mau Mau rebellion the British colonial government moved them into villages for security purposes, and this arrangement became permanent. Their traditional economy rested on intensive hoe cultivation of millet and other crops; the main modern cash crops are coffee, corn, and fruits and vegetables. Many Kikuyu serve in government posts.

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