Culture

Language and Identity: How Kenyans Are Preserving, Reviving or Adapting Indigenous Languages

Kenya’s linguistic landscape is rich—comprised of over 60 indigenous languages spread across more than 40 ethnic communities. While global and national languages like English and Kiswahili dominate public life, many of the smaller languages carry deep cultural meaning, traditions, and identity. In recent years, there has been a growing effort—by communities, youth, schools and tech innovators—to revive, preserve and adapt some of these indigenous languages. This is not just a matter of words: it is a matter of heritage, art, craft, identity and resilience. In this blog post for The Kenya Blog, we explore how this is happening, why it matters, and how it links to culture and craft.

Why Language Matters for Identity and Culture

At the core of language preservation is the recognition that language does not exist in isolation. Every language carries:

• Knowledge systems, including traditional ecological knowledge, oral history, songs, rituals.
• Community identity: the names we call people, places, ancestral ties, clan systems.
• Artistic expression: from proverbs, poetry, songs, bead-work instructions, craft instructions.
• Social cohesion: the way elders communicate with youth, how knowledge is transmitted.

When a language declines or disappears, the result is often not just fewer speakers—but the disappearance of subtle cultural practices, of crafts, of community memory.
“A people without a language will lose their culture and identity.”
So the revival of indigenous languages is also a revival of culture, tradition, craft and heritage.

The Landscape: Challenges and Opportunities

The challenge

• Many languages in Kenya are endangered. UNESCO notes that six are already extinct and some 16 are at serious risk.
• Urbanisation, intermarriage, dominance of English and Kiswahili, and migration reduce daily usage of many smaller languages.
• Lack of documentation: many languages have few written records, limited materials, and little digital presence.
• Craft practices and oral traditions tied to language are undervalued in modern education or economies.

The opportunity

• Kenya’s Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) includes indigenous languages in primary schools.
• Digital tools and technology enable preservation through apps, recordings, and community-led projects.
• Youth and community movements re-engage with mother-tongue learning and cultural heritage.
• Recognition that language supports education, identity, well-being, and sustainable development.

How Kenyan Communities Are Reviving Indigenous Languages

1. The Yaaku (Yaikunte) language revival
   In Laikipia County, the Yaaku people have revived Yaikunte through:
   
   • An Android app that uses AI to teach Yaikunte.
   • A “word forest” project where indigenous trees are tagged with Yaikunte words.
   • Cultural events including translation of the Gospel of St Luke into Yaikunte.
   • Integration of traditional ecological and craft knowledge tied to the language.
   This case shows how language revival links with ecology, craft, and youth engagement.
2. Curriculum inclusion and school-based programs
   
   • The CBC promotes indigenous languages in early education (up to Grade 3).
   • In coastal counties, languages like Kipokomo, Kigiriama, Chiduruma, Chidigo, and Kitaveta are taught.
   • Bajuni language recently got its first textbooks and was introduced into the curriculum.
   Mother-tongue instruction improves learning, strengthens identity, and supports craft teaching.
3. Digital documentation, corpora and AI/tech interventions
   
   • Projects are building corpora for Kidaw’ida, Kalenjin, Dholuo for NLP tools and preservation.
   • The Yaaku app uses AI to teach and preserve vocabulary.
   • Apps like Asili connect learners with partners to record stories and vocabulary.
   Technology is preserving language through digital craft, apps, and media.
4. Youth, media and community-driven craft & language revival
   
   • Endorois youth launched “Indigenous Voices Unleashed” to promote community media and craft knowledge.
   • Women-led groups combine beekeeping, craft and workshops for language learning.
   • Language fairs and community events promote craft and storytelling in local tongues.
   Language revival is taking root in classrooms, workshops, and community art.

Language, Craft & Cultural Expression

• Traditional craft instructions use local terminologies—if the language fades, so do the meanings.
• Songs, proverbs, and oral narratives in original language accompany craft and ritual.
• Digitising indigenous craft vocabulary links youth to traditional skills.
• Craft workshops in indigenous languages reinforce identity and skills simultaneously.
• Mother-tongue education creates space for craft teaching in local languages.

Preserving language means preserving the toolbox of cultural craft, not just the words.

Why This Matters (Beyond Heritage)

Educational and cognitive benefits
Research shows children learn better in their mother-tongue. Kenya’s CBC supports this. Language preservation connects to better literacy, education, and development.

Identity, inclusion & social cohesion

• Language revival helps marginalised communities feel valued and included.
• Government recognition strengthens identity and intergenerational culture transfer.

Cultural tourism & craft economy
Language and craft together enhance authentic tourism, cultural storytelling, and local economies.

Resilience and sustainability
Many indigenous languages carry ecological and craft knowledge. Losing them means losing heritage. Projects like the Yaaku “word forest” show the connection.

Digital inclusion
Ensuring indigenous languages exist online ensures digital equality for communities.

Barriers & What Still Needs Work

• Uneven implementation of curriculum policies and lack of materials.
• Weak economic incentives for craft-language traditions.
• Limited tech access and training in rural areas.
• Few speakers and limited resources for some endangered tongues.
• Attitudinal issues: youth prioritising global languages over local ones.

What Can You Do (as Reader, Visitor, Supporter)

1. Use apps that teach indigenous Kenyan languages and encourage others.
2. Visit craft centres and language-linked hubs to support artisans.
3. Support digitisation projects through donations or volunteering.
4. Encourage mother-tongue education in early schooling.
5. Engage with media in indigenous languages—music, film, podcasts.
6. Advocate for teaching crafts in local languages to preserve both.

Looking Ahead: A Vision for Kenyan Language & Craft Revival

• Children start school in their mother-tongue and maintain it alongside Kiswahili and English.
• Mobile apps make indigenous language learning engaging for youth.
• Craft centres host workshops in local languages preserving terminology and heritage.
• Cultural tourism includes participation in indigenous-language storytelling and craft.
• Digital platforms archive endangered languages and connect diaspora youth.
• Local media broadcast in indigenous tongues for youth engagement.
• Language-craft link becomes an economic asset for artisans and storytellers.
• Education policy supports even smaller languages with resources and training.

This vision is already emerging across Kenya—what’s needed is scale, connection, and integration into identity and economy.

Language and identity in Kenya are deeply intertwined—in elders’ words, songs, and crafts passed from mother to daughter. When a language fades, that richness risks disappearing.
But revival brings back craft, heritage, and belonging. Efforts from Yaaku apps to youth media projects prove that languages can live, evolve, and thrive as vehicles for culture and identity.
Next time you hear a story or see a craft labelled in a Kenyan mother-tongue, remember: you’re witnessing a language alive, a culture reviving, and Kenya embracing its full linguistic mosaic.