Facts about Kenya

Here are some interesting facts about Kenya for kids which were chosen and researched by kids especially for kids.

Kenya Facts for Kids

Population: about 56 million people live in Kenya (2023)
Capital city: Nairobi with about 5 million people
Name: Republic of Kenya

Kenya Flag

Government: presidential republic
Languages: 2 official languages: Kiswahili (also referred to as Swahili) and English
Religion: mainly Christians (83%), Muslims (mainly living in the coastal regions), Hindu, Jews and other faiths
Currency: 1 Kenyan Shilling (KES) = 100 Cents
History: Kenya became independent in 1963.

Listen to the Anthem

National Animal: lion
National Colours: black, red, green and white
National Day: Jamhuri Day 12 December (Independence Day)
National Anthem: "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu" (Oh God of All Creation" is based on a traditional folk song in Kenya
Motto: Harambee (Let us all pull together)
History: Earliest inhabitants were hunter-gatherers. Bantu tribes settle in the region about 500 BC. Already in 1414 Chinese trader Zheng He visited the region. Later European explorers and Arab traders visited and settled mainly in the coastal regions around Mombasa, which is Kenya's oldest city. From 1895 the country was part of the East African Protectorate and controlled by the British Empire. From 1920 the country was referred to as British Kenya. Kenya gained independence from Britain in 1963.
President: William Ruto (since August 2022)

Facts about Kenya | Kenya Geography

Kenya is located in East Africa and borders the Indian Ocean. The country lies on the Equator.

Kenya borders five countries: Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda and South Sudan (clockwise). The longest border is shared with Ethiopia over 867km/ 539 miles.

Map of Kenya

Please note: Lake Rudolf, once named after Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria in 1888, is now referred to as Lake Turkana! The lake was renamed in 1975 after the Turkana people that live in this area.

The country is slightly smaller in size than the state of Texas/ USA and slightly bigger than France in Europe. A flight from London/ England takes 8 hours and from New York/ USA it takes 14 hours to get to Nairobi/Kenya.

Kenya's name comes from Mount Kenya but the word originates probably from the Kikuyu and Kamba languages meaning 'God's resting place'

Mount Kenya - image by David Patek

Kenya has a tropical climate along the coast and an arid climate in the highlands. There are two rainy seasons, the "long rains" happen from March to June and the "short rains" from November to December. The hottest month is February and the coldest month is July.

In the interior of the country, you will find the Great Rift Valley and a fertile high plateau is located in the western parts of the country. About 50% of the country is used for agriculture.

The Great Rift Valley cuts through the country from north to south. Lake Turkana is located in the north of the Great Rift Valley.

Great Rift Valley in Kenya

Facts about Kenya | Geography Superlatives

The longest river in Kenya is the Tana River which is about 1,000 km/ 621 miles long.
Kenya's highest mountain is Mount Kenya with 5,199 m/ 17,058 ft. This extinct volcano is also the second highest peak on the African continent - after Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.
The largest city in Kenya is the capital city Nairobi.

Nairobi is the largest city in Kenya

Lake Victoria is the world's largest tropical lake. This lake is shared with Uganda and Tanzania and is also the second largest freshwater lake in the world.
Lake Turkana is Kenya's largest lake and also the world's largest desert lake, is known for the huge pink flamingo population and unspoilt nature. This lake is also known as the largest alkaline lake in the world.

Flamingoes at Lake Turkana

The largest national park in the country is Tsavo National Park at the border to Tanzania.

Facts about Kenya
Attractions in Kenya

Nairobi: The city's name comes from the Maasai word for 'cool waters' as a stream once flowed through the area. Nairobi is not only known for its buzzing city life and many historic monuments, but also for Nairobi National Park which is the only national park in the world that borders a capital city.

Zebras in Nairobi National Park with Nairobi City Skyline

Mombasa, with 1.2 million people the second largest city in Kenya, is main coastal city and the biggest sea port of the country. The city's 16th-century Fort Jesus is a famous World Heritage site. The city's main landmark, the Mombasa Tusks, on Moi Avenue were built in 1952 to commemorate a visit of Queen Elizabeth II. The aluminium tusks mark today the entrance to the commercial city centre.

Mombasa Tusks - image by tourpics_net

Watamu: This small town south of Malindi is known for its marine national park, clear turquoise waters and amazing beaches. The coral reef is close to the shore and snorkelling is from the beach is easy and amazing. The marine park is also known as an egg-lying site for the endangered green sea turtles.

Watamu - Turtle Beach and turquoise sea with Maasai in red dress

Watamu's Turtle Beach

Lamu: Lamu Old Town is one of seven UNESCO world heritage sites and great for cultural trips to explore the regions history. The influence of the Arab traders and Portuguese explorers can be seen when visiting the island's fort and colonial buildings.

Lamu

Kenya has over 50 national parks which are great to visit. Here the native wildlife is protected against hunters and poachers. Maasai Mara National Park in the country's western region is a popular safari destination of the country.

Amboseli National Park offers spectacular views of Africa's highest peak Mount Kilimanjaro which is located in neighbouring Tanzania.

Giraffes in Amboseli National Park Kenya

Gede Ruins: This archeological site features the remains of an old Swahili town which dates back to the 12th century. The Gede ruins can be explored near Watamu in southern Kenya. Other famous ruins north of Mombasa are the Jumba La Mtwana ruins, Mnarani ruins and Takwa ruins.

Gede Ruins

Facts about Kenya for Kids Wildlife and Animals

Wildlife in Kenya is abundant. There are many species of mammals and birds. If you go on safari you can see many wild animals such as lions, elephants, zebras, giraffes, antelopes and monkeys. The "Big Five" can be found countrywide in the national parks and game reserves. The big Five animals are lion, leopard, rhinoceros, buffalo and elephant.

Amboseli National Park - Elephants

During July and August the massive wildebeest migration can be observed here every year when the large wildebeest herds cross the Mara river and move into the Maasai Mara Nationalpark.

More than one million wildebeest cross the Mara River into Kenya every year

At the coast you can watch dolphins. The coastal towns near Mombasa and Malindi are great for spotting various dolphin species frolicking in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean. Sea turtles can be admired in Watamu.

More Facts about Kenya:
Kenyan People

Smiling Kenyan woman with flag: MarKord / Shutterstock.com

Smiling Kenyan woman - image by MarKord

Most of the Kenyan people live in the capital city Nairobi, along the shores of Lake Victoria in the western region or along the eastern coastline. However, less than 30% of the population live in cities and towns. The biggest cities are Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu.

There are 42 ethnic groups in Kenya, all with different languages and different customs.

Maasai are famous for their high jumping skills - image by iSelena

Maasai people - image by iSelena

Among the largest tribes are the Kikuyu, Luhya, Kalejiin, Luo and the Kamba. The Maasai account for about a million people (in Kenya and Tanzania), but are probably the most known due to their high jumping skills and their red dress.

Kenyans love sports! Soccer is the most popular sport in Kenya, but many Kenyans also are fond of rugby. Kenyans are also known to be great athletes as almost 75% of all gold medal winners in long distance running come from Kenya.

Gilbert Kiplangat Kirui and Conseslus Kipruto - winners of 3000 Metres Steeplechase

Most of the Kenyans are Christians (85%). About 10% of the Kenyan population are Muslims. Most of the Muslims live along the Swahili coast and almost all Kenyans living on Zanzibar island are Muslims (99%).

Another interesting facts about Kenya: The largest community of Quakers is at home in Kenya. More than - after the USA. The Quaker Movement was started in the UK in the 17th century and Quakers are considered as a Protestant group of Christians.

Facts about Kenya | Languages in Kenya

English and Kiswahili are the two official languages but there are many indigenous languages spoken in Kenya. Sheng, a Kiswahili slang, is spoken by many young people.

Some useful Kiswahili words are:

Jambo - Hi! Hello!
Habari - Good day! How are you?
Mimi ni...(John) - My name is... (John)
Asante - Thank You
Karibu - Welcome! You are welcome!
Hakuna Matata - No problem, no worries

Facts about Kenya | Economy

Kenya is the largest economy in eastern and central Africa.

Kenyan tea plantation worker

Agriculture accounts for about one third of the country's national income. Roughly 75% of all Kenyans work in the agricultural sector. Tourism is the second biggest economic sector.

Kenya is the third largest tea producer in the world - after China and India.

Coffee beans are ripe and get harvested when they are red.

One other main export crop is coffee. Fresh flowers, especially roses, are also among the main agricultural export produce in Kenya.

The main trading partners of Kenya are Uganda, Pakistan, the USA, China and India.

Facts about Kenya | Food in Kenya

Kenyan staple foods are cereals and pulses such as corn, millet, sorghum and beans as well as vegetables and fruit.

Market in Kisumu/Kenya - image by Space Krill/shutterstock.com

Market in Kisumu - image by Space Krill

Although coffee is an important export crop, only a small amount of coffee is sold in Kenya itself, as the favourite drink of most Kenyans is tea! Chai masala, a sweetened tea with milk, is a popular drink.

Fresh fish and seafood is abundant in coastal regions of Kenya. The dishes on the eastern coastline are influenced mainly by Arabic and Indian cooking styles.

Freshwater fish like tilapia is very popular and usually sourced from Lake Victoria

Typical food in Kenya:

Ugali: The traditional Kenyan maize meal cooked similar to a stiff porridge is usually eaten with vegetable or meat stew, mushy peas or sukuma wiki.

Ugali - maize meal porridge

Sukuma wiki: Leafy collard greens cooked with onions and a variety of spices
Nyama choma: Grilled meat usually served with sukumi wiki, roast potatoes, kachumbari salsa and chapati (flatbread)

Nyama Choma - image by Jen Watson

Kachumbari: Salsa made with chopped onions mixed with tomatoes and peppers
Githeri: Vegetarian stew prepared with corn and kidney beans
Vibibi: Coconut and rice pancakes are a delicious breakfast treat!
Pilau: Spicy rice dish eaten with goats meat or chicken
Chapati: flatbread made with flour, oil, water and salt and fried in oil or grilled over open fire.

Facts about Kenya
Did you know that...?

… that in Kenya, cars drive on the left side of the road as they do in the UK and Australia? However, all distance and speed signs are in metres and kilometres and km/hour!

... that former U.S. president Barack Obama's father was from Kenya.

Obama and Maathai in Nairobi 2016 - image by Fredrick Onyango/wikicommons

Obama and Maathai in 2016

... that the first African woman who won a Nobel Prize was Kenyan doctor? Wangari Muta Maathai (1940-2011)was a political and environmental activist and the founder of the Green Belt Movement, a foundation that worked in environmental conservation and women rights. She was awarded the Nobel peace prize in 2004 for her outstanding work in “sustainable development, democracy and peace”. Maathai has studied and worked in Kenya, the USA and Germany.

We hope you enjoyed our Facts about Kenya. We will add more info about this stunning country soon. Now enjoy our other pages with facts about other African countries...

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Facts about Kenya

Central Intelligence Agency. "Kenya". The World Factbook. Updated 21 February 2023. Last accessed 1 March 2023
Maasai Association. "Maasai People". Maasai Association. Last accessed 1 March 2023
Maureen O’Hare. "Kenya's best food is a kaleidoscope of flavours". CNN Travel. Updated 9 May 2019. Last accessed 1 March 2023
Kenya Tourism Board. "Magical Kenya". Magical Kenya. Last accessed 1 March 2023