I’ve only ever been to two weddings in my life. The first was my aunt and uncles; I was a five and a flower girl. The second, actually, occurred yesterday. Not in a church or chapel, but in a Masaai boma (homestead).

Our neighbors- the local Masaai tribe- invited us to the wedding of a young warrior. The same boy- between 17 and 20 years of age- had danced at our goat roast the week before. Warrior dancing isn’t anything like or YMCA or Cha-Cha slide. The group of warriors- called the Maran- marched in, in full jewelry and red wrap-arounds called “shukas”.  They create their own rhythm like an a capella gourp would. It’s a lot of grunts and high squeaks, but the melody will bounce in your head for hours after. The cluster up, and begin to dance.  

Warrior dancing involves a lot of jumping. The boys stand one or two at the tip and pogo up, straight-legged.  Although this is normally reserved for the men, us Mzungu women got our shot too.

The women’s dance involves a lot more lyrics singing. This is a video of the song they performed at our first boma visit.

<still trying to upload the ladies’song video, limited internet, sorry>

See that undulating head-bob? That’s the Masaai signature move, and flows into the rhythm of every song. Both men and women will dance this way; it was the communal dance of choice at the wedding. The women processed in with singing and marching, until they reached the central fenced area where the warriors and groom were jumping. The warriors opened up their circle to let the women join, and the head bobbing began. We were invited to join in, but as no one else did, I hung back and took pictures.

While we arrived for the party portion, the actual ceremony had taken place early in the morning.

No wedding bands or priestly blessing here. The ceremony is much more subtle. The bride, a beautiful girl of about 18, is led to the new house. She customarily refuses to go in at first. The other women- or mamas- bribe her with gifts. “Go in and we’ll give you one goat. Two goats.” Or “Go in and I will make you a new shuka.” The longer the girl holds out, the more she gets. When she feels content, she enters her new home and stays there throughout the rest of the festivities. She is now a married woman.

The couple married yesterday did not choose each other. Many Masaai matches are arranged, though as times change a few are by free choice. I don’t think our bride had that option.

She didn’t look happy as we spoke to her through our Kiswahili teacher Daniel. We gave her a gift of 60,000 shillings- about 60 USD or one goat. Or Student Affairs Manager, Taara, later told us all Masaai public events require such a face as the bride’s- solemn and restrained. Still, many of us girls were left wondering. 

Location: Kimana, Kenya