Back Masai Afrikaans شعب الماساي Arabic شعب الماساى ARZ মাছাই জনগোষ্ঠী Assamese Masái AST Masailər Azerbaijani ماسایلر AZB Маасайҙар Bashkir Масаі Byelorussian Масаі BE-X-OLD
 A gathering of Maasai men in 2005 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| approx. 2.1 Million[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Kenya | 1,189,522 (2019)[2] |
 Tanzania | approx. 900,000 (2024)[1] |
| Languages | |
| Maa, Swahili, English | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity, Maasai religion, other traditional African religions, Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Samburu, Ilchamus, Zigua, Sambaa, Bondei, Luo, other Nilotic peoples | |
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The Maasai (/ˈmɑːsaɪ, mɑːˈsaɪ/;[3][4]) are a Nilotic ethnic group inhabiting northern, central and southern Kenya and northern Tanzania, near the African Great Lakes region.[5] Their native language is the Maasai language,[5] a Nilotic language related to Dinka, Kalenjin and Nuer. Except for some elders living in rural areas, most Maasai people speak the official languages of Kenya and Tanzania—Swahili and English.[6]
The Maasai population has been reported as numbering 1,189,522 in Kenya in the 2019 census[2] compared to 377,089 in the 1989 census. However, many Maasai view the census as government meddling and either refuse to participate or actively provide false information.[7][8][9]
- ^ a b "Maasai Language (MAS) – L1 & L2 Speakers, Status, Map, Endangered Level & Official Use | Ethnologue Free". Ethnologue (Free All).
- ^ a b "2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census Volume IV: Distribution of Population by Socio-Economic Characteristics". Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. Archived from the original on 5 June 2020. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
- ^ "Lexicon". Darkwing.uoregon.edu. Archived from the original on 30 June 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
- ^ "Maasai". Collins English Dictionary. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2019.
- ^ a b Maasai - Introduction Archived 2008-07-04 at the Wayback Machine Jens Fincke, 2000–2003
- ^ Berntsen, John L. (Autumn 1976). "The Maasai and Their Neighbors: Variables of Interaction". African Economic History (2): 1–11. doi:10.2307/3601509. JSTOR 3601509. Archived from the original on 4 June 2021. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
- ^ "The Maasai People". Maasai Association. Archived from the original on 18 May 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
- ^ "Kenya - Population Distribution". kenya.rcbowen.com. Archived from the original on 15 November 2012. Retrieved 25 August 2007.
- ^ Amin, Willetts & Eames 1987, p. 122.
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