Guest Author - J. Claire K. Niala

We are increasingly settling down, modern lifestyles have meant that our homes have become permanent structures from which we base our lives. This, however, was not always the case. Whether it was the Native American populations that wandered across the Americas, the aborigines of Australia, or even the jet-setting travel of modern man - one thing is for sure - we are always on the move.

However, we also need shelter, somewhere to cook, eat and sleep and perform the most basic functions of day to day existence. For the Maasai who were (and in some cases still are) ostensibly pastoralists this shelter had to be easy to assemble and as it was impermanent had to suit the typical savannah environment in which they lived.

Women were charged with the responsibility of building houses which were timber poles fixed directly into the ground which were then interwoven with a lattice of smaller branches and sealed with mud, cow dung and ash. The roof may have had thatching from long dried out grasses. This is an environmentally friendly structure in which local materials can be used effectively.

The enkaji (traditional Maasai dwelling) did not have high ceilings (often about only one and a half metres high) as it was women who built it and are on average smaller than men. When the Maasai led more nomadic lifestyles these shelters were ideal and the technology to build them handed down from mother to daughter to generations of women.

Although quite small and compact in size, they were really only used for cooking and as a place for the mother and her children to take shelter from the elements and large animals. To this end calves and smaller livestock also shared the enkaji with the family that used it.

The challenges of modern life have meant that these enkaji have to change. Like people the world over the Maasai are spending more time in their houses and as their children go to school and need to study when they get home the small spaces in the walls that provide only a little lighting need to be enlarged.

Due to innovative projects working with local East African architects some of these homes are now being adapted to the demands of 21st century life. The Maasai are keen not to lose the indigenous technology that has been built up over hundreds of years and so instead of a complete rethink modern Maasai enkaji are being adapted.

As well as increasing the size of wall openings skin and tin roofs are being used on the enkaji which means less repairs required (reducing the work load for the women architects) but also leaving roofs that have useful conduits that can be directed to collect rainwater. It is an exciting example of how modern and indigenous technologies can be married to carry a culture into the future but without forcing it to give up an essential part of its lifestyle.