The African Gourmet

Vita si uji -Swahili

War is not porridge -English

-Gikuyu Kenyan Proverb

Numbering about 6 million Gikuyu are the largest ethnic group in Kenya. Swahili is one of the official languages of Kenya and is the only language of African origin among the official working languages of the African Union. Traditionally among the Gikuyu people in Kenya porridge was the main beverage and was usually used to welcome visitors at home. It was also used as breakfast before people dispersed to attend to their various chores. As such porridge taking was a common, everyday experience. Indeed, whenever there was extra left over at any one sitting people were encouraged to take more of it to their fill. Reflecting on war, the Gikuyu people concluded that unlike porridge war should never be encouraged but be avoided and therefore be made a less frequent affair. This is the moral of the proverb whereby war, a destructive and non-beneficial thing, is contrasted with porridge, a good thing.

Source http://www.afriprov.org/
Photo USAID