'Matuu' in Kamba means footsteps while 'Matuu ma Mwiitu' means footsteps of a young woman.
Every strange name of a place has a historical explanation and Matuu Ma mwiitu village in Matungulu, Machakos County isn't an exception.
A mysterious tale is told of how the place came to be named.
In the olden days, the Kamba people used to worship at shrines called 'Mathembo'.
Due to the existence of the shrines, there were ghosts which used to appear in the morning before sunrise and at night before dusk.
Ghosts which disappeared once spotted and children were afraid and wouldn't go to the rivers or forests during that time.
"While going to the rivers in the morning or in the evening after a whole day's chores, we would hear noises like a group of people talking. They wore long robes and walked fast, we couldn't see their faces since there weren't any and if you happened to spot them before you can show your colleagues they (ghosts) disappeared like a flash," resident Mary Mwikali said.
In Matuu ma Mwiitu, it's told that a specific female ghost used to roam around the village.
The fact that you can't distinguish male from female ghost but this one was peculiar.
People would hear it walk with it's heels normally known as 'pams'. She would walk round the village and disappear.
Munini specifically told this writer that the ghost was a young woman, not elderly since old women wore rubber shoes and wouldn't walk in heels.
Her footsteps were loud enough to be heard a kilometer away.
The residents believed she kept vigil so that no harm would befall them. They named the village 'Matuu ma Mwiitu' in her honor, meaning footsteps of a young woman.
At that time, not every firewood was fit for cooking.
After a long day of fetching firewood, inspection had to be done to ensure no firewood was picked from the shrine before being used.
Unfortunately after the shrines were destroyed, ghosts disappeared from the place.
#bizarre
#historynow