There is no official word for ‘President’ in the Luo vocabulary, as, just like most of other communities in the country, the post was introduced long after most of the words in the Luo dictionary were already in existence.
However, to at least give the holder a superior tittle, as is the position, the Luos have resolved to refer to the President as ‘Ker’, a word associated with top leaders since time immemorial.
In President Uhuru’s case, therefore, he is referred to as ‘Ker Uhuru Kenyatta’ the highest possible position in the culture of the lakeside people and the most respected as well.
In other instances, his position is wholly given a Luo touch ‘Jatend Piny’ title, translating to ‘the leader of the county’ , with Jatelo meaning leader and piny translating to land, hence country.
However, he is sharing the Ker title with the Luo Council of Elders boss Mzee Nyandiko On’gadi, who is ranked the highest traditional Luo leader and also enjoys massive respect.
The tittle is not unique to Kenyatta and has always been enjoyed by all his predecessors and is likely to remain intact long after him, unless a new one is introduced.
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