Grain, cattle, and power: social processes of intensive cultivation and exchange in precolonial western Kenya

Håkansson, Thomas

article

Grain, cattle, and power: social processes of intensive cultivation and exchange in precolonial western Kenya

Journal of anthropological research • 50 • Published In 1994 • Pages: 249-276

By: Håkansson, Thomas.

Abstract
The relationship between agricultural production and grain and cattle exchange is examined here in the context of the Lake Victoria basin and the highlands of western Kenya. The societies in this region were patrilineal and acephalous, with polygynous households, and used cattle for large bridewealth payments. The highland Gusii population practiced labor-intensive cultivation, maintained high population densities, and produced sizable grain surpluses for exchange against livestock from the lowland Luo, who produced less grain and experienced periodic famines (p. 249).

Domesticated animals

Cereal agriculture

Settlement patterns

Production and supply

Exchange transactions