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Though there are still a few thousand native Suba people in Kenya, most of them – mainly members of the younger generation – do not speak the Suba language. A lot of them speak the Luo language fluently and live by the Luo culture. They identify themselves as Luo, but from Suba.
The 2018 Rusinga Festival kicked off on Thursday on Rusinga Island located Kenya’s western region. The event attracts thousands of people from across the East African country and beyond. Organizers say the two-day event gives attendees the chance to enjoy indigenous Suba music, fashion, film, food, artistry, literature, sports and conversations that will take them back in time into the wealth of the Suba culture.
Though there are still a few thousand native Suba people in Kenya, most of them – mainly members of the younger generation – do not speak the Suba language. A lot of them speak the Luo language fluently and live by the Luo culture. They identify themselves as Luo, but from Suba.Experts worry that the Abasuba community may disappear due to assimilation into the neighbouring Luo community, modernization and other factors.
The risk of losing this culture and language is what drove Anne Eboso to begin a project to save the Suba tribe.
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As the main founder of the Rusinga Cultural Festival, Anne hopes to mobilize actors from across different sectors to join forces to ensure future Abasuba generations will enjoy their culture and speak their language.
“I feel it is very important for every community to have its own identity. I feel the things that make up a community, be it the way of life, language of a people, the culture and customs of a people are very important in the socio-economic development of any community. I felt the Abasuba people needed to own their culture and language as opposed to what was happening,” Anne said on Thursday.
Anne, a mother to two boys, hopes the Rusinga Cultural Festival will provide her sons and other young Abasuba natives with an opportunity to enjoy the ways of their forefathers, speak their language, live their culture and showcase its richness to the entire world.
This year marks the seventh edition of the festival.
