Comparative Study on the Socio-ecological Adaptation Mechanism among Pastoral Peoples in Northern Kenya

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It is assumed that there is two adaptive strategies among East African pastoral societies. One is collectivity-centric strategy.Pastoral production is stabilized through the cooperation among small-scale family groups within the framework of more corporage patrilineal descent group. This typical example seems to be recognized among the East Cushitic mono-resource-based pastoral people peoples,such as the Rendille,Borana,and Gabra peoples.The other is individuality-centric strategy.Pastoral production is maintained by the maximization of indivedual family size and its herd size with a setting of less corporate patrilineal descent group.This typical example seems to be recognized among the Central Para-Nilotic multi-resouce- based pastoral peoples,such as the Karimojong,Jie,and Turkana peoples.Moreover,within the framework of this hypothesis,the Southern Para-Nilotic pastoral peoples, such as the Datoga,Masai,and Samburu peoples,are thought to take an intermediate position between the two typical adative strategies above-mentioned.Firstly,this hypothesis that there is contrasting two socio-ecological adaptive strategies among the East African pastoral socienties have to ve verified by collecing concrete and quantitative data on stock-transfer system,long-term demographic structure of human group and livestock herd and cultural complex of livestock.Secondly,it has to be verified by cross-cultural comparison within para-Nilotic peoples and within East Cushitic peoples,then between the both linguistic major groups.In this project,six Japanese scholars and one Kenyan scholar conducted their field surveys among the Turkana,Samburu,Chamus(Jemps),Rendille,Gabra,and Borana peoples.