Mbeere people
The Mbeere or Ambeere people are a Bantu ethnic group inhabiting the former Mbeere District in the now-defunct Eastern Province of Kenya. According to the 2019 Kenya National census, there are 195,250 Mbeere who inhabit an area of 2,093 km². They speak Kīmbeere language, a dialect of Embu, which is very similar to the languages spoken by their neighbours, the Kamba, Embu and Kikuyu. History The Mbeere are of Bantu origin. Like the closely related Kikuyu, Embu, Meru and Kamba, they are concentrated in the vicinity of Mount Kenya. The exact place that the Mbeere's ancestors migrated from after the initial Bantu expansion from West Africa is uncertain. Some authorities suggest that they arrived in their present Mount Kenya homeland from earlier settlements to the north and east, while others argue that the Mbeerealong with closely related Eastern Bantu peoples such as the Kikuyu, Embu, Meru and Kambamoved into Kenya from further south. Economy Most Mbeere are farmers who grow a variety of crops including mangoes, melons, pawpaws, passion fruits, maize, beans, cowpeas, pigeon peas, black peas, millet, sorghum, etc. The former Mbeere District is known for miraa, of which it was the second largest producer after Meru District. The