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The struggle with many a rigid Logooli cultural practices

  The Logooli community is one of the deeply cultured societies – with near everything supposed to have been done as per custom – to allow another custom to follow. One example is that for a mature man (with a child or more) to be buried, there must be a house structure at home. Another is that a boy must be circumcised and nursed in father land. If maternal family decides to, the boy will have a hard time reconnecting with father people - a dent on his masculinity. There were two children who got burnt to death in a house in Nairobi. The single mother had left for night work. Elders were told that one of the children was Logooli. The other, the woman had sired with someone else. The Logooli family wanted to burry their little one and long discussed the do’s and don’ts. Of a man who died childless and the grave was placed as if he had died as a man with children. It should have been dug on the sides, the grave. A real thorn should have been thrust in his buttocks, his name go...
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Marriage between Saniagas?

Mbeye nindi riteva,
If not permitted please advice me to delete.

A few years ago I happened to 'fall in love' with a Musaniaga man without knowing we were clan-mates.
When we found out, we tried finding out the permissiability of such a union but we were given a big no.
Some wazees told us only bigger clans like Vamavi can inter-marry.

How true is that?

What was the guiding principle behind our ancestors deciding to ban clan intermarriage? Other communities marry their clan mates, the blood relation is very distant to be considered incest.
All Maragoli clans ni vaana va Murogoori and his wife,technically we are all "one blood."

Aren't there any other reasons why such marriages were disallowed?

Lung'afa: Awesome question. Hapo nyuma when Saniagas had started having doors, some married! This I was told by Vodoti. But it started being an embarrassment and elders vehemently refused the house thing among Saniagas. It was creating a door for obscenity and division, kifwavi. 

We have a saying that 'masahi gashimbi gahuliizanaa vwangu' no wonder you were 'serious in love', having so much in common, a statement that is agreed to by 'eng'ombe nigaduu irizaa ku gaavo.'
It saddens to change a lover to a friend because of clan stuffs and that is why among the very fist questions before, 'Do you love me?' should be 'What is your clan?' 

Marriage to the fifth generation from maternal family is allowed and seventh generation on paternal side has no  problem..that is why super cattle crossing goes to the seventh. But here we would still apply the elders' whip. I would not come to your wedding with some Karani here just because the tenth ancestor relate. Laughter.

This is really insightful Lung'afa.
What about other clans like Vamavi,is it true that they intermarry?

Lung'afa: Vamavi is NOT a clan. When Mavi died, equal to Musaari, Mukizungu and Mukirima, they had 'houses'. You would hear of Vanondi, Vamuku, Vang'ang'a and etc among Mavi. Masero, Vasachi, Migangu are Vakirima and etc. So they marry such. And down there, on Masero for instance, the level of Saniaga here, there are 'sub-houses' too but they cannot marry! A saniaga marrying another is like Vasweta intermarrying cause they are 'not related'. They are as strong a clan yet with doors and sub-doors among them.

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