The Samburu are plain Nilotes, a superlinguistic branch of the "maa" people which include the Masaai, Lshamus, Samour and Laikipiak
They dress simply with wrapped skirts of red fabric and an abundance of beaded jewellery.
The Samburu are a polygamous community and from a young age women are given beads to wear as necklaces which can symbolise status or their number of lovers
The Samburu are highly dependent on their livestock for survival. Their diet comprises mostly of milk and occasionally blood from their cows.
The power of elders is linked to the belief in their curse, underpinning their monopoly over arranging marriages and taking on further wives.
This is at the expense of unmarried younger men, whose development up to the age of thirty is in a state of social suspension, prolonging their adolescent status.
The Samburu believe that God (Nkai) is the source of all protection from the hazards of their existence. But God also inflicts punishment if an elder curses a junior for some show of disrespect.
Between the age of about 15 and 30, young Samburu men are traditionally known as Morans. After the circumcision ceremony the Samburu boys enter the age grade "moran", the Maasai word for "warrior"
The Morans stop cutting their hair at the age of 15. They dye their long hair with red ochre and also decorate themselves with necklaces and feathers.
Samburu girls are also circumcised. It's a very important rite and it signifies becoming a woman. Once circumcised, a girl/woman can be given away in an arranged marriage to start her own family.