Like other Bantu communities, the Akamba have myth stories of origin. There are two versions of the same story.
The first version says that Mũlungu, the creator of the universe, created the first man whose name was Kamba and woman whose name was Kĩveti and placed them on top of one of the hills of Mbooni. The two then became the parents of the entire Kamba community.
The second version says in the beginning, Mũlungu created Mũndũ, Man and his wife, Kĩveti. Mũndũ and Kĩveti, like Mũlungu, were spirits. When God had finished creating them, hedropped them from heaven to earth with their cattle and a stool for the Mũndũ.
They landed on a rock on a mountain called Nzaũĩ where their footprints are still visible. And the Akamba will tell you that, if you doubt, the story, you can visit Nzaũĩ and you will see for yourself, the footprints of Mũndũ and Kĩveti and their animals.
Mũlungu then caused a great rainfall. From the many anthills around, a man and a woman came out. These were the initiators of the ‘spirits clan’- the Aimũ. It so happened that the couple from heaven had only sons while the couple from the anthill had only daughters.
Naturally, the couple from heaven paid dowry for the daughters of the couple from the anthill. The family and their cattle greatly increased in numbers. With this prosperity, they forgot to give thanks to their creator.
Mũlungu punished them with a great famine. This led to migration as the families scattered in search of food. Some migrated far North and became the Kikuyu, while still others went further - the Meru. Those who remained in Nzaui are the original Akamba.
© David Kioko
