On the east coast of Africa is the country of Kenya. Kenya is a beautiful land that has many different tribes and one of them is the Nandi People.

For many years there have been stories of what would become known in English as the Nandi Bear. The Nandi people call it Kerit but there are many names from many different peoples. Perhaps there are as many names as there are tribes in and around the Kenyan area.

Today we know that there are no bears in Africa. There was what was called the Atlas Bear but it was reportedly hunted to extinction in the 1820’s. The last Atlas Bear was seen in Morocco.

In antiquity, Roman and Greek chroniclers told of bears living in Africa. These same sources spoke of other animals that either existed or still exist in Africa. So maybe those ancient chroniclers knew something about bears in Africa that we don’t know.

The Nandi bear is described as being less than 5 feet tall, which is the correct size for tropical bears. It has a sloped back down to its hind quarters. The animal has dark brown fur.
The bear has been known to climb trees in order to escape pursuers. That could be the reason that no one has ever killed and caught one.

Westerners first laid eyes on the Nandi bear in the early part of the 20th century. Europeans, particularly the British, began describing the same animal that the locals had been. Europeans confirmed what then natives had been talking about for ages and for once westerners began to believe.

The Nandi bear is so ferocious that natives don’t even like talking about the animal. The bear not only kills humans but he has been known to eat them too. Because of this, the fear of the Nandi bear is palpable and it doesn’t help that Nandi is nocturnal and only attacks his human prey after dark.

Many folks have tried to determine just what the Nandi bear is. Some have postulated it could be a remaining population of the Atlas bear that no one has identified yet. Others have suggested that a lion or perhaps a new species of baboon. Still others think it might be the animal that it seems to resemble most; the hyena. Others have thought it might be a mutant version of a hyena.

Will we know the answer to the question about just what the Nandi bear is? Do we want to? It might be suggested that perhaps the namesake of the bear, the Nandi people, would like to know what has been scaring and eating their relatives. Or if it’s a myth then maybe at some point the Nandi bear can be put to rest after all these years.