The woman’s position in African society is one of submission to cultural demands in order to have a ‘place’ and access to resources. Her identity is closely linked to that of a man; either that of her father or that of her husband whose name she takes up after marriage. The taking up of a husband’s name is more than symbolic imagery; it actually represents the absorption of a wife into a community within which she has the right of access to resources. The Luo community in the Republic of Kenya, are patrilineal and patrilocal meaning that inheritance and residence are centered on the male lineage.[1] Men therefore are the major decision-makers and control property and wealth. Upon marriage, husbands and their families give bride-wealth essentially for the reproductive and productive capabilities of the women. Women at that point are considered strangers to their own families, and become jural minors under the control of males, and unable to act legally on their own account.[2]

When a husband dies, not only is there profound grief and loss for the community within which he belonged, but his spouse becomes a widow. It should be understood that every individual widow’s life is shaped within a particular socio-cultural matrix and refined by personal factors such as; her personality, relationship with her in-laws, whether her marriage was valid, whether her bride-wealth was paid, what actions to take for or against the widow, and finally – the woman’s perceptions of herself as a widow and what she can do, and what she must accept (Lopata, 1979). 

The death of a husband among the Luo causes a re-organization in the community, and widows would be supported to help the children grow up within the extended family system. This age-old practise is known as ‘widow-inheritance.’ The ritual that begins the process of ‘widow-inheritance’ is termed tero-cholla. It ends the mourning period and right after it is undertaken, the surviving family members begin their new life. The widow has to have someone in her mind as her prospective inheritor before the day of tero-cholla. The inheritor is ordinarily a brother or male relative to the deceased. 

Wakano Shiino gives a description of the ritual; “The widow and her eldest son pay a visit to the home of the widow’s parents, they spend only one night there and the following day before departure, a goat called cholla is slaughtered. Part of its’ meat is eaten by the widow’s parents, the rest is taken by the widow to her home. The widow’s prospective inheritor known as sleeps in the widow’s house while she is visiting her natal home. When she returns, she cooks the meat she brought back and shares it with her inheritor. They engage in sexual intercourse that night, and the man must prove he is the real inheritor. After this, the inheritor begins to build their new house, helped by the widow. If a widow is past menopause and elderly, she selects a man who is the same age as her. When she returns from her natal home, her inheritor prepares a fireplace for cooking and after she cooks, they eat together. They spend the night without sex, but the inheritor must keep his belongings inside the house. This is done so that the visitors may know that the old man and woman are staying together and love each other.”[3] In most instances, before a widow can be inherited, there has to be cleansing from the “spirits of the husband.” “Cleansing’ typically refers to a short-term one time sexual encounter with a man known as jater, who is paid to have sex with the widow.[4]

These practices reflect the common belief that women cannot be trusted to own property and the belief that widows are contaminated with evil spirits when their husbands die.[5] In many parts of Luoland, the death of the male head of a household customarily permits his relatives to take possession of the family property ranging from land to livestock, productive assets, clothes and household objects.[6] This custom is another part of the rituals for the deceased and is termed golo liel which literally means to “exhume or dispose of the grave” – in reality “a feast after which the deceased property like clothes, shoes and other loose property is brought out and shared amongst the relatives.” The practice of golo liel is greatly abused in these modern times, where widows and their children are impoverished as their relatives take everything good that was left by their husband/father. 

A woman who refuses to be inherited most times undergoes tremendous difficulties, may even become an outcast and lose access to land. Nyambedha states “Over the years, because of the economy, over-population and competition for resources, there have been changes in the corporate kin group assistance to the widows and orphans so that in many instances, these have to look for alternate sources of support when they do not receive support from the kin-group.[7] 

Despite the fact that widow-inheritance is considered a voluntary undertaking by the widow, the practice and cleansing are often done unwillingly and coercion is involved.[8] Educated widows or those from the urban areas being more enlightened are more likely able to refuse to undergo this custom than the rural illiterate widows who in many instances are poor, have no independent source of income and no knowledge on their rights. 

As well, widows from mainstream churches are most likely to refrain from funeral rites than those from African instituted churches.[9] Ambasa-Shisanya observes that there are many aspects of re-socializing the widows to a new life which is really incompatible to their comfort and survival.[10] One is the treatment of widows by the inheritors, some of whom demand good food and if the widow doesn’t provide this, they batter her or do not go to her house.[11] The inheritors’ wives are usually resentful of their husband’s relationship with the widow and there have been instances where these wives have burned down the house the inheritor built for the widow.[12] 

It is clear that widow-inheritance sets a pattern that places widows in unfavourable positions where they are viewed as inferior in the community to which they belong. The cleansing rites that accompany inheritance are a causal factor to the high prevalence of HIV/Aids in the Western part of Kenya. The Luo community however takes widow-inheritance as one of their most important traditional rites in disregard to campaigns against it by the governmental authorities, faith-based institutions and Non-Governmental Organizations who term it “archaic, outdated and retrogressive.”   

[1] Nancy Luke, Widows and Professional Inheritors: Understanding AIDS Risk Perceptions in Kenya, (April, 2002).

[2] Maria G.Cattell, African Widows: Anthropological and Historical Perspectives, Journal of Women & Aging, Volume 15, Issue 2 & 3, March 2003.

[3] Wakana Shiino. Death and rituals among the Luo in South Nyanza, (1997).

[4] Human Rights Watch (2003), Ibid

[5] Ibid.

[6]Villarreal (2002) Changing customary land rights and gender relations in the context of HIV/AIDS in Africa.

[7] Erick Otieno Nyambedha, Change and continuity in kin-based support systems for widows and orphans among the Luo in western Kenya.

[8] Ambasa-Shisanya, Widow-hood in the era of HIV/Aids: A case study of Siaya district, Kenya.(August 2007).

[9] Shisanya discusses two divergent views of a Catholic church member who gets support from the priest and members of her church, this member didn’t undergo the rituals and believes that Jesus Christ will protect her, while the pastor of the African church Legio Maria  states that wife-inheritance is biblical being established from the days of Abraham.  Ibid at p.612.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Ibid.

[12] Ibid.