Kericho is the biggest town in

Kericho County Kericho County is one of the 47 Counties of Kenya, counties in Kenya. The county seats between longitude 35°02' and 35°40' East and between the equator and latitude 0°23' South with an altitude of about 2002m above the sea level. It borders ...

located in the highlands west of the

Kenyan Rift Valley The Great Rift Valley is part of an intra-continental ridge system that runs through Kenya from north to south. It is part of the Gregory Rift, the eastern branch of the East African Rift, which starts in Tanzania to the south and continues no ...

. Standing on the edge of the

Mau Forest Mau Forest is a forest complex in the Rift Valley of Kenya. It is the largest indigenous montane forest in East Africa. The Mau Forest complex has an area of . The forest area has some of the highest rainfall rates in Kenya. Mau Forest is the la ...

, Kericho has a warm and temperate climate making it an ideal location for agriculture and in particular, the large scale cultivation of tea. The town is strategically located along Kenya's western tourism circuit with access to Lake Victoria, the Maasai Mara National Reserve and Ruma National Park. As of the 1999 census, the town has a population of 150,000. Kericho is the home town of the

Kipsigis Kipsigis may refer to: *the Kipsigis people of Kenya *Kipsigis language Kipsigis (or Kipsikii, Kipsikiis) is part of the Kenyan Kalenjin dialect cluster, It is spoken mainly in Kericho and Bomet counties in Kenya. The Kipsigis people are the m ...

, who are a part of the

Kalenjin Kalenjin may refer to: * Kalenjin people The Kalenjin are a group of tribes designated as Highland Nilotes and are descended from Maliri people ''(thus related to Daasanach of Ethiopia.)'' The Kalenjin are cousins with Datooga people of Tan ...

people.

Etymology

The etymology of Kericho is unclear. One theory has it that it was home to the region's first hospital, built by the colonial British at the start of the 20th century. This is in reference to , the word for medicine in the Kipsigis language. Other theories have it that the town was named for a local medicine man called Kipkerich or after a Maasai chief, Ole Kericho who was killed in the 18th Century by the Abagusii.

History

The settlement at Kericho was founded in 1902 by British settlers. Kericho hosts Africa's largest

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

Gurudwara A gurdwara (sometimes written as gurudwara) (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ''guradu'ārā'', meaning "Door to the Guru") is a place of assembly and worship for Sikhs. Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as ''Gurdwara Sahib''. People from all faiths ...

and the second largest Catholic cathedral in Kenya. Gurdwara Sahib is built on the site of the home and workshop of Kericho Wagon Works founder Sant Baba Puran Singh Ji of Kericho. The site is currently a place of worship for the Sikh community and a museum

gazette A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers ...

d by the

Government of Kenya , image = , caption = Coat of arms of Kenya , date = 1963 , jurisdiction = Republic of Kenya , url = http://www.mygov.go.ke/ , legislature = Parliament of Kenya , meeting_place = ...

as a place of spiritual significance. It is dedicated to the memory of Sant Baba Puran Singh Ji, founder of the international charitable organization,

Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha The Gurdwara Sahib is a Sikh place of worship or Gurdwara in Handsworth, Birmingham, England. It was built in the late 1970s under the spiritual guidance of Puran Singh (d. 1983) and the leadership of Norang Singh (d. 1995). The Spiritual lead ...

which promotes the spirit and practice of selfless service ("nishkam sewa") in the name of

Guru Nanak Gurū Nānak (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539; Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ; pronunciation: , ), also referred to as ('father Nānak'), was the founder of Sikhism and is the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated wor ...

Dev Ji, the founder of the

faith.

Chandarana Records Chandarana Records is a record company from Kericho, Kenya. The company was known throughout Africa for releasing several thousand 45-rpm singles (on at least 15 different labels) featuring a wide range of Kenyan (Luo, Luhya, Kipsigis, Swahili) ...

a pioneer of

Benga music Benga is a musical genre, genre of Kenyan popular music. It evolved between the late 1940s and late 1960s, in Kenya's capital city of Nairobi. In the 1940s, the African Broadcasting Service in Nairobi aired a steady stream of soukous, South A ...

and the Kenyan music recording industry is based in Kericho town. Kericho is home to Olympic winning long distance athletes and hosts Zoo Kericho F.C. a football club competing in the

Kenyan Premier League The Kenyan Premier League (KPL), officially known as the FKF Premier League and as the BetKing Premier League (BPL) for sponsorship reasons, is a professional league for men's association football clubs in Kenya. Standing at the top of the Kenyan ...

and Kericho R.F.C. competing in the Nationwide League. Other notable places of interest include Chagaik Arboretum, Chelimo Arboretum, Tagabi Arboretum, Uhuru Garden and the vast scenic tea estates with high ground view points.

Geography

Kericho is reputed to hold the record for the highest number of hail occurrences in a year, either at 132 days with hail or 113 days in 1965. Kericho has up to 50 days of hail each year, but large hail is rare.

Government

Kericho town
is the headquarters of Kericho county, which is itself made up of six constituencies/sub-counties including B Bureti, Belgut,

Ainamoi Ainamoi is a settlement in Kenya's Kericho County formerly part of the Rift Valley Province. Ethnicity The people of the Rift Valley are a mesh work of different tribal identities, and the Kalenjin and the Maasai are two of the best known eth ...

, Soin/ Sigowet, Kipkelion East, and Kipkelion West.

Transport

Kericho is accessible by road through the

B1 road (Kenya) B1, B.I, B.1 or B-1 may refer to: Biology and chemistry * Bradykinin receptor B1, a human protein * Cinnamtannin B1, a condensed tannin found in cinnamon * Combretastatin B-1, a stilbenoid found in ''Combretum sp.'' * Fumonisin B1, a toxins p ...

that links Mau-Summit, Kericho to Kisumu and Busia. In addition, the C25 Kapsoit-Sondu road connects Kericho to the

A1 road (Kenya) A list of roads designated A1, sorted by alphabetical order of country. * A01 highway (Afghanistan), a long ring road or beltway connecting Kabul, Kandahar, Herat and Mazar * A1 motorway (Albania), connecting Durrës and Kukës * A001 highwa ...

linking Isebania to Lokichoggio through Kisumu and Kitale. The Nakuru-Kisumu railway line passes through Kericho County with railway stations at Mau Summit, Londiani, Kedowa, Lumbwa, Kipkelion and Fort Ternan. Fort Ternan was previously used as a halfway point for passenger and goods trains between Nakuru and Kisumu. Private airstrips operated by tea estates have a more regular use for purposes of crop spraying.http://aeroclubairfields.com/go.php?mod=public&loco=airstrips

Communication and media

Kericho town has access to a high-speed fiber-optic Internet connection, fixed line, and mobile telecommunications. There are several local FM radio stations includin
Kass FMChamgei FMKBC Kitwek FMRadio Injili
Sayare Radio
Light and Life FM
Sema Radio and The Just FM.

Tertiary education

Kericho hosts several satellite campuses and colleges providing certificate, diploma and degree courses. *

University of Kabianga The University of Kabianga is located in Kabianga Division in Kericho West District. The university is situated in the Kabianga Complex, comprising the then Kabianga Famers Training Center, Kabianga High School and Primary School and the Kipsig ...

Kenya Highlands Evangelical University Africa Gospel Church Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

* Kenyatta University * The University of Nairobi * Kericho Teachers Training College offers degree courses under agreement with Moi University * Eland College run jointly by Kabarak University and Eland Schools * Mospen Institute of Development Studies(MIDS) * African Institute of Research and Development Studies (AIRADS) * Nishkam Saint Puran Singh Institute (NSPSI) * Kericho Technical Institute * Kericho School of Professional Studies * Kenya Institute of Management *Rift Valley Institute of Business Studies

Secondary education

Kericho is home to Litein High School, Kapsoit high school, Kabianga High School, Kericho High school, Moi Tea Secondary, Kipsigis Girls High School, Cheptenye Boys High School, Kericho Tea Boys, Tengecha schools and others

Religion

Kericho is home to followers of the

Africa Gospel Church Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Seventh-day Adventists The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventism, Adventist Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the Names of the days of the week#Numbered days of the week, seventh day of the ...

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

, African Inland Church,

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

and

Anglicans Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the l ...

Notable people

* Dr.

Taitta Toweett Dr. Elisha Kipyegon Taaitta Arap Toweett, also known as Taaitta Arap Toweett (c. May 1925 – 8 October 2007), was a scholar, writer, linguist and a Kenya, Kenyan politician. Biography Towett was born in May 1925 at Tebesonik, near Litein, ...

Joseph Cheruiyot arap Chewen Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

* Joginder Singh *

Hannington Apudo Hannington may refer to: Places in England *Hannington, Hampshire * Hannington, Northamptonshire *Hannington, Wiltshire People * James Hannington (1847–1885), English bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa * Henry Hannington (1797–1870), English ...

, the first indigenous military pilot in the

Kenya Air Force The Kenya Air Force (KAF) or sw, Jeshi la Wanahewa is the national aerial warfare service branch of the Republic of Kenya. The main airbase operating fighters is Laikipia Air Base in Nanyuki, while Moi Air Base in Eastleigh, Nairobi is the he ...

* Wilson Kiprugut *

Moses Kiprono arap Keino Moses Kiprono arap Keino (September, 1937 – November 4, 1998) was Speaker of the Parliament of Kenya from 1988 until 1991. Education and early life Between 1962 and 1967, Keino attended Hochschule fur Ökonomie (University of Economics), Karlh ...

Joyce Chepchumba Joyce Chepchumba (born 6 November 1970 in Kericho) is a long distance athlete from Kenya. Achievements *1995 ** Tilburg Ten Miles winner ** Parelloop 10Kwinner Arrs.netList of Parelloop winners/ref> *1997 **London Marathon winner *19 ...

Edwin Soi Edwin Cheruiyot Soi (born 3 March 1986) is a Kenyan professional long-distance runner who specialises in the 3000 and 5000 metres. He is a two-time Olympian for Kenya. His earliest honours were team gold medals with Kenya at the IAAF World Cro ...

* Kipngeno arap Ng'eny *

David Kimutai Too David Kimutai Too (August 23, 1968 – January 31, 2008) was a Kenyan politician affiliated to the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM). He was a high school teacher and then a principal from Kericho in Rift Valley, Kenya before being elected to the N ...

Ayub Kiprotich Siele Ayub (Arabic: ايّوب ''Ayūb'', commonly written ايوب) is the Arabic name of the Abrahamic prophet Job. Here it refers to the Islamic prophet which is mentioned in the Quran, see Job in Islam. The spread of the name among Muslims is par ...

, The longest serving mayor of Kericho

References

{{Coord, 00, 22, 09, S, 35, 17, 02, E, region:KE_type:adm2nd_source:nlwiki, display=title Kericho County Populated places in Rift Valley Province County capitals in Kenya