The Meru people are of Bantu origin. Like the closely related Kikuyu, Embu and Mbeere they are concentrated in the vicinity of Mount Kenya. The exact place that the Ameru ancestors migrated from after the initial Bantu expansion from West Africa is uncertain. Some authorities suggest that they arrived in their present Mount Kenya area of in habitation from earlier settlements further to the north and east, while others argue that the Meru, along with their closely related Eastern Bantu neighbors moved into what is now Kenya from points further south…
The predominant oral tradition concerning the Meru’s early history is a fantastic fable that seems to combine elements of both truth and fiction.
In brief, it recounts that the Meru were once enslaved by the “Red People”. They eventually escaped, and in their exodus came across a large body of water called Mbwaa or Mbwa, which they crossed by magical means. The details of the tradition are replete with parallels to the Old Testament, and also contain references to events described in the New Testament. This has led many to speculate that the Meru are perhaps the descendants of one of the Lost Tribes of Israel, or that they were once Jewish, or had been in profound cultural contact with a people that certainly were (such as the Falashim of Ethiopia).
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