# Maasai Enkaji

> The enkaji is the Maasai house of Kenya and Tanzania: a low, loaf-shaped shell of poles and sticks whose roof is plastered with cow dung and mud by women.

- URL: https://roof.wiki/maasai-enkaji/
- Topic: Roofing Around the World
- Also known as: enkaji; ekanji; Maasai house; Maasai dung hut
- Regions: Africa
- First published: 2026-11-02 · Last reviewed: 2026-11-02
- Cite as: "Maasai Enkaji." roof.wiki. https://roof.wiki/maasai-enkaji/

## Key facts

- **People:** Maasai (Kenya and Tanzania)
- **Roof:** Grass covered with cow dung or dung and mud plaster
- **Builders:** Women
- **Typical size:** About 3.2 x 5.6 m (10.5 x 18.4 ft)
- **Modern change:** Timber frame with metal sheets

The *enkaji* (also written *ekanji*) is the traditional house of the Maasai, pastoralists of southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. It is a low, rounded, loaf-shaped dwelling of wooden poles and woven sticks, plastered all over, roof included, with cow dung or a mix of dung and mud. Women design, build, repair and maintain the house, while the family homestead around it is organised around the cattle.

## Form

The enkaji has no sharp corners: its walls curve continuously into the roof, which one study describes as hyperboloid, so the whole house reads as a single monolithic shell. Traditional houses average about 3.2 by 5.6 m (10.5 by 18.4 ft). Low, domed houses packed with leaves and plastered with cattle dung are described as typical of the Maasai in general surveys of African architecture.

## Construction

1. Wooden poles are set in the ground and fastened with horizontal woven sticks.
2. Gaps are filled with smaller sticks, branches and twigs.
3. The wall and roof supports are interwoven so that they act as one integrated structure.
4. The frame is covered with grass and then plastered with cow dung, or a cow dung and mud mix, which hardens into the roof and wall surface.

The dung plaster must be renewed regularly to protect the house against wear in the wet season. Maintenance is a continuing responsibility of the woman of the house.

## Homestead

Several houses stand inside a family homestead (*enkang*, also *ekang*), a fenced compound sited on higher ground with clear sightlines, enclosing a central cattle kraal (*boo*) with separate pens for cattle, goats, sheep and calves. Separate dwellings were made for the mother, with space for young children and young animals (*ekanji ensat*), and for the father (*ekanji orripie*).

## Change

In the 21st century many Maasai houses have timber roof frames covered with metal sheets, kitchens have moved to separate structures, and spaces once used for animals and hearths are used for storage. The fenced homestead layout has largely persisted.

## Local terms

- *enkaji* / *ekanji* (Maa): house.
- *enkang* / *ekang* (Maa): family homestead.
- *boo* (Maa): cattle enclosure.

## Sources

1. Through the Maasai built landscapes — Google Arts & Culture. https://artsandculture.google.com/story/ngWxTk735YTJIw
2. African architecture: Geographic influences — Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/art/African-architecture/Geographic-influences
3. Eco-Living the Maasai Way — Google Arts & Culture. https://artsandculture.google.com/story/aQXhEHjs026CJA