Unlike many other pastoralists in East Africa, the origin of those in East Pokot has a rather short history. A pastoral section did not split off from the agropastoral Pokot in today's West Pokot County until the middle of the eighteenth century. Nonetheless, the Pokot pastoralists quickly became very successful herders, accumulating large flocks and effectively asserting themselves against other pastoral groups in the region.

In this chapter, I discuss the formation of pastoralism in East Pokot and describe the origin and history of the pastoralists in a contested region, their social organisation and land management over time and, finally, recent population developments and livestock herd transformations. To understand the transformation processes of pastoral livelihoods, it is first necessary to take a closer look at the term ‘pastoralism’ itself. Given a clear definition of the term, the pastoral livelihoods of the Pokot can, at a later stage, be compared with other livelihood approaches. Fratkin and Smith (1994) provide an elaborate definition that accounts for the complexity of pastoral livelihoods in East Africa. This also fits the pastoral Pokot who still depend on livestock husbandry, although farming, wage labour, trade and other activities have become more important in recent years.