Kenya Through History: Who Ruled Its Lands
The land of today's Kenya appears on 39 historical border maps from 500 BC to today. Over that time it was held, in whole or in part, by 6 different states, among them Kenya, Islamic city-states, British East Africa, Sultanate of Zanzibar, Zanzibar.
KenyaExplore the history of Kenya in the interactive map
Compare 1000 with today · Kenya as a state on the map
Who ruled the land of Kenya, map by map
Share of sample points inside today's borders held by each state on each map. Areas with no organised state on the map are left out.
| Map | Main states on this land |
|---|---|
| 1000 | Islamic city-states 16% |
| 1100 | Islamic city-states 16% |
| 1200 | Islamic city-states 16% |
| 1300 | Islamic city-states 16% |
| 1400 | Islamic city-states 16% |
| 1492 | Islamic city-states 16% |
| 1500 | Islamic city-states 16% |
| 1600 | Islamic city-states 16% |
| 1783 | Zanzibar 10% |
| 1800 | Zanzibar 10% |
| 1815 | Zanzibar 10% |
| 1880 | Sultanate of Zanzibar 26% |
| 1900 | Sultanate of Zanzibar 26% |
| 1914 | British East Africa 94% · Uganda 6% |
| 1920 | Kenya 100% |
| 1930 | Kenya 100% |
| 1938 | Kenya 100% |
| 1945 | Kenya 100% |
| 1960 | Kenya 100% |
| 1994 | Kenya 100% |
| 2010 | Kenya 100% |
Historic cities in Kenya
Famous people of Kenya
| Lived | Person | |
|---|---|---|
| c. 1897 – 1978 | Jomo Kenyatta | First president of Kenya |
Questions
Which empires and states ruled the territory of Kenya?
On the border maps from 500 BC to today, the largest shares of the territory of modern Kenya belonged to Kenya, Islamic city-states, British East Africa, Sultanate of Zanzibar, Zanzibar, Uganda.
What was Kenya part of in 1000?
On the border map for 1000, most of the territory of today's Kenya lay within Islamic city-states.
What was Kenya part of in 1500?
On the border map for 1500, most of the territory of today's Kenya lay within Islamic city-states.
What was Kenya part of in 1900?
On the border map for 1900, most of the territory of today's Kenya lay within Sultanate of Zanzibar.
Further reading
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.