50 Fun Facts About Nairobi

Nairobi is the capital of which country?

It became the capital of the East Africa Protectorate in 1907, eight years after the railway arrived.

From which people's language does the name Nairobi come?

Enkare Nyirobi referred to the cold stream that ran through the area.

Nairobi is the only capital city in the world with what inside its boundaries?

Giraffes graze with the skyline behind them, a favourite photo of visiting tourists.

Nairobi was founded in 1898 as a rail depot on which line?

Chief engineer George Whitehouse liked its elevation, climate and water supply.

Which city did Nairobi replace as capital in 1907?

It had already taken over from Machakos as headquarters of Ukamba province in 1899.

Which railway engineer chose the Nairobi site?

Officials complained the spot was too flat, badly drained and infertile.

Who designed the first town layout for the railway depot in 1898?

It had just two streets, Victoria Street and Station Street, plus ten avenues.

On what date did the railway reach Nairobi?

Early years were plagued by malaria, and there was at least one attempt to move the town.

Bazaar Street was rebuilt in the early 1900s after an outbreak of what?

The original town was burned; the street is now called Biashara Street.

In which year was Nairobi declared a municipality?

By 1921 it had 24,000 residents, about half of them native Africans.

In which year did Kenya gain independence, keeping Nairobi as capital?

The Lancaster House Conferences set out the transition.

Which landmark building, with the city's only public helipad, opened in September 1973?

The Kenyatta International Conference Centre's tower is a cylinder of stacked cuboids around a concrete core.

The KICC was co-designed by an architect from which country?

Karl Henrik Nøstvik worked with Kenyan architect David Mutiso on the 28-storey tower.

Nairobi's main international airport is named after whom?

The first president opened its new terminal in March 1978, less than five months before his death.

Which event in August 1998 is commemorated by a memorial park in downtown Nairobi?

The embassy was later rebuilt in the suburbs after the attack by Al-Qaeda.

The Thika Superhighway, opened in 2012, expanded the road to how many lanes?

The 50.4 km project cost about KES 31 billion and was built in three phases.

The Standard Gauge Railway opened in 2017 links Nairobi with which port?

About 90 percent of the funding came from China; the Nairobi Terminus is at Syokimau.

Which Nairobi governor was impeached and removed in December 2020?

Assembly speaker Benson Mutura was sworn in as acting governor four days later.

Which high ground to the west is the most prominent feature of the Nairobi area?

Mount Kenya lies to the north and Kilimanjaro to the south-east.

Roughly how high above sea level is Nairobi?

Evenings can drop to 9 °C in June and July despite the city's near-equatorial position.

Which Nobel laureate fought to save Karura Forest from development?

She also led the campaign that stopped a 62-storey party headquarters being built in Uhuru Park.

What does 'Uhuru' in Uhuru Park mean in Swahili?

The park borders the CBD and is a centre for rallies and outdoor speeches.

Which former president wanted a 62-storey party headquarters built in Uhuru Park?

The Kenya African National Union tower was stopped after Maathai's campaign.

In which year was the Nairobi Arboretum founded as a forestry trial site?

E. Batiscombe's 30-hectare reserve now holds more than 350 tree types near State House.

Which UN bodies have their headquarters in Nairobi?

The UN complex sits in the northern suburb of Gigiri.

In which suburb is the UN headquarters located?

The New York Times also keeps its Nairobi bureau there.

Which Nairobi neighbourhood is nicknamed 'Little Mogadishu'?

Many Somali immigrants have settled there.

Which Nairobi slum, one of the continent's largest, was the main setting of a 2005 le Carré film?

Its name comes from the Nubian word for forest or jungle.

The name of the city's largest slum comes from a Nubian word meaning what?

The settlement covers about two square kilometres of government land.

Which writer, resident near Nairobi from 1917 to 1931, gave her name to a suburb?

She lived in the area from 1917 to 1931 and wrote Out of Africa under the name Isak Dinesen.

Which Sydney Pollack film set around Nairobi won seven Academy Awards?

Its success prompted the opening of the Karen Blixen Museum.

Which Netflix series gave a main character the code-name 'Nairobi'?

Alba Flores played Ágata Jiménez, the crew's quality manager in charge of printing money.

Which Kenyan actress from Nairobi won an Oscar for 12 Years a Slave?

She is the daughter of Kenyan politician Peter Anyang' Nyong'o.

What is nyama choma?

The city also hosts an annual Restaurant Week each January and February.

Which Kenyan music genre, a fusion of jazz and Luo forms, developed in Nairobi?

In the 1970s the city also became a hub for Congolese soukous artists such as Orchestra Super Mazembe.

Which group performed for Barack Obama during his 2015 visit to Nairobi?

He was in the city for the Global Entrepreneurship Summit.

What are matatus?

A 2004 law required seat belts, speed governors and a yellow stripe; the stripe rule was lifted in 2014.

What is the maximum speed matatus are limited to?

Speed governors were imposed alongside seat belts in 2004.

Which Nairobi airfield handles mostly smaller propeller aircraft?

A new control tower was started there in 2016 at a cost of about US$1.63 million.

How long is the toll Nairobi Expressway opened in May 2022?

It links Mlolongo to Westlands, with an 11 km elevated section.

Most of Nairobi's piped water comes from reservoirs in which highlands north of the city?

The Thika Dam reservoir is the most important single source.

Which is the oldest and largest higher-education institution in Kenya?

It began in 1956 within the University of East Africa and became independent in 1970.

In which suburb is the Moi International Sports Centre, Kenya's premier stadium?

Its 60,000-seat stadium hosted the 1987 All Africa Games.

Which Nairobi venue, completed in 1983, has hosted the Safaricom Sevens rugby?

It seats 30,000 and sits close enough to the CBD to be a favourite for political rallies.

Which of these is a Nairobi-based Kenyan Premier League football club?

AFC Leopards, Tusker and Mathare United are also based in the city.

Which club, established by the British in 1906, has the city's oldest 18-hole course?

The European Tour's Kenya Open is played in the city.

Nairobi Gymkhana is the home ground of which national team?

It hosted matches at the 2003 Cricket World Cup.

Which American city is twinned with Nairobi?

Lowell and Raleigh are the other US twins, alongside Addis Ababa, Cape Town and Kunming.

Which four-time Tour de France winner was born in Nairobi?

Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins was also born in the city.

What is Nairobi's popular nickname referring to its foliage and climate?

It is also called the Safari Capital of the World for its role as a tourism hub.