The other 137 sites that resemble it are concentrated in the areas of Karungu, Kadem-Kanyamkago, Gwassi, Kaksingiri Lake headlands, Kanyidoto and Kanyamwa.

Luo oral traditions state that the enclosures were built for protection against wild animals, cattle rustlers and other hostile groups.

These traditions suggest that Thimlich Ohinga was constructed by the then-inhabitants to serve as protection against outsiders in Kadem, Kanyamwa areas, as well as from neighbouring ethnic groups from what is now Tanzania.

[5] Archaeological and historical studies have concluded that the original builders and later inhabitants maintained a pastoral tradition where cattle played a key role in the economy.

These studies also conclude that sociopolitical organisation also played a crucial role in the establishment of Thimlich Ohinga and other surrounding fortified structures.

[8] Archaeological and ethnographic analysis of the sites has shown that the spatial organisation most closely resembles the layout of traditional Luo homesteads.

For example, Luo homesteads are circular with a focal meeting point adjacent to a central livestock enclosure, a pattern observable in Thimlich Ohinga.

Over time, other communities moved into the area in the period between the 15th and the 19th centuries and those who lived within the complexes maintained them by repairing and modifying the structures.

One striking difference between the two is unlike Great Zimbabwe, Thimlich Ohinga was constructed using unshaped and random loose stones made from local basalt.

Thimlich Ohinga is an example of defensive savanna architecture, which eventually became a traditional style in various parts of East and Southern Africa.

Taken together with the other stone built enclosures, Thimlich Ohinga creates the impression of a society with a centralised system of control and communal lifestyle that was spread around the Lake Victoria region.

[2] Animal remains on the site include domestic and wild species such as cattle, ovicaprids (sheep and goats), chicken, fish, hartebeest (Kongoni), duiker and hare.

[7] The entryways were intentionally constructed as small passageways, so that potential intruders could be quickly subdued by guards stationed on the watchtower near the entrance.

The National Museums of Kenya submitted a request to UNESCO, on behalf of the government, to include the Thimlich Ohinga Cultural Landscape on the World Heritage Site list.