'Meru Central District' is one of the seventy-one
districts of Kenya, located in that country's
Eastern Province. In 1992, it was split from the large Meru District, along with
Meru North District,
Meru South District, and
Tharaka District.
Meru Central District is the home of the
Ameru (Meru) tribe, which is sometimes described as being related to other tribes living around the
Mount Kenya region: the
Kikuyu and the
Embu people. The Ameru are generally called "
Bantu" people who have been native to the Mt. Kenya area for many, many years — well before colonization of Kenya by
Great Britain in the
19th Century. The people of Meru Central District are now predominantly
Christian —
Methodist,
Presbyterian,
Roman Catholic, and other denominations, reflecting the work of missionaries — with also minorities of
Indian descent, who are mainly
Hindus, and African/Arab descent, who are
Muslims. Meru Central also has some resident Europeans predominantly British in ancestry.
The district headquarters is in
Meru. The district has three constituencies: South Imenti, Central Imenti and North Imenti.
| 'Local authorities (councils)' |
| |||
| Authority | Type | Population ★ | Urban pop. ★ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meru | Municipality | 42,677 | 42,677 |
| Meru County | County | 456,203 | 10,589 |
| ''Total'' | - | ''498,880 '' | ''53,266'' |
| |||
| 'Administrative divisions' |
| |||
| Division | Population ★ | Urban pop. ★ | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abogeta | 56,575 | 0 | |
| Abothuguchi Central | 29,673 | 0 | |
| Abothuguchi East | 37,020 | 0 | |
| Abothuguchi West | 59,823 | 0 | |
| Buuri | 40,517 | 0 | |
| Igoji | 45,173 | 0 | Igoji |
| Miriga Mieru East | 56,958 | 2,961 | |
| Miriga Mieru West | 69,469 | 36,360 | Meru |
| Nkuene | 54,554 | 8,051 | |
| Timau | 49,118 | 1,338 | Timau |
| ''Total'' | ''498,880'' | ''48,710'' | - |
| |||