The Giriama are one of the nine ethnic groups that make up the Mijikenda

Mijikenda

The Mijikenda are the nine ethnic groups along the coast of Kenya, from the border of Somalia in the north to the border of Tanzania in the south...

 (which literally translates to "nine towns").

The Mijikenda occupy the coastal strip extending from Lamu

Lamu

-Threats to Lamu:In a 2010 report titled Saving Our Vanishing Heritage, Global Heritage Fund identified Lamu as one of 12 worldwide sites most "On the Verge" of irreparable loss and damage, citing insufficient management and development pressure as primary causes.- See also :* Juma and the Magic...

 in the north to the Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

/Tanzania

Tanzania

The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...

 border in the south, and approximately 30 km inland. The Giriama are among the largest of these ethnic groups. They inhabit the area bordered by the coastal cities of Mombasa

Mombasa

Mombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....

 and Malindi

Malindi

Malindi is a town on Malindi Bay at the mouth of the Galana River, lying on the Indian Ocean coast of Kenya. It is 120 kilometres northeast of Mombasa. The population of Malindi is 117,735 . It is the capital of the Malindi District.Tourism is the major industry in Malindi. The city is...

, and the inland towns or Mariakani

Mariakani

Mariakani is a town lying on the boundary of Kaloleni and Kinango districts , Coast Province of Kenya, 36 kilometres northwest of the port city of Mombasa.- Overview :Colonial time Administration...

 and Kaloleni

Kaloleni, Kenya

Kaloleni is a settlement in Kilifi District, Coast Province of Kenya.It is about by road north of Mombasa city center.-Food and water supplies:...

.

The nine Mijikenda groups speak closely related languages, all types of Bantu language

Bantu languages

The Bantu languages constitute a traditional sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 250 Bantu languages by the criterion of mutual intelligibility, though the distinction between language and dialect is often unclear, and Ethnologue counts 535 languages...

, which is the same group to which the more widely known Swahili

Swahili language

Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...

belongs. The Giriama grow crops to sell and partake in subsistence agriculture.