Quick answerKisumu is a city in Kenya, with 397,957 people inside the city limits in 2019. The wider metropolitan area had about 1.2 million people in 2019. It is best known for the Lake Victoria, the Hippo Point and the Kisumu Impala Sanctuary. Its official languages are English and Swahili, and its currency is the Kenyan shilling.
Kisumu is Kenya's third-largest city, with about 398,000 people in the 2019 census and about 1.2 million in the metropolitan area. It stands on the north-eastern shore of Lake Victoria and is known for Hippo Point and the Impala Sanctuary.
Key facts
| Country | Kenya |
|---|---|
| Population (city) | 397,957 (2019) |
| Population (metro) | 1,155,574 (2019) · Kisumu metropolitan area |
| Elevation | 1131 m above sea level |
| Time zone | Africa/Nairobi |
| Language | English, Swahili |
| Currency | Kenyan shilling (KES, KSh) |
| Coordinates | 0.083° S, 34.767° E |
Overview
Kisumu is Kenya's third-largest city, on the north-eastern shore of Lake Victoria in the west of the country. The urban centre had 397,957 people in the 2019 census, with about 1,155,574 in the metropolitan area, and the city stands at 1,131 metres above sea level.
Kisumu was founded in 1901 as the terminus of the Uganda Railway on the lake, first called Port Florence, and it grew as the port for steamers crossing Lake Victoria to Uganda and Tanzania. Its landmarks include Hippo Point, where hippos come ashore at sunset, the Kisumu Impala Sanctuary and Dunga Beach, with its fishing boats.
Today Kisumu is the commercial centre of western Kenya and of Luo culture, trading fish, sugarcane and rice from the lakeshore plains. The city is also the gateway to the nearby islands of Lake Victoria, including Ndere Island National Park.
What Kisumu is known for
- Lake Victoria
- Hippo Point
- Kisumu Impala Sanctuary
- Dunga Beach
- Luo culture
Landmarks
- Kisumu Impala Sanctuary
- Hippo Point
- Dunga Beach
- Kisumu Museum
- Kit Mikayi
- Ndere Island National Park
Frequently asked questions
What is the population of Kisumu?
About 398,000 people live in Kisumu (397,957 in the 2019 census), with about 1.2 million in the metropolitan area. That makes Kisumu Kenya's third-largest city, after Nairobi and Mombasa, and the main city on the Kenyan shore of Lake Victoria.
What is Kisumu famous for?
Kisumu is famous as the port city on Lake Victoria, Africa's largest lake. It is known for Hippo Point, where hippos come ashore at sunset, for the Kisumu Impala Sanctuary, for Dunga Beach and its fishing boats, and as a centre of Luo culture.
Where is Kisumu located?
Kisumu is in western Kenya, on the north-eastern shore of Lake Victoria, about 350 kilometres north-west of Nairobi on the road to the Ugandan border. It stands at 1,131 metres above sea level. Its coordinates are 0.08° S, 34.77° E, near the equator.
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Keep exploring
- Kenya — the country Kisumu is in
- Nairobi — another city in Kenya
- Mombasa — another city in Kenya
- Nakuru — another city in Kenya
- All cities in Kenya
- All countries — the full list
Sources & last updated
Last updated: . Figures are shown with their year; where sources disagree, the value is left out rather than estimated.