Maasai on the phone: materiality, tourism, and the extraordinary in Zanzibar

The article examines how tourism hinges on the pursuit of the extraordinary and how materiality serves as tangible evidence of authenticity and difference in tourist spaces. Building on classic and contemporary tourism theory that frames the tourist gaze as seeking the out-of-the-ordinary, the authors position Maasai men—iconic figures in East African tourism—as embodiments of extraordinariness through their traditional material culture (robes, weapons, bodies). They pose the problem of how, in Zanzibar, Maasai men simultaneously deploy traditional and modern objects, creating an ambivalent experience for tourists and locals and complicating binary notions of ordinary versus extraordinary. The study aims to explore how this interplay of materialities shapes perceptions of authenticity, generates unease, and affects interactions and economies in Zanzibar’s tourist settings.

Tourism studies emphasize the quest for the extraordinary (Urry, MacCannell, Boorstin; Wang’s existential authenticity; Cohen’s critiques) and the contested nature of authenticity (Cohen; Wang; Shepherd). Materiality is key in making destinations appear extraordinary and authentic, often through curated displays while masking mundane aspects (Rickly & Vidon; Navarro; Holtorf; MacCannell). Maasai have long been constructed as paradoxical icons within tourism, embodying noble savagery and resistance to modernity (Hodgson; Gardner; Salazar; Bruner & Kirshenblatt-Gimblett). Prior work demonstrates how Maasai representations stage colonial and national narratives (Bruner; Bruner & Kirshenblatt-Gimblett) and how material culture can be manipulated to imagineer otherness (Salazar). The paper engages these debates by focusing on how Maasai in Zanzibar leverage both traditional and modern artifacts (e.g., phones, sunglasses) and how this challenges dominant authenticity frameworks, leading to claims of inauthenticity or “fake Maasai.”

Ethnographic fieldwork was conducted in Tanzania and Zanzibar. The first author began observations in September 2018, developing fieldnotes from observations and conversations that evolved into open-ended interviews with Maasai men, other Tanzanians, and tourists. The second author carried out an intensive fieldtrip in September 2019 in Stone Town and beach resorts (Nungwi, Kendwa, Paje). A total of 24 interviews and numerous informal conversations were conducted with Maasai men, policemen, business operators, beach boys, and tourists. Interviews were in English and probed motivations for coming to Zanzibar, intergroup relations, perceptions of tourism, host–guest learning processes, culture and tradition, and future plans. Data were thematically organized around Maasai material presence in formal (hotel lobbies) and informal (beaches) tourist spaces and around reactions to that materiality. The authors explicitly note this is not a comprehensive or authoritative ethnography of Maasai in Zanzibar but a focused analysis of material practices and their reception.

• Maasai strategically employ traditional materiality (red robes/shuka, swords, spears, clubs, beaded sandals and jewelry, and muscular bodies) to construct an extraordinary presence that draws tourist attention and facilitates economic activities (security, souvenir sales, commissions, sex-related exchanges).
• The simultaneous use of modern artifacts—especially mobile phones and stylish sunglasses—produces a jarring image that many tourists and non-Maasai Tanzanians interpret as mundane or inauthentic, eliciting discomfort and accusations of being “fake Maasai.”
• Mobile phones are ubiquitous among Maasai on Zanzibar’s beaches; although interlocutors sometimes frame usage as calling home, closer rapport revealed primarily local, immediate social and business uses with other Maasai, tourists, and Tanzanians. Sunglasses are common and practical under intense sun but visually clash with traditional weaponry and robes in observers’ eyes.
• In hotel lobbies, Maasai serve both as guards and performers, contributing to an ‘African atmosphere’ and joining welcome rituals. They may also be technologically adept (e.g., troubleshooting Wi‑Fi), revealing tensions between the ‘noble savage’ image and practical modern competencies.
• On beaches, Maasai engage in aggressive competition in souvenir sales and commission-based touting, prompting regulations that pushed peddling off beaches and into shops or hidden corners; police extortions/risks were reported. Tourists and local entrepreneurs criticize Maasai for leveraging their cultural image for profit while themselves using similar tactics.
• Sexualized interactions are common in beach settings; some Maasai operate as ‘beach boys,’ mixing business with romantic/sexual propositions. This intensifies discomfort among locals (who frame it as deviating from ‘real Maasai’ masculinity) and among some tourists (who experience advances as tedious or threatening), while others acknowledge such behavior mirrors broader resort sexual dynamics.
• Claims of ‘fake Maasai’ arise on two fronts: (1) deviations from presumed tradition (herding, specific diets, abstaining from sea/fish, alcohol, smoking, deference to elders), and (2) assertions that some men are non-Maasai adopting Maasai attire for economic gain. This shifts authenticity markers from external materiality to bodily features (earlobes, stature), acknowledging that robes and weapons can be purchased and staged.
• The central paradox: Maasai in Zanzibar are perceived as both ordinary and extraordinary simultaneously. The hybrid materiality (traditional plus modern) creates persistent ambiguity and unease among tourists and locals, destabilizing expectations of authenticity.
• Practical responses: authorities, resort owners, and some Maasai aim to ‘streamline’ appearances—retaining traditionally dressed Maasai in controlled settings (lobbies, contrived attractions like a ‘Maasai village’) while others relinquish traditional attire in everyday beach contexts.
• Data points: two-phase ethnography (2018–2019), 24 formal interviews; observations of widespread phone use among Maasai and large visible presence on certain beaches.

The findings show that materiality—both traditional and modern—actively shapes how Maasai in Zanzibar are read as extraordinary and/or ordinary. While traditional attire and weaponry attract the tourist gaze and function as economic capital, the visible incorporation of modern artifacts (phones, sunglasses) collapses the expected distance from everyday modernity, triggering tourist angst and local critiques of authenticity. This ambivalence is not merely a switch between categories; ordinary and extraordinary co-exist in the same moment and figure, producing unease that affects social interactions, business practices, and destination reputations. Accusations of ‘fakeness’ reveal that material culture, often assumed to be a solid authenticity marker, is manipulable and context-dependent. The beach and lobby cases illustrate how performance, security, commerce, and sexuality intertwine with material signals to produce complex reactions: admiration, fear, annoyance, and desire. The study thus challenges binary readings of authenticity in tourism, emphasizing fluid, negotiated, and embodied assessments rooted in material assemblages.

The article demonstrates that material objects and their use can define people as ordinary and extraordinary at the same time. In Zanzibar, Maasai leverage traditional materiality to capitalize on tourist expectations while their adoption of modern artifacts complicates authenticity, generating discomfort and charges of inauthenticity. This ambivalence has practical implications: stakeholders are attempting to manage Maasai visibility by reserving traditionally dressed Maasai for controlled, performative contexts (hotel lobbies, constructed ‘villages’) while encouraging others to forgo traditional display in ordinary spaces. The authors suggest that such ambiguity may harm Zanzibar’s reputation if unmanaged, and anticipate near-future stratification of Maasai roles and appearances across tourist settings.

The authors explicitly state this is not a comprehensive or authoritative ethnography of Maasai in Zanzibar but a focused analysis of material practices and their reception. Fieldwork comprised observations and 24 open-ended interviews conducted primarily in English across select sites and timeframes (2018–2019). The study relies on qualitative, thematic interpretation without generated datasets; sampling was not designed to be statistically representative.