The Maasai are an Eastern Nilotic ethnic group native to northern, central and southern regions of Kenya including northern Tanzania, near the African Great Lakes region. Their native language is Maa, a Nilotic language related to Dinka, Kalenjin and Nuer. A branch within the broader Nilo-Saharan language family. Except for some elders living in rural areas, most Maasai people speak the official languages of Kenya and Tanzania—Swahili and English.