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Suba District is inhabited by the Abasuba, a Bantu people believed to have originally migrated from Central Africa centuries ago. The name “Suba” means “the people who are always wandering”. As a result of assimilation to and intermarriage with the Luo, the dominant people of the region, the Suba culture has come under pressure and the language is now listed in UNESCO’s Red Book of endangered languages (2003).

The rock art, however, pre-dates these migrations and is thought to be the work of ancestral ancient hunter gatherer people sometimes known as Twa. The Abasuba long ago embraced the art as part of their own ancient heritage.

The Abasuba community is divided into 14 clans, each having different ritual responsibilities, such as rain-making or ritual cleansing. Each clan has its own special relationship with the others. In Suba culture, male circumcision is important and only those circumcised were allowed to go to war or to enter sacred sites.

The majority of Suba make their living along the shore from fishing; the catch is consumed locally and exported to major towns in Kenya and also to Europe. Further inland they are agriculturalists; Suba District is also well known for its fruit production, especially oranges and bananas.

Living along the water, with a developed system of water transport, the Suba people are highly mobile and will often move throughout the Lake Victoria region, engaging fishing and trade.

Despite its remote location, Suba is changing and adapting to modern technologies. Iron-sheet roofs are replacing the traditional thatch, which is more difficult to maintain and for which it is increasingly difficult to find sufficient grass. While television and mobile phones are common in most of Suba District, many places along the mainland shoreline can still only be reached by boat.