kitenge

thumb|A typical kitenge pattern. thumb|Customers and visitors at a display of African kitenge clothes

A kitenge or chitenge (pl. vitenge Swahili; zitenge in Tonga) is an East African, West African and Central African piece of fabric similar to a sarong, often worn by women and wrapped around the chest or waist, over the head as a headscarf, or as a baby sling. Kitenges are made of colorful fabric that contains a variety of patterns and designs. In coastal areas of Kenya and in Tanzania, kitenges often have Swahili sayings written on them. There seems to be confusion with the Kangas, which carry text, unlike kitenges, which typically do not carry text.