Editing Jomo Kenyatta (section)

===Childhood===

[[File:Kikuyu village 02.jpg|thumb|right|A traditional Kikuyu house, similar to that in which Kenyatta would have lived in Ngenda]]

A member of the [[Kikuyu people]], Kenyatta was born with the name Kamau in the small rural village of Ngenda.{{sfnm|1a1=Murray-Brown|1y=1974|1p=34|2a1=Assensoh|2y=1998|2p=38}} Birth records were not then kept among the Kikuyu, and Kenyatta's date of birth is not known.{{sfnm|1a1=Murray-Brown|1y=1974|1p=33|2a1=Arnold|2y=1974|2p=11|3a1=Assensoh|3y=1998|3p=38}} One biographer, Jules Archer, suggested he was likely born in 1890 or 1891,{{sfn|Archer|1969|p=11}} although a fuller analysis by Jeremy Murray-Brown suggested a birth {{Circa|1897 or 1898}}.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=323}} Kenyatta's father was named Muigai, and his mother Wambui.{{sfnm|1a1=Murray-Brown|1y=1974|1p=34|2a1=Assensoh|2y=1998|2p=38}} They lived in a homestead near River Thiririka, where they raised crops and bred sheep and goats.{{sfnm|1a1=Murray-Brown|1y=1974|1p=34|2a1=Assensoh|2y=1998|2p=38}} Muigai was sufficiently wealthy that he could afford to keep several wives, each living in a separate ''nyũmba'' (hut).{{sfn|Archer|1969|pp=11, 14–15}}

Kenyatta was raised according to traditional Kikuyu custom and belief, and was taught the skills needed to herd the family flock.{{sfnm|1a1=Archer|1y=1969|1pp=13–14, 16|2a1=Murray-Brown|2y=1974|2pp=35–36}} When he was 10 years old, his earlobes were pierced to mark his transition from childhood.{{sfn|Archer|1969|p=17}} Wambui subsequently bore another son, Kongo,{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=35}} shortly before Muigai died.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=37}} In keeping with Kikuyu tradition, Wambui then married her late husband's younger brother, Ngengi.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=37}} Kenyatta then took the name of Kamau wa Ngengi ("Kamau, son of Ngengi").{{sfnm|1a1=Archer|1y=1969|1p=11|2a1=Murray-Brown|2y=1974|2p=42|3a1=Arnold|3y=1974|3p=15}} Wambui bore her new husband a son, whom they also named Muigai.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=37}} Ngengi was harsh and resentful toward the three boys, and Wambui decided to take her youngest son to live with her parental family further north.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=37}} It was there that she died, and Kenyatta—who was very fond of the younger Muigai—travelled to collect his infant half-brother.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=37}} Kenyatta then moved in with his grandfather, Kongo wa Magana, and assisted the latter in his role as a [[Traditional medicine|traditional healer]].{{sfnm|1a1=Archer|1y=1969|1p=18|2a1=Murray-Brown|2y=1974|2p=38}}
{{Quote box|width=25em|align=left|quote="Missionaries have done a lot of good work because it was through the missionary that many of the Kikuyu got their first education&nbsp;... and were able to learn how to read and write&nbsp;... Also, the medical side of it: the missionary did very well. At the same time I think the missionaries&nbsp;... did not understand the value of the African custom, and many of them tried to stamp out some of the customs without knowing the part they play in the life of the Kikuyu&nbsp;... They upset the life of the people."|source= —Kenyatta, in a BBC interview, 1963{{sfn|Archer|1969|p=32}} }}

In November 1909, Kenyatta left home and enrolled as a pupil at the [[Church of Scotland]] Mission (CSM) at [[Thogoto]].{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|pp=40, 43}} The missionaries were zealous Christians who believed that bringing [[Christianity]] to the indigenous peoples of Eastern Africa was part of Britain's civilizing mission.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=46}} While there, Kenyatta stayed at the small [[boarding school]], where he learnt stories from the [[Bible]],{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=45}} and was taught to read and write in [[English language|English]].{{sfnm|1a1=Archer|1y=1969|1p=28|2a1=Murray-Brown|2y=1974|2p=45}} He also performed chores for the mission, including washing the dishes and weeding the gardens.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=43}} He was soon joined at the mission dormitory by his brother Kongo.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=50}} The longer the pupils stayed, the more they came to resent the patronising way many of the British missionaries treated them.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=49}}

Kenyatta's academic progress was unremarkable, and in July 1912 he became an apprentice to the mission's carpenter.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=48}} That year, he professed his dedication to Christianity and began undergoing [[catechism]].{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=48}} In 1913, he underwent the Kikuyu [[circumcision]] ritual; the missionaries generally disapproved of this custom, but it was an important aspect of Kikuyu tradition, allowing Kenyatta to be recognized as an adult.{{sfnm|1a1=Murray-Brown|1y=1974|1pp=50–51|2a1=Assensoh|2y=1998|2p=39}} Asked to take a [[Christian name]] for his upcoming baptism, he first chose both John and Peter after [[Apostles in the New Testament|Jesus' apostles]]. Forced by the missionaries to choose just one, he chose Johnstone, the ''-stone'' chosen as a reference to Peter.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=52}} Accordingly, he was [[Baptism|baptized]] as Johnstone Kamau in August 1914.{{sfnm|1a1=Murray-Brown|1y=1974|1p=52|2a1=Assensoh|2y=1998|2p=39}} After his baptism, Kenyatta moved out of the mission dormitory and lived with friends.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=53}} Having completed his apprenticeship to the carpenter, Kenyatta requested that the mission allow him to be an apprentice stonemason, but they refused.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=53}} He then requested that the mission recommend him for employment, but the head missionary refused because of an allegation of minor dishonesty.{{sfn|Murray-Brown|1974|p=71}}