Kikuyu, Kenya

This article is about the town. For other uses, see Kikuyu (disambiguation).

Kikuyu in January 2009

Kikuyu is a town in the Central Province of Kenya. The town is located 20 km (12 mi) northwest of central Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. Kikuyu hosts a town council and an administrative division in the Kiambu District.

The town is named after Kĩkũyũ people, the dominant tribe in the area. The town itself has an urban population of 4,100, but the surrounding densely populated rural territory brings the total population to 165,594.

Due to its geology and rich soil texture, there is much livestock and crop farming. Kikuyu has a railway station on the Uganda Railway.

In recent times the population has grown to over 600,000 people.^{[citation needed]}

The town is about 20 minutes from Nairobi via a number of routes, including a dual carriage road.

The town has some British colonial history links like the Right Reverend MusaGitau (Swahili for Moses Gitau), an African believer in democracy who led among the first Christian faithful during colonial times. He lived and worked in the town as a reverend and in his honor two schools were named after him.

An interdenominational missionary conference held in Kikuyu in June 1913 provoked the so-called Kikuyu controversy, which briefly roiled the Anglican churches from December 1913 to February 1914.

Many institutions have developed in this town, including a major eye unit hospital, a Christian university, and many primary and secondary schools.

Schools

• Kenya Forestry Research Institute, Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, Alliance High School, Alliance Girls High School, Jeverden Highlands Academy, Thogoto Teachers' College, Musa Gitau Primary School, and Mary Leakey Girls Secondary School at the fringes of the Nairobi city boundary, which was started by the famous Leakey family of archeologists.

Historical Sites

• There are several historical sites within the town, such as the underground caves dug by Indian coollies when constructing the Kenya-Uganda railway. These caves are found just below the town under the railway facing Magana farm. Other sites include the graves of two explorers who were killed by lions in the 19th century at Kanyariri, a few meters from where Fort Smith was situated; the Undiri swamp a stone's throw from the town's CBD; the Anglican Mothers Church at Kabete; and the PCEA Church of the torch, the first building at Thogoto.

Recreational facilities and accommodations include Sigona Golf Club, the Wida Highway Motel, Kari Holiday Retreat Center, and the PCEA Lay Training Center.

Transport to the capital and other places is available in form of matatus, minibuses and trains.

It should also be noted that Kikuyu has developed into an industrial town and can boast of many factories which manufacture products products that range from metallic to medical practices.

See also

• Kabete, a town in the Kikuyu division