Look at this brilliant website. It has a list of names in Kikuyu and their meaning. Have a look!

http://www.jina.admerk.com/index.php

Yeah.I belong to Gikuyu n Mumbi's clan. I come second.

Cool.

I had no Idea that Mungai means mumps. Why would one name their child after a disease? I mean, if the name has been passed down the family then that's something else, but who started that tradition? There are more weird ones... Gaitho, Gakinya, Kanyua!!! Aiya.

Mungai is a name of riika that became circumcised during an outbreak of mumps. In fact, most Kikuyu names arose out of riika names. They also used to give themselves names according to their attributes after circumcision.

Thus a person who was named after their grandfather Kamau, could acquire the name Waihenya after becoming an adult. This name could stick and the name Kamau would disappear from that family.

Additionaly, apart from Rika, nicknames also played a role. A nickname used by a grandfather or uncle would become the real name of the grandson or nephew supposed to be named after the uncle or grandfather.