Wangari Muta Maathai

Kenyan environmentalist and politician who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 (1940–2011)
Person human Q46795
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Wangari Muta Maathai

Summary

Wangari Muta Maathai is a human[1]. Her place of birth was Nyeri[2]. She was born on April 1, 1940[3]. She passed away in Nairobi[4]. She died on September 25, 2011[5]. She worked as a teacher[6], politician[7], and philanthropist[8]. She ranks in the top 0.67% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (2,549 views/month, #6,742 of 1,000,298).[9]

Key Facts

  • Born in Nyeri[2], Wangari Muta Maathai…
  • Wangari Muta Maathai passed away in Nairobi[4].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai was born on April 1, 1940[3].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai died on September 25, 2011[5].
  • Among Wangari Muta Maathai's spouses was Mwangi Maathai[10].
  • A child of Wangari Muta Maathai was Wanjira Mathai[11].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai held citizenship in Kenya Colony[12].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai held citizenship in Kenya[13].
  • Kikuyu was Wangari Muta Maathai's native language[14].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai's professions included teacher[6].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai's professions included politician[7].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai worked as a philanthropist[8].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai held the position of Minister of Environment of Kenya[15].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai held the position of Member of the National Assembly[16].
  • Among Wangari Muta Maathai's employers was Yale University[17].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai's education included a stint at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München[18].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai's education included a stint at University of Nairobi[19].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai was educated at University of Giessen[20].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai was educated at University of Pittsburgh[21].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai was educated at Benedictine College[22].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai was educated at Loreto High School, Limuru[23].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai received the Nobel Peace Prize[24].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai received the Knight of the Legion of Honour[25].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai received the Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding[26].
  • Wangari Muta Maathai received the Right Livelihood Award[27].

Body

Origins and Family

Born in Nyeri[2], Wangari Muta Maathai… she was born on April 1, 1940[3]. Kikuyu was her native language[14].

Education

Educated at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München[18], a public research university[28], in Germany[29], founded in 1472[30], headquartered in Hauptgebäude der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München[31]; University of Nairobi[19], a public university[32], in Kenya[33], founded in 1956[34]; University of Giessen[20], a public university[35], in Germany[36], founded in 1607[37], headquartered in Giessen[38]; University of Pittsburgh[21], a public–private partnership[39], in United States[40], founded in 1787[41], headquartered in Pittsburgh[42]; Benedictine College[22], a university[43], in United States[44], founded in 1971[45]; and Loreto High School, Limuru[23], a boarding school[46], in Kenya[47], founded in 1936[48]. Academic degrees include Bachelor of Science[49], Master of Science[50], and Doctor of Philosophy[51].

Career and Affiliations

Recorded occupations include teacher[6], politician[7], and philanthropist[8]. Wangari Muta Maathai was employed by Yale University[17]. Positions held include Minister of Environment of Kenya[15] and Member of the National Assembly[16].

Recognition

Awards received include Nobel Peace Prize[24], a peace award[52]; Knight of the Legion of Honour[25], a grade of an order[53], in France[54]; Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding[26], an award[55], in India[56], founded in 1965[57]; Right Livelihood Award[27], a politics award[58], in Sweden[59], founded in 1980[60]; Petra-Kelly-Preis[61], an award[62]; and Sophie Prize[63], an environmental award[64], in Norway[65], founded in 1997[66].

Personal Life

Wangari Muta Maathai was married to Mwangi Maathai[10]. A child of her was Wanjira Mathai[11]. Her religion is recorded as Catholic Church[67]. She was affiliated with the Mazingira Green Party of Kenya[68].

Death and Burial

Wangari Muta Maathai died on September 25, 2011[5]. She died in Nairobi[4]. The cause of death was infarction[69].

Works and Contributions

Things named for Wangari Muta Maathai include Notogomphus maathaiae[70], a taxon[71].

Why It Matters

Wangari Muta Maathai ranks in the top 0.67% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (2,549 views/month, #6,742 of 1,000,298).[9] She has Wikipedia articles in 29 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.[72] She is known by 46 alternative names across languages and contexts.[73]

Entities named for her include Notogomphus maathaiae[70], a taxon[71].

FAQs

Where was Wangari Muta Maathai born?

Born in Nyeri[2], Wangari Muta Maathai…

Where did Wangari Muta Maathai die?

Wangari Muta Maathai passed away in Nairobi[4].

Who was Wangari Muta Maathai married to?

Wangari Muta Maathai's spouses include Mwangi Maathai[10].

What did Wangari Muta Maathai do for work?

Wangari Muta Maathai worked as teacher[6], politician[7], and philanthropist[8].

Where did Wangari Muta Maathai go to school?

Wangari Muta Maathai was educated at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München[18], University of Nairobi[19], University of Giessen[20], and University of Pittsburgh[21].

What awards did Wangari Muta Maathai receive?

Honors received include Nobel Peace Prize[24], Knight of the Legion of Honour[25], Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding[26], and Right Livelihood Award[27].

References

Programmatic citations — every numbered marker resolves to a verifiable graph row below.

Direct Wikidata claims

  1. [2] . blackpast.org. blackpast.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  2. [4] . blackpast.org. blackpast.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  3. [10] . wikidata.org.
  4. [12] . wikidata.org.
  5. [13] . wikidata.org.
  6. [15] . wikidata.org.
  7. [16] . wikidata.org.
  8. [11] . wikidata.org.
  9. [18] . wikidata.org.
  10. [19] . wikidata.org.
  11. [20] . wikidata.org.
  12. [21] . wikidata.org.
  13. [22] . wikidata.org.
  14. [23] . wikidata.org.
  15. [68] . wikidata.org.
  16. [14] . wikidata.org.
  17. [6] . wikidata.org.
  18. [7] . wikidata.org.
  19. [8] . web.archive.org. web.archive.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  20. [17] . wikidata.org.
  21. [67] . wikidata.org.
  22. [24] . nobelprize.org. nobelprize.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  23. [25] . wikidata.org.
  24. [26] . wikidata.org.
  25. [27] . democracynow.org. democracynow.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  26. [61] . boell.de. boell.de. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  27. [63] . sofieprisen.no. sofieprisen.no. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  28. [69] . blackpast.org. blackpast.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  29. [49] . wikidata.org.
  30. [50] . wikidata.org.
  31. [51] . United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. Retrieved . wikidata.org.
  32. [3] . FemBio database. Retrieved . blackpast.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.
  33. [5] . FemBio database. Retrieved . blackpast.org. Provenance: wikidata.org.

Inverse relationships (entities pointing at this one)

  1. [70] . wikidata.org. → on this site

Inline context (facts about related entities)

  1. [28] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  2. [29] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  3. [30] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  4. [31] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  5. [32] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  6. [33] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  7. [34] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  8. [35] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  9. [36] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  10. [37] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  11. [38] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  12. [39] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  13. [40] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  14. [41] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  15. [42] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  16. [43] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  17. [44] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  18. [45] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  19. [46] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  20. [47] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  21. [48] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  22. [52] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  23. [53] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  24. [54] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  25. [55] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  26. [56] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  27. [57] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  28. [58] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  29. [59] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  30. [60] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  31. [62] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  32. [64] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  33. [65] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  34. [66] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  35. [71] . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site

Class ancestry

  1. [1] . Wikidata. wikidata.org.

Aggregate / graph-position facts

  1. [9] . Wikimedia Foundation. dumps.wikimedia.org.
  2. [72] . Wikidata sitelinks. wikidata.org.
  3. [73] . Wikidata aliases. wikidata.org.

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APA 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph. (2026). Wangari Muta Maathai. Retrieved April 10, 2026, from https://4ort.xyz/entity/wangari-muta-maathai
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BibTeX @misc{4ortxyz_wangari-muta-maathai_2026, author = {{4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph}}, title = {{Wangari Muta Maathai}}, year = {2026}, url = {https://4ort.xyz/entity/wangari-muta-maathai}, note = {Accessed: 2026-04-10}}
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Edit History

Rolling log of changes to this entity's Wikidata record. Values shown reflect the current state of each edited property — follow the history link to see the precise diff for any edit.

  1. 12d ago · Epìdosis · 2026-05-20 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Occupation teacher, politician, philanthropist
    "/* wbeditentity-update:0| */ QuickStatements 3.0 [[:toollabs:qs-dev/batch/32086|batch #32086]]: import P21 and P106 from GND (28)"
  2. 27d ago · MarisDreshmanisBot bot · 2026-05-06 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Douban personage id 27208699
    "/* wbeditentity-update-languages-short:0||zh-cn, be, tr, eu, th, zh, ru, ur, zh-hans, ka, ro, hy, smn, az, hi, da, lt, ary */ Add multilingual descriptions (18 languages) — Task 12 (Nobel laureates) —"
  3. 4w ago · MariuszRokin · 2026-04-30 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Prabook id 3457460
    "/* wbcreateclaim-create:1| */ [[Property:P3368]]: 683939, [[:toollabs:quickstatements/#/batch/257026|batch #257026]]"
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