Editing Henryk Sienkiewicz (section)

=== Early life ===
Sienkiewicz came into the world on 5 May 1846 in [[Wola Okrzejska]], now a village in the central part of the eastern Polish region of [[Lublin Voivodeship|Lubelskie]], then part of the [[Russian Empire]].<ref name="psb203"/><ref name="ErsoyGorny2010-163"/> His family were impoverished Polish nobles, on his father's side deriving from [[Lipka Tatars|Tatars]] who had settled in the [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]].<ref name="psb203"/><ref name="Lockert1919"/><ref name="hierarchicznej"/><ref name="ciechanowicz"/> His parents were Józef Sienkiewicz of the [[Oszyk coat of arms]] and Stefania Cieciszowska. His mother descended from an old and affluent [[Podlachia]]n family.<ref name="psb203"/> He had five siblings: an older brother, Kazimierz (who died during [[January Uprising]] of 1863–1864), and four sisters: Aniela, Helena, Zofia and Maria.<ref name="psb203"/> His family were entitled to use the Polish [[Oszyk coat of arms]].<ref name="Majchrowski1966"/><ref name="Studencki1967"/> Wola Okrzejska belonged to the writer's maternal grandmother, Felicjana Cieciszowska.<ref name="psb203"/> His family moved several times, and young Henryk spent his childhood on family estates in [[Grabowce Górne]], [[Wężyczyn]] and [[Burzec]].<ref name="psb203"/> In September 1858 he began his education in [[Warsaw]], where the family would finally settle in 1861, having bought a tenement house ([[Kamienica (architecture)|''kamienica'']]) in eastern Warsaw's [[Praga]] district.<ref name="psb203"/> He received relatively poor school-grades except in the humanities, notably Polish language and history.<ref name="psb203"/>
[[Image:Pomnik Sienkiewicza w Okrzei.jpg|thumb| Monument atop Sienkiewicz Mound at [[Okrzeja]]. At left is the writer's family's village, [[Wola Okrzejska]], where he was born.]]
Due to hard times, the 19-year-old Sienkiewicz took a job as tutor to the [[Weyher family]] in [[Płońsk]].<ref name="psb203"/> It was probably in this period that he wrote his first novel, ''Ofiara'' (Sacrifice); he is thought to have destroyed the manuscript of the never-published novel.<ref name="psb203"/> He also worked on his first novel to be published, ''Na marne'' (In Vain). He completed extramural secondary-school classes, and in 1866 he received his secondary-school diploma.<ref name="psb203"/> He first tried to study medicine, then law, at the [[University of Warsaw|Imperial University of Warsaw]], but he soon transferred to the university's Institute of Philology and History, where he acquired a thorough knowledge of literature and [[Old Polish Language]].<ref name="psb203"/><ref name="ErsoyGorny2010-163"/> Little is known about this period of his life, other than that he moved out of his parents' home, tutored part-time, and lived in poverty.<ref name="psb203"/> His situation improved somewhat in 1868 when he became a tutor to the princely Woroniecki family.<ref name="psb203"/>

In 1867 he wrote a rhymed piece, "{{Lang|pl|Sielanka Młodości}}" ("Idyll of Youth"), which was rejected by ''[[Tygodnik Illustrowany]]'' (The Illustrated Weekly).<ref name="psb203"/> In 1869 he debuted as a journalist; ''Przegląd Tygodniowy'' (1866–1904) (The Weekly Review) ran his review of a play on 18 April 1869, and shortly afterward ''The Illustrated Weekly'' printed an essay of his about the late-Renaissance Polish poet [[Mikołaj Sęp Szarzyński]].<ref name="psb203"/> He completed his university studies in 1871, though he failed to receive a diploma because he did not pass the examination in [[Greek language]].<ref name="psb203"/> Sienkiewicz also wrote for {{Lang|pl|Gazeta Polska}} (The Polish Gazette) and ''Niwa'' (magazine), under the pen name "Litwos".<ref name="psb204"/> In 1873 he began writing a column, "{{Lang|pl|Bez tytułu}}" ("Without a title"), in ''The Polish Gazette''; in 1874 a column, "{{Lang|pl|Sprawy bieżące}}" ("Current matters") for ''Niwa''; and in 1875 the column, "{{Lang|pl|Chwila obecna}}" ("The present moment").<ref name="psb204"/> He also collaborated on a Polish translation, published in 1874, of [[Victor Hugo]]'s last novel, ''[[Ninety-Three]]''.<ref name="psb204"/> In June that year he became co-owner of ''Niwa'' (in 1878, he would sell his share in the magazine).<ref name="psb204"/><ref name="psb205"/>

Meanwhile, in 1872, he had debuted as a fiction writer with his short novel {{Lang|pl|Na marne}} (In Vain), published in the magazine ''Wieniec'' (Garland).<ref name="psb203"/> This was followed by {{Lang|pl|Humoreski z teki Woroszyłły}} (Humorous Sketches from Woroszyłła's Files, 1872), {{Lang|pl|Stary Sługa}} (The Old Servant, 1875), ''Hania'' (Sienkiewicz) (1876) and {{Lang|pl|Selim Mirza}} (1877).<ref name="psb204"/><ref name="Ihnatowicz2000"/> The last three are known as the "Little Trilogy".<ref name="Ihnatowicz2000"/> These publications made him a prominent figure in Warsaw's journalistic-literary world, and a guest at popular dinner parties hosted by the actress [[Helena Modrzejewska]].<ref name="psb204"/>