John Boyd Orr was born at Kilmaurs, near Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, Scotland, the middle child in a family of seven children.
His father, Robert Clark Orr, was a quarry owner, and a man of deep religious convictions, being a member of the Free Church of Scotland.
His mother, Annie Boyd, was the daughter of another quarry master, wealthier than Robert Orr, and grandmaster of a Freemason's Lodge.

He was taught to read at an early age by his widowed grandmother, who lived with the family.
The family home was well supplied with books, and his father was widely read in political, sociological and metaphysical subjects, as well as religion.
 As he grew older, John would regularly discuss these subjects with his father, brothers, and visiting friends.
He took part in the regular family worship in the evenings.

When he was five years old, the family suffered a setback when a ship owned by Robert Orr was lost at sea.
They had to sell their home in Kilmaurs, and moved to West Kilbride, a village on the North Ayrshire coast.
According to Kay, the new house and environment were a great improvement on Kilmaurs, despite the family's reduced means.
The major part of his upbringing took place in and around West Kilbride.
Apart from a four-month break at age thirteen, he attended the village school until age nineteen, the last four years as a pupil-teacher.
Religion was then an important part of junior education in Scotland, and the school gave him a good knowledge of the Bible, which stayed with him for the rest of his life.

At the age of thirteen, Boyd Orr won a bursary to Kilmarnock Academy, a significant achievement as such bursaries were then rare.
The new school was some 20 miles (32 km) from his home in West Kilbride, but his father owned a quarry about two miles (3 km) from the Academy, and John was provided with accommodation nearby.
His family cut short his education at the Academy because, at the expense of his school attendance, he was spending time with the quarry workers, who let him work the machinery, and from whom he picked up a "wonderful vocabulary of swear words".
After four months he returned to the village school in West Kilbride where he continued his education under the inspirational tutelage of Headmaster John G. Lyons.
There he became a pupil teacher at a salary of £10 for the first year, and £20 for the second.
This was a particularly demanding time for the young Boyd Orr, as in addition to his teaching duties, and studying at home for his university entrance and teacher-training qualifications, he also had to work every day in his father's business.
John Boyd Orr was born at Kilmaurs, near Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, Scotland, the middle child in a family of seven children. His father, Robert Clark Orr, was a quarry owner, and a man of deep religious convictions, being a member of the Free Church of Scotland. His mother, Annie Boyd, was the daughter of another quarry master, wealthier than Robert Orr, and grandmaster of a Freemason's Lodge.
He was taught to read at an early age by his widowed grandmother, who lived with the family. The family home was well supplied with books, and his father was widely read in political, sociological and metaphysical subjects, as well as religion.  As he grew older, John would regularly discuss these subjects with his father, brothers, and visiting friends. He took part in the regular family worship in the evenings.
When he was five years old, the family suffered a setback when a ship owned by Robert Orr was lost at sea. They had to sell their home in Kilmaurs, and moved to West Kilbride, a village on the North Ayrshire coast. According to Kay, the new house and environment were a great improvement on Kilmaurs, despite the family's reduced means. The major part of his upbringing took place in and around West Kilbride. Apart from a four-month break at age thirteen, he attended the village school until age nineteen, the last four years as a pupil-teacher. Religion was then an important part of junior education in Scotland, and the school gave him a good knowledge of the Bible, which stayed with him for the rest of his life.
At the age of thirteen, Boyd Orr won a bursary to Kilmarnock Academy, a significant achievement as such bursaries were then rare. The new school was some 20 miles (32 km) from his home in West Kilbride, but his father owned a quarry about two miles (3 km) from the Academy, and John was provided with accommodation nearby. His family cut short his education at the Academy because, at the expense of his school attendance, he was spending time with the quarry workers, who let him work the machinery, and from whom he picked up a "wonderful vocabulary of swear words". After four months he returned to the village school in West Kilbride where he continued his education under the inspirational tutelage of Headmaster John G. Lyons. There he became a pupil teacher at a salary of £10 for the first year, and £20 for the second. This was a particularly demanding time for the young Boyd Orr, as in addition to his teaching duties, and studying at home for his university entrance and teacher-training qualifications, he also had to work every day in his father's business.
John Boyd Orr