As the eldest son of Dr. Hans Kierstede and Sara Roelofse Kierstede, Jan would have been exposed to many languages, and a very busy household.   The Indian Trading House in front of their house and Sara's frequent assistance to the DWIC and the Native American tribes in negotiating treaties and contracts would have been dinner table conversation.    Dr. Hans Kierstede would have had a great many people to tend, and his children might well have learned about a variety of ailments and their treatments as part of the natural discussion at home.    This would have been a home with books, particularly Herbals.