WE have been arguing for the adoption of typically African names for us as individuals, our places, farms, towns, cities schools and even streets.
The name is the greatest symbol of identity among all the world’s peoples.
We want Zimbabwe and its people to be identified clearly as Africans, not caricatures of white people.
By their names so you shall know Zimbabweans!
But 36 years after political independence, we still are dominated by European (British) names.
The name of the country and a few cities and streets have been Africanised, but the rest remain as the whites left them.
The misguided and often spontaneous tendency by Africans, especially in Zimbabwe, to adopt European and Biblical names represents one of the strongest indicators of colonised mentalities.
These foreign names have left us permanently shackled to our colonial past.
By perpetuating foreign British place names, we have condemned our otherwise born-free children to the colonial shackles that we fought so hard to free Zimbabwe from.
We, Zimbabweans, seem to be literally refusing to identify with our own Africanness.
Adoption of foreign names is one sure way of hiding our identity.
A tragedy indeed!
Linked to the above is the notorious habit by many, especially young Zimbabwean parents of giving children meaningless names.
Sometimes the name may invite ridicule from school mates.
Names of heroes and famous people from foreign lands, footballers, musicians, even drug barons are given to innocent children who immediately become burdened by the indiscretions associated with the character.
Often the only link with the owner of the foreign name is a television news item or some post on the internet viewed by the overzealous and misguided parent.
Such remote foreign names should never be given to children.
The foreign names effectively isolate the child from his physical and spiritual environment.
After all, our indigenous languages are rich in expressing all the emotions we may wish to bring out through naming our children.
Names should create a positive atmosphere around the child.
Let us explore some of the names that are typically African and Zimbabwean.
What is wrong with Shona names like ‘Tendai’ (be grateful), ‘Tafadzwa’ (we are pleased), ‘Rudo’ (love), ‘Nyasha’ (grace) and ‘Tonderai’ (remember) or Ndebele ones ‘Nkululeko’ (liberation), ‘Pilani’ (be healthy), ‘Bongani’ (be thankful), ‘Spilisiwe’ (we are saved, strengthened) and many others.
These are meaningful, positive names, which express the hopes and aspirations of the parents and relatives who are naming the children.
The names bring a positive reinforcement to their bearers.
Many African names express the people’s gratitude to our ancestors and to Musikavanhu the Creator for looking after us, pleasing us and indeed we are thankful.
The influence of Christianity has generated names like ‘Musawenkosi’ (God’s grace), ‘Nkosilathi’/‘Sheunesu’ (the lord is with us), ‘Ruvarashe’ (God’s flower), ‘Ishemunyoro’ (the lord is kind) and numerous others.
These are distinctly Shona or Ndebele names, but with a Christian tenor.
The identity of the person is distinctly African.
In our traditional African society, one could readily trace the joys and tribulations of a family from the children’s names.
Names like ‘Vanesu’ (they continue to torment us), ‘Tapererwa’ (we have run out of ideas; we do not know what to do next), ‘Tongogara’ (we will just stick with it), express some form of frustration in difficult circumstances.
In Ndebele, names like ‘Ntombizodwa’, ‘Zimbili’ and ‘Bafana’ indicate the predominant gender of the children, which speak to a family of girls only, or two girls or boys only respectively.
In some cases the names would express calamity e.g. ‘Tapera’ or ‘Sipelile’ meaning ‘we are finished’.
The names speak of death stalking a family.
Yet other names like ‘Toindepi’ and ‘Togarepi’ indicate a tormented family in conflict with other members, wondering where to escape to.
Such situations often led to some members of a family migrating to a distant place.
The few examples from Ndebele and Shona illustrate the richness and depth of our indigenous language names and this is true for all our different African languages.
They not only confer character, but are often a chronicle of family experiences and historical narrative.
Names can represent the footprints of the family on the sands of time: the good times, the hard times, all the different times.
Names like ‘Dambudzo’or ‘Tamburai’ indicate the family was going through hardships at the time the child was born.
So names are important reminders of the times the family has gone through.
At the same time they can also act as rallying cries to mobilise the family to face and overcome adversities.
Names like ‘Gwisayi’ (fight back), ‘Kundayi’ (defeat the enemy) and ‘Rambai’ (refuse to give up) would fall into this category.
‘Vengai’ (hate) and ‘Rowai’ (bewitch us) and ‘Netsayi’ express defiance daring the family’s enemies to try to harm them.
Such names also warned those persecuting other family members that their evil acts were known.
Africans will even give their dogs names that send strong messages to their adversaries such as those practising witchcraft.
Because names impact character and are a record of major events and experiences of the family, their choice cannot be a casual exercise.
A carelessly given name can invite demonic spirits and misfortunes on the named person.
Names must be chosen with due care to avoid condemning the child to misfortune or disconnecting them from the family thread.
Parents and other relatives have no reason to give their children meaningless and sometimes vulgar or foreign names.
Some names carry with them negative connotations e.g. ‘Mutamburi’ or ‘Muvengwa’.
Often such names are given to orphans by people who think they are doing well to describe precisely the circumstances of the unfortunate people.
But in truth the names may multiply the woes of these unfortunate people.
These and foreign language names will in the end create spiritual and social confusion for the children all the way into adulthood.
A name should be a positive symbol that the owner closely identifies with, something to be proud of.
Names allow us to identify the nationality of persons and the location of places. A name is sacred to the one who possesses it; it cannot be changed casually.
All parents and grandparents must ensure that their offspring are properly named.
The Shona give Shona names, the Ndebele, Tonga, Chewa and so on – all give names that indicate the identity of the children.
The Mwenye or VaRemba of Mberengwa give new names to all who undergo the tribal initiation programmes, referred to as ‘kuMurundu’.
As we grew up, we knew that our fellow Remba playmates had undergone the traditional initiation ceremonies from the new names they assumed. ‘Rufugomwenye’, ‘Gokuda’, ‘Kufandada’ or ‘Pedzisayi’ were some of the typical new names.
The names were distinctly Mwenye names.
By their names indeed we knew them.
Amai Olivia Charamba, the gospel artist, in one of her popular songs, calls on Africa to ‘restore your identity’.
Indeed people without an identity are lost.
They may have a past, but definitely have no future.
And what greater identity symbol than an African name?