Naming traditions: Africa

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Yebo! Mono! Hujambo everyone! 

Absolutely fascinated by Naming traditions around the world.

Named after a stream of water, the color of the sky, an orange sunset or a scary storm...?

Named for protection or after a feeling your mother had while pregnant, or a fear the father experienced at the time of the birth?

Named with the stars, the flowers blooming near or the sounds animals made when you arrived earth side?

This is Africa! 

Naeku: born in the early morning

Badru: born from a full moon

Such a huge continent we can't really say traditions are divided like the countries are, so... Let's talk about tribes! (FASCINATING tribes!)

For most, naming ceremonies PRAYERS are accompanied by EXOTIC ingredients like... alligator pepper, to energize the child's speech; honey, sugar, and bitter kola nuts, which symbolize the duality of life's sweet and sour experiences; native chalk and salt, to symbolize happiness; water, because it has no enemy; and palm oil, seen as an emollient to life's problems.

Onaiwu: This child will not die again.

Osamamianmianmwen: God did not forget me.

With the Maasai the baby gets a temporary name or “embolet” (opening) at birth, and the real naming ceremony is held later (sometimes three years after). Until the naming ceremony mother and baby stay in seclusion and let their hair grow long, to be shaved at the time of the naming. 

It is the women that study the child's personality and decide what name to be given. They bless the child by saying "May this name LIVE in you".

Ighiwiyisi: I shall not get lost in a foreign land.

Iyare: Safe journey.

Babies born in Swahili communities also get a "birth" name (jina la utotoni), usually given by an elder. This name describes the child's appearance. 

Biubwa: soft and smooth

Haidar: the one who looks strong

About 40 days after birth baby gets an adult name decided by parents (or paternal grandparents).

In west Africa, Sierra Leona, people only give the baby a name when the umbilical cord has dropped off, it is believed until then the baby does not have an identity.

The SHAVING of the baby's head is a common practice in most tribes.

The Himba mothers and baby stay away from the community for a week, after this, the child is brought to the SACRED FIRE and introduced to the SPIRITS of the ancestors. The child is given names from the patrilineal and matrilineal lines, ensuring that the origins of the child are known.

Kito: jewel 

Zalika: born to royalty 

What about you... What naming traditions do you follow?