I have noticed that many Africans go by their English/French names due to either religion or other reasons. Also, Africans go by their Islam/ Arabic names. Why don't we go by our African names?

So the Europeans enslave, colonize, rape, castrate, neo-colonize, look down on us, and fund genocides in Africa then we name our kids after them?

Arabs were enslaving us before Europeans. Arabs refer to us as abeeds which literally translates to slave.

I am 100 percent Igbo and I would name my child a Igbo, Yoruba, Swahili, Zulu, Twi or other African name before I give them a European or Arab name. Why do we do this when both of these people hate us to death?

Speak for yourself,buddy. My first,second and last name are all Igbo names. My baptismal name is actually Joseph buy I changed it to my grandfathers name "Udemegbuna".

Last time i was in Nigeria i noticed many families speak english to their kids instead of igbo and even punish them when they try to use their native language.
The irony is that while growing up in france we spoke igbo in our house and when we are with other educated igbo families, i also notice many canadian igbo families that speak igbo to their children while i lived there. My uncles classmate insisted on going back to nigeria and marrying an igbo lady just so that his kids can speak igbo.
Back in france it created a tight nit igbo speaking youths that protected each other and were almost brothers. Mind you most of us back then only go home once every two years and each time spend less than 3 weeks but we identified more with our homeland cus of the language i guess. My friend Loui never visited nigeria till he was in his twenties yet he speaks good igbo and we always lend nigerian films to them back then(remember Living in Bondage ?)
i have a french baptismal name and two of my other names are igbo. Teachers in school insist on using the french name cus of pronounciation though.

igbo2011: I have noticed that many Africans go by their English/French names due to either religion or other reasons. Also, Africans go by their Islam/ Arabic names. Why don't we go by our African names?

So the Europeans enslave, colonize, rape, castrate, neo-colonize, look down on us, and fund genocides in Africa then we name our kids after them?

Arabs were enslaving us before Europeans. Arabs refer to us as abeeds which literally translates to slave.

I am 100 percent Igbo and I would name my child a Igbo, Yoruba, Swahili, Zulu, Twi or other African name before I give them a European or Arab name. Why do we do this when both of these people hate us to death?

I must commend your resolve to put our nativity first before anything. But one problem that i've always with your being an Africanist is that you seem not to be really disposed to promoting your own ethnic group in Africa. Why should an Igbo person for example give his child a Yoruba, Swahili or Zulu name and not an English name. If we can't give our kids English names which i totally agree with then we should also not give them names that are not those of our particular ethnic group. If you're Igbo then your kids should have an Igbo name. If you're Yoruba then your kids should have Yoruba names.

thoth: Last time i was in Nigeria i noticed many families speak english to their kids instead of igbo and even punish them when they try to use their native language.
The irony is that while growing up in france we spoke igbo in our house and when we are with other educated igbo families, i also notice many canadian igbo families that speak igbo to their children while i lived there. My uncles classmate insisted on going back to nigeria and marrying an igbo lady just so that his kids can speak igbo.
Back in france it created a tight nit igbo speaking youths that protected each other and were almost brothers. Mind you most of us back then only go home once every two years and each time spend less than 3 weeks but we identified more with our homeland cus of the language i guess. My friend Loui never visited nigeria till he was in his twenties yet he speaks good igbo and we always lend nigerian films to them back then(remember Living in Bondage ?)
i have a french baptismal name and two of my other names are igbo. Teachers in school insist on using the french name cus of pronounciation though.

Who are they to insist on French names. Do they change their names when they come to Africa? This is nonsense.

Btw, i've not seen you on my forum for quite a while now.

afam4eva:
I must commend your resolve to put our nativity first before anything. But one problem that i've always with your being an Africanist is that you seem not to be really disposed to promoting your own ethnic group in Africa. Why should an Igbo person for example give his child a Yoruba, Swahili or Zulu name and not an English name. If we can't give our kids English names which i totally agree with then we should also not give them names that are not those of our particular ethnic group. If you're Igbo then your kids should have an Igbo name. If you're Yoruba then your kids should have Yoruba names.

I know my kids are getting Igbo names but with my mindset I would never give them a European or Arab name. I would rather give a different African ethnicity before iChat. Don't get me wrong I love being Igbo and I love the culture and history. My father told me stories about Biafra nd that really inspired me. My grandparents generation were building so much. Inspired me to maybe open an engineering company in the future.. My parents told me that Igbos are very industrial and entrepreneurial. It inspired me to do business and start businesses when I was very young.

I don't hate being Igbo bro I love it to death. All I talk about is Africa.


Thoth and @nri priest

Will you give your kids baptized or European names

igbo2011:

I know my kids are getting Igbo names but with my mindset I would never give them a European or Arab name. I would rather give a different African ethnicity before iChat. Don't get me wrong I love being Igbo and I love the culture and history. My father told me stories about Biafra nd that really inspired me. My grandparents generation were building so much. Inspired me to maybe open an engineering company in the future.. My parents told me that Igbos are very industrial and entrepreneurial. It inspired me to do business and start businesses when I was very young.

I don't hate being Igbo bro I love it to death. All I talk about is Africa.


Thoth and @nri priest

Will you give your kids baptized or European names

Come on,dude..Doesn't my handle tell you a little about my cultural consiousness ?? It will be a big insult to my ancestors if I dare to give my children a non-Igbo name! No I won't !

igbo2011:

I know my kids are getting Igbo names but with my mindset I would never give them a European or Arab name. I would rather give a different African ethnicity before iChat. Don't get me wrong I love being Igbo and I love the culture and history. My father told me stories about Biafra nd that really inspired me. My grandparents generation were building so much. Inspired me to maybe open an engineering company in the future.. My parents told me that Igbos are very industrial and entrepreneurial. It inspired me to do business and start businesses when I was very young.

I don't hate being Igbo bro I love it to death. All I talk about is Africa.


Thoth and @nri priest

Will you give your kids baptized or European names

I get your position but i think you';re kinda taking your Pan-Africanism too far. I remember you were once advocating that all Africans adopt Swahili as our official language instead of English, French, Portugese and Spanish. Why should an Igbo leave English for Swahili and not Igbo. Don't you see a situation whereby in the future we'll be complaining about Swahili eroding our culture further continuing from where English stopped. Everyone should leave English and face their language rather than adopting another African language. It's like moving from fry pan to fire. Let's protect our identity and stop creating a sort of union that won't benefit us in anyway.

afam4eva:
Who are they to insist on French names. Do they change their names when they come to Africa? This is nonsense.

Btw, i've not seen you on my forum for quite a while now.

Guys were quite young back then and don't understand those stuffs.
I have been off the net for a while but things are back to normal.

Well, i already had a son and all his names were igbo. I no longer believe in that catholic stuff so he has no baptismal name. My mother gave him a name also so he got three names in all(first name,surname and the one my mom gave him)

mental enslavement and some think having a euro. name would help
advance their children by increasing their chances of succeeding in the west.

I think the day you give up the religion of your colonizers, aka arabs, british etc, you then can reclaim your native what ever. But all my names are nigerian, middle name igbo, first and surname yoruba. No one in my family has an english name, if people want to know our english names, we usually translate our native names to english for them. Lol. I think most africans choose to retain their colonizers names, because of what we in america call slave mentally. Brainwashed. They instilled in the people they colonized, both arabs and oyibos, that they are superior, and some of us need to wake up and recognize that none is superior but God.

mimifonwon: I think the day you give up the religion of your colonizers, aka arabs, british etc, you then can reclaim your native what ever. But all my names are nigerian, middle name igbo, first and surname yoruba. No one in my family has an english name, if people want to know our english names, we usually translate our native names to english for them. Lol. I think most africans choose to retain their colonizers names, because of what we in america call slave mentally. Brainwashed. They instilled in the people they colonized, both arabs and oyibos, that they are superior, and some of us need to wake up and recognize that none is superior but God.

spot on.

Somalis have somali names but many have arab names. We simply use the arab names because they have religious meaning. Many somali names are also used by arabs.

somalia9: Somalis have somali names but many have arab names. We simply use the arab names because they have religious meaning. Many somali names are also used by arabs.

no they are not. give me an example. i am well-acquainted with both of your species. so lets see . .

afam4eva:
I must commend your resolve to put our nativity first before anything. But one problem that i've always with your being an Africanist is that you seem not to be really disposed to promoting your own ethnic group in Africa. Why should an Igbo person for example give his child a Yoruba, Swahili or Zulu name and not an English name. If we can't give our kids English names which i totally agree with then we should also not give them names that are not those of our particular ethnic group. If you're Igbo then your kids should have an Igbo name. If you're Yoruba then your kids should have Yoruba names.

afam4eva:
I get your position but i think you';re kinda taking your Pan-Africanism too far. I remember you were once advocating that all Africans adopt Swahili as our official language instead of English, French, Portugese and Spanish. Why should an Igbo leave English for Swahili and not Igbo. Don't you see a situation whereby in the future we'll be complaining about Swahili eroding our culture further continuing from where English stopped. Everyone should leave English and face their language rather than adopting another African language. It's like moving from fry pan to fire. Let's protect our identity and stop creating a sort of union that won't benefit us in anyway.

CONSIGN 100%

All this pan-Africanism is 100% akata stuff. its based on racism. I am a PAn-Tribal and i put my ethnic group first before anything. and at the same time i believe that tribals not only in Africa, but around the world where we more or less face the same situations and problems, etc., we must all unite to preserve our diversity against foreign elements.

afam4eva:
Why should an Igbo person for example give his child a Yoruba, Swahili or Zulu name and not an English name. If we can't give our kids English names which i totally agree with then we should also not give them names that are not those of our particular ethnic group. If you're Igbo then your kids should have an Igbo name. If you're Yoruba then your kids should have Yoruba names.

@afam4eva, how can you on good conscience situate Pan-Africanism on the same plane as cultural imperialism practiced by the English?

eGuerrilla:

@afam4eva, how can you on good conscience situate Pan-Africanism on the same plane as cultural imperialism practiced by the English?

There's no difference. I see every human beings as equals whether English or African but won't sit and allow my culture relegated to the background whether by the British or another African group. It doesn't make any difference cos what's good for the goose is good for the gander. If i can answer a Swahili name then i can also answer an English name. make everybody answer their papa name.

afam4eva:
There's no difference. I see every human beings as equals whether English or African but won't sit and allow my culture relegated to the background whether by the British or another African group. It doesn't make any difference cos what's good for the goose is good for the gander. If i can answer a Swahili name then i can also answer an English name. make everybody answer their papa name.

The problem with the view you expressed here is that it assumes 'cultural parity' with the English (European), in the face of immutable facts.

PAGAN 9JA:


no they are not. give me an example. i am well-acquainted with both of your species. so lets see . .

Let me rephrase that and say, the names we have are used by arabs but with diffrent pronuocating.


example muslim name is Aden, european version is adam.


Their are somali names like Farah, Ive seen europeans with that name.


Example. we use the name Asho, arab version is Aisha.

You will see alot of somalis named abdi----, i never see arabs with name abdi.
even thou abdi is arab word. Many somalis know arab, and just name their kid an arab word that has a meaning. My sister name has turkish meaning. The capital of somalia meaning is persian. So people use names they like. Some arabs like yemen might like a somali name since they are closer to somalia. while iraqi arab wouldnt know a somali name.


Some names are arab meaning but are only exclusively used by somalis.

Some somali names i have seen yemenis use is Mulki, Sadia ( somali version is sacdiya), safiya ( arab version is sophia),


i also hVe relatives who are half somali, and half palestinian arab, and since the father is somali, he chooses to name the kid a somali name.



So naming names isnt straigt forward, it has many facets to it

I came into nigeria this evening and this topic was discussed for a while on the plane(a guy said his name is Godspower) the guys on the plane(all igbos) tried to blame it on penticostalism and others said "local names" always has bad meanings and means badluck for the child. I was just listening since religion and superstition are two things i avoid discussing with Nigerians. I learnt also that instead of naming their child Ikechukwu igbo translate it and name him Godspower,same with Chinenye to Godsgift,Godsent for Osinachi etc. I wonder if any of you have witnessed this.

This is not related but why is it that anytime guys board a flight 85% or more of the black guys are always igbos, no matter where you are going or coming from so far as it is trans-continental. Today about 95% are igbos.

thoth: I came into nigeria this evening and this topic was discussed for a while on the plane(a guy said his name is Godspower) the guys on the plane(all igbos) tried to blame it on penticostalism and others said "local names" always has bad meanings and means badluck for the child. I was just listening since religion and superstition are two things i avoid discussing with Nigerians. I learnt also that instead of naming their child Ikechukwu igbo translate it and name him Godspower,same with Chinenye to Godsgift,Godsent for Osinachi etc. I wonder if any of you have witnessed this.

This is not related but why is it that anytime guys board a flight 85% or more of the black guys are always igbos, no matter where you are going or coming from so far as it is trans-continental. Today about 95% are igbos.

Because we are nomadic people and like to move around travel and do business.
I guess Igbos want to assimilate to other cultures to give them opportunities to succeed. My name is all Igbo though.