NAMING, IDENTITY AND THE AFRICAN RENAISANCE IN A SOUTH AFRICAN CONTEXT Mbali

334 Pages·2010·11.3 MB·English

NAMING, IDENTITY AND THE AFRICAN RENAISANCE
IN A SOUTH AFRICAN CONTEXT
Mbali Aldromeda Machaba
Master of Arts
Submitted in fulfilment of the
requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
in the
Discipline of Onomastics
Faculty of Human and Management Sciences
University of Natal
Pietermaritzburg
South Africa
December 2004
DECLARATION
I, Mbali Aldromeda Machaba, declare that this entire dissertation, except where otherwise
indicated is my own original research. It has not been submitted in part or as a whole, for a
degree at any other University.
$L
Signed:
Date:
M.A. Machaba
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This study would not have been possible without the assistance and support of various
people. It is for this reason that I wish to gratefully acknowledge the following people:
My supervisor and former colleague Prof A Koopman, for his advice.
The National Research Foundation (NRF) for the research grant.
My former colleagues from the University of Natal, Mandla, Nelson, Mary (MG) and
Mary (MGH) for their encouragement and comments.
My colleagues Bukelwa, Joyce, Piet and Zanele for their encouragement.
The research assistants Sindi Sikotoyi and Mphakiseng Elsie Shabalala who had to bear
various criticisms from unwilling respondents.
My sister-in-law Hatu for all the Tsonga literature she made available and for her
linguistic advice (pertaining to Tsonga language) and general encouragement.
My sisters-in-law Angel and Pamela and my brother-in-law Vinny for the data they made
available for the research.
Tintswalo (Bingo) for providing school records for children born after 1994 when they
were urgently needed.
Zenzele from the Natal Society Library for all the assistance with government gazettes.
Riyad Ismail from the University of Natal's Cartographic Unit for the map.
The respondents who queried this study but eventually saw the need to complete the
questionnaires and make themselves available for interviews.
My husband Kulani for his encouragement and our daughter Tintswalo for her patience.
My family oMsengu Shabalala na va Hlengwe, various associates, friends and colleagues
for their moral support.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i
TABLE OF CONTENTS ii
ABSTRACT vii
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION AND RESEARCH DESIGN
1.1 Rationale for study 1
1.2 Aims and objectives 2
1.3 Background to the research area 4
1.4 Methodology 6
1.5 Sample 8
1.6 Data sources 10
1.7 Challenges encountered when collecting data 12
1.7.1 The questionnaire 15
1.7.2 Tape recorder 16
1.7.3 Government gazettes 16
1.8 Literature review 17
1.9 Conclusion 22
CHAPTER 2 ONOMASTIC THEORY
2.1 What is onomastics? 24
2.2 Proper names and common nouns 25
2.3 The meaning of names 29
2.4 Problems encountered when soliciting the meaning of proper names 35
2.5 Euro-western names and African names 39
2.6 Names for boys and girls 44
2.7 The specific and the generic in place names 51
2.8 Orthography of place names 53
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2.9 Conclusion 55
CHAPTER 3 THE EURO-WESTERN INFLUENCE IN THE SOCIAL
LIFE OF THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
3.1 Introduction 57
3.2 Traditional naming 59
3.3 The arrival of Euro-western people 60
3.4 Traditional belief systems 64
3.4.1 The Supreme Being 64
3.5 The missionaries and the Christian religion 70
3.6 The transforming African 73
3.7 Education and changing naming patterns 77
3.8 Influence of Euro-western languages on geographical names 87
3.9 Traditional clothing versus Euro-western clothing 89
3.10 The traditional King and the loss of power 91
3.11 Culture contact and culture change 96
3.12 Conclusion 105
CHAPTER 4 ANTHROPONYMY AND TOPONYMY
4.1 Anthroponymic and toponymic systems 107
4.2 The name form or shape 109
4.3 Name giver 110
4.4 Gender in name giving 111
4.5 Naming practices in anthroponyms 112
4.6 The personal name 123
4.7 Choosing a personal name 127
4.8 The social significance of anthroponyms 132
4.9 Name changing in traditional societies 135
4.10 Types of anthroponyms 138
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4.10.1 Surname 139
4.10.1.1 The acquisition of surnames among the indigenous people of S.A 141
4.10.1.2 Totemism 146
4.10.2 Nicknames 151
4.11 Naming practices in toponyms 159
4.12 The geographical name 162
4.13 Endonyms and exonyms 164
4.14 Choosing a geographical name 166
4.15 The social significance of toponyms 167
4.16 Types of toponyms 173
4.17 Classification of geographical names 174
4.18 The effect of georaphical name changes 177
4.19 Conclusion 179
CHAPTER 5 ONOMASTIC RE-EMERGENCE AND NAME CHANGING
IN SOUTH AFRICA
5.1 Introduction 181
5.2 The influence of political events on name changing in Africa 181
5.3 Name changing in South Africa after 1994 186
5.4 Linguistic influences on naming 189
5.4.1 The use of the prefix ama- 189
5.5 The use of the possessive prefix ka- 191
5.6 Double-barrelled surnames 193
5.7 Changing naming patterns 196
5.7.1 Personal names 196
5.7.2 Data analysis: personal names 197
5.8 Reasons for not discarding Euro-western names 201
5.8.1 The cost of changing a name 201
5.8.2 Meaning 201
5.8.3 Namesake 202
5.8.4 Respect 203
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5.8.5 Other reasons 203
5.9 Reasons for discarding Euro-western names 204
5.9.1 European names are meaningless 205
5.9.2 African names reflect Africans' origin and culture 205
5.9.3 Europeans do not have African names 206
5.9.4 Slavery 207
5.9.5 Symbol of colonialism and apartheid 207
5.9.6 Given by a stranger 208
5.10 Official personal name changing in South Africa 209
5.10.1 Procedure to have a name changed 209
5.10.2 Government gazettes 211
5.11 Statistical analysis of names in government gazettes 216
5.12 Is a name a person? 217
5.13 Geographical name changes 220
5.14 History repeats itself 225
5.15 Should place names with Euro-western names be changed? 228
5.16 Democracy in place name changing in South Africa 231
5.17 Euro-western names vs English language 236
5.18 Name changing and the media 239
5.19 Conclusion 241
CHAPTER 6 IDENTITY AND THE AFRICAN RENAISSANCE
6.1 Identity 242
6.2 Social organisation 251
6.3 African Renaissance 254
6.4 African renaissance ideology 259
6.5 Xenophobia 265
6.6 African Renaissance and the media 272
6.7 Conclusion 274
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CHAPTER 7 SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
7.1 Summary of the findings 277
7.2 Recommendations 282
7.3 Conclusion 283
APPENDICES 284
REFERENCES 298
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ABSTRACT
Naming is a very important tool used among various African cultures to convey certain
messages, either to an individual, family members or a community. Naming of various
objects is linked with the socio-political factors of countries where anthroponyms and
toponyms are found. It is for this reason that onomastics (the study of names) can never
be isolated from studying the dynamics of various societies, the behaviour and the
psychology of different individuals. While names can unite communities, they can also
serve as a dividing tool in various communities. It is from names that one can learn the
various cultures that have been present in a particular place, and have an understanding
and the appreciation of the history of a place.
Onomastics is multidisciplinary in nature. It can be approached from different
perspectives. These include linguistic, historical, sociological, philosophical, economical
and other perspectives. Chapter two focuses on the linguistic and semantic aspects of
names. It explores onomastic definitions and the comparison between the meaning of
Euro-western and African names. In Chapter two an argument is presented on the
morphological structure of Zulu and/or Xhosa names for boys and girls. In this Chapter
the orthography of place names is also discussed. The importance of standardising names
for purposes of having one name for one entity and asserting the country's history and
heritage cannot be overemphasised.
As indicated above that onomastics can also be approached from a historic approach,
Chapter 3 looks at the changing political scenario in South Africa that has had an impact
on the culture of indigenous people, their identity and the existence of Euro-western
names among them. The arrival of white people in South Africa contaminated the
indigenous culture and the African belief systems. The traditional belief system of the
indigenous people is discussed in Chapter three together with the advent of Christianity.
Chapter four looks at the sociological approach in onomastics. Names of any nature exist
in a society. These names reflect the social dynamics of the societies where they are
found. The society plays a major role in influencing the choice of names given to
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individuals and entities. These names have different functions in societies. The different
functions that names have in various communities are also discussed. In Chapter four the
significance of anthroponyms and toponyms is discussed. Various types of names are
also looked at. Political changes witnessed in the country play a major role in
transforming the country whether economically, culturally or socially. The impact of
political changes and the attitudes of South Africans towards name changes are discussed
in Chapter five.
President Thabo Mbeki's call for an African renaissance came at the time when South
Africa attained its independence. The adoption of African names was on the increase
during this period. Chapter six looks at the link between changing naming patterns and
the African renaissance. As an African renaissance calls for the rebirth of African culture
and ways of living, xenophobic attitudes among Africans are examined. It is argued that
Africa's rebirth is dependant on various issues including the respect and value that
Africans give each other.
Onomastics, as mentioned above can be studied using different approaches, however the
limitedness of this study prevents discussion on all approaches. Onomastics is a relatively
new field in South Africa, however its multidisciplinary nature and the abundance of
data, invites more studies to be conducted. Chapter seven makes recommendations on
some of the onomastic studies that may be conducted in future.
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