Names are very personal. Whether we like our names or not
they become a part of our identity. They can affect how others see and relate
to us, sometimes reflecting our age or comparing us to other’s of the same
name.
I am not Laura in Botswana.
Not many people here know my English name. I like it that
way. It gives me a sense of anonymity when I am anything but anonymous.
Mentally, it allows me to compartmentalize parts of my life. In the village I
am Kefilwe. I am positive, always willing to help or volunteer, somewhat chatty
and full of questions, and often seen as strange but mystifying.
Names are anything but simple in Botswana. Rather than
choosing a combination of letters for how they sound, or passing names on
through generations, Batswana name their children with sentences. Yes.
Sentences. Or possibly characteristics and sometimes surprisingly random
English names. Imagine someone being called “Iamhappy.” No doubt, Batswana
names are fascinating.
Take my name: Kefilwe. In Setswana it is a combination of
words creating the phrase “I have been given.” Ke (I) – Filwe (past tense of
the verb “to give”). As many of us fledgling volunteers were awkwardly sitting
in our host family’s living rooms our first night in Serowe, we were granted
these names. Because of our sudden appearance into these families, many PCV
names relate to gifts: Neo, Mpho, Kefilwe, Refilwe.
Many parents name their children based on what is happening at the moment of their birth. If it is raining they might name their child Motlalepula (one who brings rain) or after giving birth the self-explanatory Kelapile (I am tired) or the simple Otsile (he has come). If they have only had girls they can name their child Mosetsanagape (girl again)… or the even more interesting Barulaganye (they come immediately one after the other) and correspondingly Gadifele (this will never end).
Many parents name their children based on what is happening at the moment of their birth. If it is raining they might name their child Motlalepula (one who brings rain) or after giving birth the self-explanatory Kelapile (I am tired) or the simple Otsile (he has come). If they have only had girls they can name their child Mosetsanagape (girl again)… or the even more interesting Barulaganye (they come immediately one after the other) and correspondingly Gadifele (this will never end).
There are many that highlight the difficulties of giving
birth and general frustrations of life: Keikanyemang (who should I trust),
Didimalang (be quiet), Goitsemang (who knows), Kenosi (I am alone), Kibibonye
(I’ve seen it all), and the very apt Keboletse (I told you so)
Others are named for the hope of what they might become: Kgosi
(chief), Moagi (builder), Mogotsi (fire builder), Mothusi (a helper).
Some Setswana names can be quite the mouthful: Goitsemodimo
(God knows), Resegotetse (we are blessed), and Kelebogile (I am thankful).
Some simply represent life’s simple pleasures: Boitumelo
(happiness), Botshelo (life), Lesego (luck), Kagiso (peace), Tshepo (trust).
….Then there are the English names. Babies come into the
clinic everyday to get weighed. I take the greatest pleasure in seeing the
strange combinations of English/Setswana translations and random English names
that pop up. Everything from Princess, Memory, Comfort, Beauty, to names like
Ralph, Helen, Boyboy, Dorcus, and my all-time favorites Economy and Enrique
My favorite ice-breaker when meeting a new Motswana is to
ask them what their name means and with such variety these names never fail to
amuse me. Names can form your identity, but in Botswana they say so much more.
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| Even the coke names have Setswana names! |
