Abstract

Names and naming practices reflect the socio-cultural background of a community. The giving of names is therefore not merely an act of labelling but represents constructs of identity that reflect the collective self-representation of a community and its worldviews. This study examines the naming practices of the Telugu in Malaysia and investigates the morphological structure and the semantic properties of Telugu names. To accomplish those research goals, survey interviews were conducted with 288 respondents in four different Malaysian states. Using descriptive statistics, a narrative analysis of the survey responses was used. Six experts in the Telugu culture were then invited for a focus group discussion. Before the results of this analysis are presented, detailed information about the Telugu and their naming traditions are provided. As will be shown here, among the Telugu, name-giving is a sacred act that is performed during a traditional naming ceremony called the Barasala. During this ancient oral onomastic tradition, names are passed on from one generation to the next and ancestral blessings are bestowed. As this study reveals, the structure of the patronymic names given during this ceremony reflect the religious beliefs and cultural identity of the Telugu.

Highlights

  • Background about the Telugu in MalaysiaNames and naming practices are constructs of identity that reflect the collective self-representation of a community, and the cultural conceptualisations associated with a community’s worldviews, socio-cultural background, and belief systems (Lu 2017; Ngubane 2013)

  • According to Jogammah, an expert study respondent who has conducted this ceremony for all her 21 grandchildren, the following steps are taken during this sacred naming ritual: During the Barasala ceremony, rice grains are spread on a bronze dish and the father writes the chosen name on the rice grains using a stick rolled in gold wrapper, while chanting the name of the main deity

  • The need to repeat the name three times symbolizes the three main deities in Hinduism. She added that in the Telugu belief system, uttering a child’s name during the ceremony will ensure that the child will take on the characteristics of the onomastic referent throughout their lives. This means that the Telugu believe the naming ceremony will have life-long impact on the child’s destiny (Cheng 2008; Whissel 2001)

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Summary

Introduction

Background about the Telugu in MalaysiaNames and naming practices are constructs of identity that reflect the collective self-representation of a community, and the cultural conceptualisations associated with a community’s worldviews, socio-cultural background, and belief systems (Lu 2017; Ngubane 2013). An examination of the morphological and semantic elements of a community’s onomasticon can provide important insights into cultural norms (Mackenzie 2018). It is with this framework that the current investigation of Telugu names and naming practices was conducted. The Barasala Samskara is a ritual that involves the father selecting a name for his child that he believes will be pleasing to the Brahma (God or Universal Self) During another ritual, the Medhajanana Samskara, the father gives his blessings to his newborn. To explain the structure and meaning of a Telugu name, it is first necessary to present the sub-schemas embedded within the Barasala

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