The functions of emotion-referencing names in Ibibio

Mensah, Eyo; Dzokoto, Vivian; Rowan, Kirsty

Abstract

In certain societies including the Ibibio of Akwa Ibom State, South-Eastern Nigeria, naming is a distinctive system of communicative practice which is used to express emotion and construct the personhood and identity of the name-bearer. This article examines emotion-referencing names among the Ibibio and adopts an ethnographic approach to investigate the motivations for the name choice, their socio-onomastic significance and the extent of influence they have over their bearers’ ‘selves’. We find that emotion names are bestowed through a range of motivations such as being a reflection of familial problems, death-prevention, religiously inspired and namesaking. We conclude that regardless of these motivations or whether the name has a positive or negative VALENCE, for the Ibibio, emotion-referencing names appear to have a subtle psychological impact upon the name-bearers self-perception. Naming among the Ibibio, therefore, is not only a form of cultural identity but a prominent site to reflect on and interpret emotions.

Citation

Mensah, E., Dzokoto, V., & Rowan, K. (2021). The functions of emotion-referencing names in Ibibio. International Journal of Language and Culture, 8(2), 218-244. https://doi.org/10.1075/ijolc.19009.men

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 10, 2021
• Publication Date: Sep 20, 2021
• Deposit Date: Dec 20, 2019
• Journal: International Journal of Language and Culture
• Print ISSN: 2214-3157
• Electronic ISSN: 2214-3165
• Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 8
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 218-244
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1075/ijolc.19009.men