The Change in Personal Names and Naming Practices in the Iraqw Speech Community

Abstract

Personal names and naming customs have changed in the contemporary Iraqw speech community. Most members of the Iraqw speech community today bear foreign names in their formal domain. This is revealed in aspects such as official documents, hospitals, and schools. The traditional naming customs and naming ceremonies for newborns have also evolved. Prior to the implementation of these modifications, the Iraqw speech community's traditional names and naming customs were based on customary ceremonies and rituals. This descriptive qualitative study was conducted in Karatu District, Arusha Region, to analyse the reasons behind changes in personal names and naming customs within the Iraqw speech community. Although many studies, including Arega (2016), Lusekelo and Muro (2018), and Mensa et al. (2020), have examined changes in personal names across different languages, the causes of these changes in the Iraqw language have not been adequately addressed. This study was grounded by the Communication Accommodation Theory. The data for this study were collected from Iraqw native speakers from three schools and two villages in Karatu District. The two villages and their respective schools were purposefully selected because of their limited interaction with other speech communities. To achieve the study’s objective, a semi-structured interview was conducted with 50 informants from the two villages. These were selected through purposive sampling, and the number was determined using the saturation principle to determine an appropriate sample size. The school register books were also reviewed from the three schools, and the collected data were analysed thematically. The study found that foreign religions, specifically Christianity and Islam, as well as the Swahili language, have had a significant influence on Iraqw names. Other factors driving changes in Iraqw names include personal preference, mispronunciation, and spelling errors. Thus, this study suggests that, since Iraqw traditional names are potential lexicons in the Iraqw language, initiatives should be taken to safeguard the remaining Iraqw traditional names.