Kaguru Names and Naming

Abstract

This essay provides descriptive ethnography on a topic largely neglected by researchers in East Africa: personal names and naming. For the Kaguru of eastern Tanzania, names are related to certain kin statuses and each person possesses a series of names acquired not only to fit different social situations but also changing roles in the cycle of development from birth to death. The name which one uses toward a person reflects not only the particular social tie which one wishes to exploit but also one's degree of familiarity. In this, Kaguru use of personal names closely resembles their use of kinship terms.

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