Indigenous Etsako Names Among Auchi People: The Influence of Islam on Their Current Naming Practices

Mohammed Enaikele, Ph.D., Suleiman Momoh

Abstract

The name or names that an individual bears is an important aspect of his or her social identity. Among the Etsako people of Auchi, Edo state, Nigeria, their indigenous names are not just couched in abstract or without justification. The article explores the influence of Islam on various Etsako names among Auchi people. This study uses an in-depth unstructured interview (IDI) to collect indigenous Etsako names, employing an accidental sampling method with a crosssection of twenty (20) key informants in each of the five indigenous communities of Auchi. The key informants are heads of households/families. The study provided several indigenous Etsako names and their literal meanings. It also revealed that before the introduction of Islam to the Etsako people of Auchi, parents gave their children indigenous Etsako names at birth. Later, however, parents started giving their children Muslim names together with indigenous Etsako names. But lately, indigenous Etsako names are increasingly endangered because the names are no longer being given to children at birth but have significantly shifted to Muslim names. The study thus concludes that the challenges of redeeming, resuscitating, and stabilizing the culture of indigenous Etsako names should be the collective responsibility of the Etsako people of Auchi.