Full Length Research Paper
ABSTRACT
Nicknames are an integral part of human experience in many cultures in the world over, and some scholars believe that they have a cultural significance to the relevant society. This study is a report of a survey of a purposively sampled group of fifty Great Zimbabwe University students’ views, gathered through a questionnaire, on nick-name usage among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe. The group of respondents comprised students, in their first semester at university, drawn from across the Zimbabwean social and dialectical divide. In this study, only nick-names used by the Shona people were predominant because the researcher’s first language is Shona and it was, therefore, felt that interpretation would be easier. Some people may think that nicknames are a trivial phenomenon of human existence but this survey revealed that they are significant to both bearers and users and are an indispensable aspect of human existence. Some may be used for convenience of usage while others may reflect the bearer’s behaviour, physical appearance, social status in life or simply an important incident in a person’s life. Yet others have personality traits of their carriers embedded in them. It could also be argued that some of these names are used arbitrarily while others are an important reflection of and offer important insights into the relevant people’s norms, values and history and the cultural intrusion of the West, particularly with short forms of actual names which bearers were given at birth.
Key words: Nicknames, semiotics, onomasticon, dialectical, significance, Shona-speaking.
INTRODUCTION
Nicknames, like the first names that human beings acquire at birth, are an inherent characteristic of human existence. Kuranchie (2012) asserts that it is an incontrovertible fact that nicknaming has been a common practice in various arenas of human endeavour in many societies since ages. The scholar further argues that researchers consequently have long studied the practice in various arenas of human experience, and have observed that people use varieties of them, depending on their norms and values.
A significant number of other studies have been carried out on naming in various communities (Neethling, 2005;De Klerk and Bosch, 1997, 1998; Mehrabian and Piercy, 1993; Phillips, 1990), and this study seeks to augment such studies by focusing on university students’ views on the nature and significance of nickname usage among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe. The open-ended questionnaire used to solicit data from fifty student informants yielded interesting insights into how the Shona people of Zimbabwe use nicknames. About 70% of the Zimbabwean population speaks Shona (which also has many dialects) (Hachipola, 1998) hence the researcher’s interest in an aspect relevant to a population of this magnitude.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Naming is an important phenomenon of human experience, and has mainly acted as an integral aspect which enables people to identify others and make distinctions between individuals in a society. In Zimbabwe, and many other societies, every human has a name, a birthright, given to them at birth and, these are normally registered with the Registrar of Births and Deaths, a department under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Kuranchie (2012) observe that “In all cultural settings, every individual is accorded a name after birth, perhaps, to give a unique identity to the child. At birth, parents or senior members in the family give personal names to the new born baby which he/she may retain throughout his/her life, unless, for some reason, they opt to officially change them through marriage or some other social factor”. Kuranchie (2012) concurs, saying true names are acquired at birth through culturally-accepted arrangements.
Many studies have been carried out on naming in different societies, which include Morgan et al. (1979), Afful (2007), Alleton (1981), de Klerk and Bosch (1997, 1998) and Liao (2006). Neethling (2005) posits that: “…one could ostensibly generalize and say that some sort of motivation always exists whenever any entity, human or non-human, is named . . . where the motivation is somewhat obscured, the meaningfulness of the name makes it easy to trace: the name carrier (or his family or friends) has an explanation at hand.” Neethling (2005) further observes that “A nickname is considered to be a derived form of Old English eacan meaning ‘also’, relating to its role as an additional name evolving subsequent to the assigning of the first name. In the English speaking world, a ‘nickname’ has certain connotations, often dealing with a characteristic feature, physical or, of the name bearer. The nickname may also be pejorative. Neethling (2005) further contends that these are additional first names that could replace or function in place of the bestowed first name at birth.
Phillips (1990) defines a nickname as a subset of informal or unfixed names for someone, usually addressed by acquaintances and asserts that since such names are unofficial, only familiar people call the nicknamed by those names. Lin (2007) also observes that, unlike personal names (first name and surname), nicknames may vary from time to time and even from group to group, depending on familiarity and relations between interlocutors or amongst group members. Liao (2006) states that nicknames are informal names that are not registered at the Civil Registration Office in Taiwan. Other scholars argue that nicknames are also viewed as ‘little names’ and ‘milk names’ which are not the official name (Alleton, 1981; Blum, 1997). Fang and Heng (1983) share a similar view of nicknames and consider them as milk names which are only used within a family or among intimate friends. Lin (2007) concurs that a nickname is an informal term for an individual, often used by members in a particular community of practice. In a study carried out in Ghana, Afful (2007) states that address forms which include nicknames are used in various social domains such as politics, workplace and academia. According to Neethling (2005), a nickname is a name added to those names the name carrier already has. He postulates that they are often developed among acquaintances and that nicknames represent familiarity, intimacy and solidarity. Nicknames serve a range of functions over and above the typically referential function of the first names; they are frequently semantically transparent and their usage reveals insights into the characteristics (personal and physical) of their bearers, as well as into their role in society (Leslie, 1990; McDowell, 1981; van Langendonck, 1983; de Klerk and Bosch, 1998). It is clear, from the earlier mentioned observations, that a significant defining aspect of nicknames is that they are unofficial or additional and, unlike first names, they are bestowed upon their bearers not only by parents but also by peers and other members of the respective community of the bearer.
In this study, the term ‘nickname’, referred to in Shona as zita remadunhurirwa, is used broadly as an umbrella term referring to whatever unofficial or additional names given subsequent to the official, which individuals acquire (for various reasons) as they progress through life. The names given here should be treated as a mere sample, never claiming to be exhaustive or subject to generalisation.
Theoretical framework
The research is rooted in the field of semiotics which is considered as best encapsulating this culturally-significant phenomenon of nicknaming. According to Eco (1977), every cultural entity becomes a semiotic sign. It is, therefore, argued here, that nicknames are a cultural convention and interpretation of such is key to unraveling the values of people of a given culture. Semiotics (or semiology, according to one of the founding fathers of semiotics, Ferdinand de Saussure), is a field of study that is concerned with signs and/or signification (the process of creating meaning). It is the dominant term used for the science of signs (http://www.visual-memory.co.uk). This study is guided by de Saussure’s semiology; the relationship between the ‘signifier’ (nickname) and the ‘signified’ (nickname bearer) as opposed to Charles Sanders Peirce and other prominent semioticians. This study focuses on the meanings generated by use of nicknames and their significance to the relevant users. It is, however, beyond the scope of this study to pursue the semiotic debates by various scholars.
Statement of the problem
Naming is an important human phenomenon, particularly meant to give bearers an identity. Likewise, each society finds it significant to give nicknames to certain members, which also act as a form of identifying them within the relevant social groups, serving different purposes as a result. From a sociolinguistic point of view, nicknaming represents a process of constructing individual identities within a group (Lin, 2007). It is the aim of this study to find out the nature and significance of nicknaming among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe, and draw insights into the cultural trends in a world where globalization is a stark reality. Literature is replete with nicknaming among various communities across the globe; the literature review in this study bears testimony to this. However, as far as it could be ascertained, there is very little literature, if any, on the nature and significance of nicknaming among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe. Hence this study is an attempt to add to the onomasticon and the existing literature on nicknames, with specific reference to the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe.
Objectives
The study sought to:
1. unpack the nature of nicknaming among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe; and
2. explore students’ views on the meanings and significance of these nicknames and their social consequences.
Research questions
The research sought to answer questions which include:
3. How prevalent is the tradition of nicknaming among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe?
4. What significance do Shona nicknames place in the social lives of the people concerned?
METHODOLOGY
Fifty undergraduate Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) students’ views were gathered through an open-ended questionnaire because it was considered the fastest and most convenient in view of the number of respondents involved. The students came from across Zimbabwe’s social and dialectical divide. In design, the study is a survey, which sought to solicit for views on the nature and significance of nicknaming among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe. According to Marshall and Rossman (2006), “Survey research is an appropriate mode of inquiry for making inferences about a large group of people based on data drawn from a relatively small number of individuals in that group.” The researcher also engaged an interpretive analysis of the nicknames given, in an attempt to find their semiotic significance to the relevant people.
Population
The population comprised of undergraduate students at GZU from the Faculties of Arts, Agriculture and Natural Sciences, Commerce, Education and Social Sciences.
Sample
Fifty students from the Faculty of Education, specializing in Bachelor of Education Degrees and aspiring to become teachers, were sampled. Their ages ranged between eighteen and forty years, and were in their first semester. They were asked to give the nicknames they used, or heard others use and their meanings. They were further requested to comment on their possible significance to the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe. Only Shona-speaking students were purposively sampled because they were able to understand the meanings of the nicknames given by the relevant people and the researcher had easy access because he taught them the module Communication Skills then. The researcher found these students conveniently placed to cooperate and contribute significantly to the success of the study. Thus, Punch (2006) asserts that purposive sampling is the term often used; it means sampling in a deliberate way, with some purpose or focus in mind. Punch (2006), argues that all research, including qualitative research, involves sampling; no study, whether quantitative, qualitative or both can include everything: “you cannot study everyone everywhere doing everything.” As such, this research focused on the views of students on the dynamics of nicknaming among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The findings of this study generally indicate that the Zimbabwean society at large, just like many others, is in flux due to globalization and, as such, its citizens’ attitudes and nick/naming trends have been infiltrated mostly by Western cultures, particularly the English (bearing in mind that Zimbabwe is a former colony of Britain and even after independence in 1980, one of the remnants of colonial domination is that the country continues to use the English Language both as the official language and language of instruction in the classroom). The data, in this study, comprise a sample of nicknames used among the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe. Whereas most of the nicknames are Shona, others are English. Only the nicknames reported by fifty Shona-speaking informants from Great Zimbabwe University, drawn from across the country’s dialectical and social divide, were included in this analysis.
This study makes an interpretive analysis of nicknames given in an attempt to find their semiotic significance. The researcher’s perceived distinction of nicknames which were reported into two broad categories of the negatively and positively. This is supported by Kuranchie (2012) who says, certain names are generally considered desirable and have positive feelings associated with them while others are humiliating and are looked down upon. Wilson (1998) concurs that, while some students cherish their nicknames, others hate and cannot stand them. Kuranchie (2012) contend that, some nicknames have strongly negative meanings, and are often disliked by their bearers while users insist on their usage to mock or tease their peers. According to Neethling (2005), “Certain names are generally considered desirable and have positive feelings associated with them while others are humiliating and are looked down upon as being undesirable and carry negative connotations.” Focus is on the nature and meaning/significance of such nicknames with some derived from base forms (as indicated in this study) while others are a miscellany of unique creativities of their users. Table 1 present the nicknames obtained from respondents and either give their origins or offer their meanings in English where Shona names are involved. After each table, the researcher interprets and discusses the results, an approach that was considered more economical and focused.
The respondents gave various reasons for the use of such short forms (as given in Table 1) which include that they are used as short forms of original names for endearment when children were young. The other reason given was that they were used for convenience of calling and that at a particular time, the use of the suffices such as /s/ and /y/ (as in Welas, Chinos, Tigs on one hand and Tady, Benjy and Toby) on the other were considered as trendy and people would use them, perhaps, to maintain group cohesion and were generally positively perceived by their bearers and users. These findings confirm the observations by other researchers, as highlighted earlier on in this report, that some nicknames were found desirable (Wilson, 1988; Neethling, 2005; Kuranchie, 2012). De Klerk and Bosch (1998) argue that some nicknames might be regarded as fairly reliable indicators of trends and attitudes. It was observed in some studies that such names were meant for convenience of texting in this day of constant typing and texting (http//b.scorecardresearch.com).
It could also be argued that such short forms, while they could be used for convenience of calling, may also have a historical antecedent in the form of the indigenous people’s contact with their colonial ‘master’ from the west, and the consequent cultural infiltration. Hence, it is argued, we give our newborn children names that used to be nicknames; Jack (a nickname for John) is a very popular boys’ name, Emma (the variation of Emily) was number two on the list (in a study) of popular girls’ names (http//b.scorecardresearch.com). De Klerk and Bosch (1998) argue that, in defining nicknames, many writers choose to exclude from their analysis those names which are obvious short forms or derivatives of their first names but it is these forms which offer important insights into the social relations within a cultural group. As such, this study has attempted to address this gap in researches on naming and nicknaming in society. In the earlier mentioned examples, some nicknames evolve linguistically from first names while others display users’ ability to coin a referent for example, Tinto for Tendai, Tini for Tinotenda, Toby for Tobias, Tadi for Tadiwa, Tamas for Tamanikwa, Kudzy for Kudzanai and Chinos for Chinongo. Thus Kuranchie (2012) observes that some names develop affectionate forms with an endearment effect. Such nicknames, confirm the observation that their use depends on familiarity and relationships between interlocutors (Fang and Heng, 1983; Lin, 2007). Neethling (2005) concurs that they represent familiarity, intimacy and solidarity. The respondents reported that these nicknames were positively perceived and their bearers liked them, thus confirming findings obtained in other studies. The researcher attributes this liking to the fact that these were short forms of actual names used by the bearers and were found on their identification particulars.
Some scholars further argue that some names are related to the job one does or a physical condition or even to shorten a real first name; they can be situational (http://b.scorecardre.com). For example, when young children learn to speak, their speech is awkward and they cannot pronounce certain words correctly and whatever becomes apparently interesting may stick as a referent. Table 2 gives examples of such names and nicknames, which help to confirm this observation made elsewhere by other researchers in this field.
In Table 2, nicknames like Ajoli, Ati, Titi and Umbo evolved from bearers’ defective speech abilities when they were young while Mazhambe, Mukoko, Makwindi, Bope and Zobha were found to be situational, attributed to some character traits of the bearers as explained in the Table 2. Thus, they became additional names that evolved subsequent to the bearers’ first names (Neethling, 2005). In the latter case, bearers were reported to dislike the referents because they were considered derogatory, established by users to mock certain character traits of the bearers. In support of this outcome, Neethling (2005) observes that some nicknames have connotations. Table 3 gives some names given to allude to some attributes of bearers.
The nicknames in Table 3attempt to illustrate the observation by some scholars that nicknames cannot only shorten a name but can also identify a characteristic about a person (http://scorecardresearch.com). According to Neethling (2005), “A nickname might have been bestowed because of a particular event, the physical appearance of the name carrier or other social and personal traits.” Nicknames like Masvina, Pfuko, KaDora, Vakurida, Mukoko, Chikwepa, KaDora and Tepi were found to have a derogatory effect hence their bearers tended to dislike and detest them. Table 3 also shows that males have a stronger inclination, than females, towards giving each other nicknames. These nicknames offer important insights into social relationships within a cultural group (Kuranchie, 2012). Kuranchie (2012) observe that some of these nicknames have positive, neutral or negative connotations. Nicknames like Monya, Muchinda, Big and Brown were found to have neutral effects and their bearers were found to like them. The meanings of these nicknames are an important indicator of users’ perception of the bearers. Thus Holland (1990) and Alford (1987) argue that another important aspect of nicknames is their role in influencing the perceptions of their users. The translations given in Table 2 were an attempt to get as nearer as possible to the English meanings of the names, for the benefit of non-Shona-speaking readers. Neethling (2005) observes that nicknames have personality traits embedded in them and have uniqueness peculiar to a particular family or society. Shona nicknames like Tepi (One who is thin, not slim, a derogatory term for a girl who defies the African conception of positive attributes of a girl) and Masvina
(One who is always dirty and would rarely take a bath) have the potential to linger longer in users’ minds and influence attitudes of dislike, with the effect of alienating the bearers from the groups they would be expected to associate with under normal circumstances. They could also serve as constant reminders for the bearers to reform. Thus, nicknames were found to play a significant role in the socialization process of an individual throughout his/her life.
The last group of nicknames is that of those given after television personalities/actors and other well-known individuals from the Zimbabwean society, and beyond, like Sabhuku Varazipi (a popular Zimbabwean comedian who took Zimbabwe by storm in 2013 and 2014, famous for his corrupt tendencies as a kraal head), vaMayaya (a popular police officer in the Sabhuku Vharazipi Comedy mentioned earlier, who solicited for bribes in order to release offenders facing prosecution), Parafini and Mr. Bean, also famous clowns who were very popular with children in the 1990s. In the majority of cases, the respondents said that bearers did not have anything in common with the possessors of the names but that they were used for fun. Normally, they were found not to last very long, largely depending on how long the personality (their namesake) remained popular in social circles. They were found to be significant in as far as they constantly reminded users of these important social events and personalities.
CONCLUSION
From the foregoing discussion, it can be argued that nicknaming is prevalent in the tradition of the Shona-speaking people of Zimbabwe and offers important insights into their cultural beliefs and values. The findings seem to confirm Neethling’s (2005) observation that “Nicknames, because they act as an avenue for creativity and the expression of some of the pure enjoyment that the sounds and meanings of words can give, provide name-users and name-bearers with considerable freedom in manipulating and bending linguistic resources.” While some names are shortened forms of official names given at birth, used for convenience, some are used in such a way that they give insights into certain characteristics or behaviour traits of bearers yet others evolve from the way children pronounce their names when they are young, due to limitations in speech abilities.
The study also confirms De Klerk and Bosch’s (1997) findings that all sorts of nicknames are used by people in different environments and that while some people may cherish these ‘fab’ names and would like to be identified with them, others may abhor and shy away from theirs. These scholars further argue that, in defining nicknames, many writers choose to exclude from their analysis those names which are obvious short forms or derivatives of their first names yet, it is these forms which offer important insights into social relationships within cultural groups. Such nicknames, used sometimes for endearment and group solidarity, have been discussed under findings, in this study, showing that nicknaming is not peculiar to Zimbabwe; it is prevalent in many other cultures in the world over as discussed under literature review.
In this study, nicknames were found to be more prevalent among males than they were among females, perhaps demonstrating the intimacy among men who, in the Zimbabwean context, seem to converge more frequently than women for various reasons for example, dare (a traditional gathering, in the evening, around a fire for men only) and beer-drinking parties. While the findings reveal such a discrepancy in the use of nicknames among males and females, it is beyond the scope of this study to explore gender relations. So, this leaves a gap worth pursuing in future.
This research revealed that nicknames were significant in a number of ways: they indicate users’ attitudes towards bearers; they may originate from bearers’ personal attributes or habits; or they may be shortened forms of bearers’ official names and normally become expressions of affection and endearment. Since these are additional names, it could be argued that they appear as individuals progress through life and become unofficial referents used by those who are socially close to the bearers, thus confirming findings from other studies cited in this discourse.
All in all, nicknames should not be trivialized as they are significant in that they are used to express affection, to describe someone’s appearance (with positive and negative connotations), to disparage their bearers’ behaviour or simply because it is trendy to do so and also for mere fun, like when bearers are given names for popular television personalities.
CONFLICT OF INTERESTS
The author has not declared any conflict of interests.
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