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Surnames Concept: We got it wrong!
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kollabo
#21 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 9:47:01 AM
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So should we call him Mr Muigai or Baba Kenyatta, and is she Mrs Jomo or Mrs Muigai??
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Swenani
#22 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 9:57:05 AM
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kollabo wrote:
So should we call him Mr Muigai or Baba Kenyatta, and is she Mrs Jomo or Mrs Muigai??

Where i come from we should call him Mr Muigai and Mrs Muigai. If you call her mrs Kenyatta you imply that she is Jomo's fish
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jguru
#23 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 11:29:44 AM
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Joined: 10/25/2007
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Swenani wrote:
jguru wrote:
Lolest! wrote:
Mzungu came, 'civilized' us and left us with new order for everything-including names. Before he came, I understand your name was the name they referred you with at a particular time!

They left us confused, maybe because we didn't quite customise the surname to fit our culture.

Take the example of John Njeru Kimathi. He is John Njeru son of Kimathi. He refers himself as Mr Kimathi.

His wife Kwamboka refers herself as Mrs Kwamboka Njeru. Their daughter Beryl is Beryl Kawira Njeru.

Hence in one family we have Mr. Kimathi, his wife Mrs Njeru and their daughter Miss Njeru. Collectively, the Njerus(not the Njeru's)

See the African confusion?


Where I come from, John Njeru Kimathi is Mr. Njeru (Baba Kimathi).

The wife is Mrs. Njeru (Mama Kimathi) and the daughter is Miss Njeru. The son is Mr. Kimathi.

Mr. Njeru, after he passes his medical exams, will however be Dr. Kimathi. So, on an invitation card, you will invite the Njerus as Dr. Kimathi and Mrs. Njeru.

Confused? smile



We come from the same village or even family thensmile smile


Maybe we do. smile

If the wife to John Njeru Kimathi is a Prof. or Dr. and the husband isn't the invite will read, Mr. and Dr. Njeru or Mr. and Prof. Njeru.

Though most men avoid situations where the wife is more 'learned' than they are. I don't know why... smile
Set out to correct the world's wrongs and you will most certainly wind up adding to them.
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mukiha
#24 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 1:00:58 PM
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Joined: 6/27/2008
Posts: 4,114
This is what happens when you try to translate a phrase directly from one language to another.

the person you call John Njeru Kimathi, is actually John Njeru wa-Kimathi....or John Njeru mtu-Kimathi (John Njeru M'Kimathi)....or John Njeru ole-Kimathi..... John Njeru arap-Kimathi

The "wa", "mtu", "ole", "arap" etc signify that he belongs to Kimathi.

His wife is Kwamboka wa-Njeru and all his children are xxx wa Njeru.

Now there is no confusion.

But what should happen if John gets his PhD..... and gets promoted to the post of Professor?
Nothing is real unless it can be named; nothing has value unless it can be sold; money is worthless unless you spend it.
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masukuma
#25 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 1:04:33 PM
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everyone has their own naming conventions. it does not have to be tracable!
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mukiha
#26 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 1:19:52 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 6/27/2008
Posts: 4,114
kollabo wrote:
So should we call him Mr Muigai or Baba Kenyatta, and is she Mrs Jomo or Mrs Muigai??


Now that's a complicated one because he changed his name in 2012 to become Uhuru Kenyatta. He dropped the middle name Muigai from his official name.... Want proof? Recall what was printed on the ballot papers. It was what was taken out of his ID.

So, he is Mr. Kenyatta and she is Mrs Kenyatta.

Incidentally, Uhuru is a Kiswahili word adopted as a name and Kenyatta is a Maasai name (sounds more like "Kinyatta") for a beaded lether belt. Jomo (a kikuyu corruption of Johnstone) must have seen quite far for his son - giving him a generic name that does not belong to any particular tribe...
Nothing is real unless it can be named; nothing has value unless it can be sold; money is worthless unless you spend it.
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mukiha
#27 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 1:21:55 PM
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Joined: 6/27/2008
Posts: 4,114
and while on changed names, people must stop calling the former president Emillio. He dropped that name long ago and became simply Mwai Kibaki. I have seen his ID and that's what it reads.
Nothing is real unless it can be named; nothing has value unless it can be sold; money is worthless unless you spend it.
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kiterunner
#28 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 1:51:14 PM
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Joined: 7/9/2011
Posts: 730
Location: Nairobi
the problem is the slave names we adopted in the guise of christian names, my kids will be Njeru Kimathi, there wont be a peter, john, mohamed in there
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  | | Edit by user: Thursday, February 13, 2014 9:35 AM | Reason: Not specified
Lolest!
#29 Posted : Wednesday, February 12, 2014 2:09:11 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 3/18/2011
Posts: 12,069
Location: Kianjokoma
masukuma wrote:
everyone has their own naming conventions. it does not have to be tracable!

as BCN aren't you Mr N? Why not Mr C? Or Mr H, assuming you belong to the H mbari(sub-clan)?
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Lolest!
#30 Posted : Monday, April 30, 2018 11:31:30 AM
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Joined: 3/18/2011
Posts: 12,069
Location: Kianjokoma
Kenneth Stanley Njindo Matiba was actually Matiba son of Njindo!
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