AKU - An African Journal of Contemporary Research (AAJCR) (Vol. 4 No. 4, 2023)
PERSONHOOD AND THE IMPORTANCE OF NAME AND NAMING IN AFRICA: AN EXPOSITORY DISCOURSE
ABSTRACT
This paper unpacks the constituents that make up the concept of personhood. It also examines the relationship between the various parts that make up personhood. This is done from Africentric, other than Afrocentric perspective. In order to cover the parameters of this discourse, the paper has argued that no person is considered a person without a name. This underscores the relevance of name and naming. Among many other things, the paper has posited that naming bestows a person with an identity and inserts the person into the social fabric of the society. Therefore, this paper unveils the importance of name to the owner of the name, the caller of the name and the input of name to the community that such a person belongs. What does naming imply to the naming individual(s) and the named? This and other related questions are answered by this paper, using secondary sources. This is in addition to focal group discussions held.
