THE MEANING OF A TESO NAME: I feel so lucky that I am culturally rooted.

I met and spent quality time with my

grandma, she, Joyce Mary Alinga I, whom am named after; making me Esta Norah Alinga II Owaraga. In Teso when one is
given a name it is an honor for the one named and the one whose name is given. And so in the wisdom of Teso, both parties
were normally consulted before the naming was finalised. An adult is asked or voluntarily expresses their interest to honor
and share with the child a name. By accepting to share a name the adult accepts and expresses interest to be part of the
socialisation process of the child - give guidance and example to the child. The child, in proper Teso culture, would be
consulted through breastfeeding. If when the name is given, called out, and the child agrees to suckle the mother's breast,
right after the name is called out, the child has accepted the name. Naturally, this gives women the power of manipulation. If
a woman doesn't want her child named after the person the head of the clan has chosen, then the woman can make it so that
the child does not suckle when the name is called out. Or if the mother is too shy to overtly manipulate the child at the time of
the naming, she can accept the name, but deny the adult that the child is named access to the child. Denying access, includes
not calling the child by the cultural name and going the global-western way, by officially calling the child by the name of the
father as the surname. (mbu family name and eliminating the unwanted name). Denying access, includes making sure there is
no physical contact between the child and the adult. Some even go the extra mile and socialise the child to believe their
namesake to be evil. When that happens, denying access, the adult who the child was named after feels slapped in the face. It
is painful to watch such cases. Some who have experienced it know the pain. But for some us, it just the one denying access,
among many other namesakes that we have and with whom we enjoy the fullness of sharing a Teso name. Today, I am
feeling particularly lucky that my brother Okoit (James Owaraga) allows me to have the full honor of being the Teso
namesake of his daughter Valerie Alinga III, who to the best of my knowledge is the first child named after me. Alinga III is
now a teenager and blossoming in her secondary school education. She has her work cut out for her to be like her Ija and she
is on the right path to surpass her namesake. I also have boys named after me. My cousin brothers, Simon Opiio and Sam
Owaraga, named their sons "Olinga" (replacing the "A" with an "O" because of gender). They boys are under 10 years old
and live in Pallisa, our ancestral district. Apparently, they are determined to do well and own cars like their namesake, but for
now they claim ownership of their namesake's car(s), including the cars which belong to the organisation that she works, that
she uses when on official duty. How can I not feel lucky! Footnote: "Alinga is a bird associated with rain " ikosi ikweny
Ilinga ooh imani ipolo" as remember in a song which our ancestors used to sing while praying for rain" according to Maurice
Olupot.

The above was a piece wtitten by Norah Ijah Owalinga....a media personality in Uganda some time this year. You could
borrow from it and acknowlege source. I see she also once shared a post from Ateso language course....specifically. .., a
proverb, mam emanyit edaun
Below was my rejoinder comment to her post giving a Kenyan perspective on naming
A nice piece... Interesting to learn how naming of children was conducted among the Iteso. However, among the Iteso of
Kenya ( where I belong), it is said that some clans/families used ajono (traditional brew) during the naming ceremony - in
which case a suggested name was called out and the baby given a finger dipped in ajono to suck. If the baby accepts to suck
the ajono on the finger; then it was taken that the baby has accepted the name but if the baby refuses to suck the ajono on the
finger, it meant that the baby had refused that name and another preferred name would be called out until the baby accepts to
suck the ajono on the finger. However, care was taken to ensure that only names of people of good standing, integrity and
character in society were chosen. The use of ajono during naming ceremonies has however been challenged and criticized by
some Christian protestant evangelical preachers (who do not approve of drinking ajono). These preachers have tried to equate
this (the use of ajono in naming children) to baptizing children using ajono. Some of the preachers have gone ahead to claim
that using ajono in child naming ceremonies is akin to initiating children to drinking. Using biblical and spiritual citations...,
They blame prevalence of excessive drinking in some regions of Teso on this naming rite where ajono is used. However,
cultural enthusiasts strongly disagree with such assertions.