Naming Rites in Black Africa and Grandchild of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Yolanda Renee King, the first grandchild of Martin King, Jr. and Coretta Scot King, was born at sunrise on 25 May 2008, a week ago, in Atlanta, Georgia. The child in most African traditions has no name during the first seven days of birth except its default name. The day of birth and birth order determine generic African names given automatically to children. Among the Akan of Ghana, a girl born on Sunday is called Akosua.
But the child has a secret name as well given to it during an elaborate christening ceremony on the eighth day of birth. The clan gathers around the baby. For the first time, the elders take her out of her crib. The officiating elder presents the child to the ancestors and the Supreme God at the door with prayers for good luck, long life, and prosperity. Until then, the child stays indoors with her mother who never takes her out. This is to protect the fragile one from the sun, the moon and other potentially harmful forces.
To Africans, children in general, the firstborn in particular, are holy, connecting the living with the dead, symbolizing the greatest of life’s mysteries. This is why the mother of a firstborn child among the Wodabe of Niger does not care for her own baby during the first few days. Other women take care of the newborn because the whole village is invested in its survival.
On the eighth day of a child's birth like today, Yolanda Renee King would have been brought out for the first time by the elders. They would offer predictions and attempt to find out which ancestor would protect her. They would give her special gifts and totems along with her secret name. The extended family joins in one big celebration.
I know that Martin Luther King III and Andrea Waters King and the King family are Christians. Christians have their exquisite naming rites. I am simply reflecting, at the birth of this illustrious African-American child, on one of the most powerful rites in Africa. And, if she were born in Ghana among the Akan of Ghana, she would be called Akosua. She could be named Phoenix, after the NASA Lander that touched down successfully on Mars because it was a big event that occurred the same day she was born.
Welcome and best wishes to Yolanda Renee Akosua Phoenix King. Congratulations to the proud parents Martin Luther King III and Andrea Waters King.
RESOURCES
Videos of Yolanda Renee King
African names
Read Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher. African Ceremonies. Hardcover: 744 pages Publisher: Harry N. Abrams; 1999, 744 pages.
Watch incredible photographs of African Ceremonies by Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher.
