African Vodún Names: Rename, Reclaim, ReAfrikanize ©2017-2024

Do Nyí Ajã – About Aja Names

Literally, the Ajã word nyí means
“mark of distinction, representation, personal symbol”. Among the Zulu and other Nguni-speaking people of South Afrika, the word for name is igama "your symbol” – its original meaning being a symbol engraved upon a flat stone. In some early African societies, when a child was given a name, the symbolic meaning of the child’s name was painted on a round pebble in red or black pigment, and this symbol was kept for as long as the person lived.
Upon death, the “named-pebble” was broken into two pieces and returned to earth’s bed -transcending back into the
spiritual realm.

This book is a first of its kind introducing the English speaking world to the unique and powerful names of the Ajã people. What's in a name? For the Afrikans, everything.