The European captors insatiable desire to always be in control and to win at the expense of others; to make an all-out effort to attack and destroy a Slave’s sanity, starting with the self-esteem of each; and to establish a sense of White superiority was behind their naming frenzy of the Slaves.
Furthermore, renaming was a means of controlling the minds and refashioning the identity of the Slaves. These helped start the intensive forcible brain-washing indoctrinations which replaced the Slaves’ basic African convictions with those of the dictators. The "Naming" story starts with Indentured Servants--those driven by the turmoil of continuing war and religious persecution in Europe; by economic misery; and by widespread hopelessness (Dohan, Our Own Words, p144). They came to the American colonies after having exchanged some years of work for their passage, their up-keep, and their freedom. The words “Slave” and “Servant” were often used interchangeably because at first, in the 17th century, White indentured servants worked alongside African Slaves. The passage from Slave to Servant or vice versa was often indistinct for many Blacks, many of whom remained with their former owners after being legally emancipated. The records reflect this haziness--Slaves being listed as Servants and vice versa. Gradually, the label "Slave" moved into prominence to indicate those pertaining to Africans. It became common to speak of “Slave quarters or servant quarters.” White indentured servants were an entirely different class of laborer from Black Slaves and Black "indentured servants." Later in the 17th century the term "Servant" took on a new and ominous meaning and was used synonymously with Slave but much more often. Gradually, to show contempt for Slaves, the captors used "Buck" and "Wench" till they became trade terms, like "Filly" and "Shoat." Contempt for the male was removing his honorific attachment to fatherhood and manhood by being addressed as “Boy.” Once the vigorous years of his prime were passed, he was allowed to assume the title of “Uncle.” Females were called “Gal,” girl, or the name of some animal. Or, the Slaves were given numbers or classical Greek names. This had a profound impact on the Selfhood of each of the enslaved--disrupting ones presumed mission in life as indicated by ones name; shattering the sharing of personal and historical experiences, attitudes, and spirits towards life; and putting in disarray the philosophy of life framework and common sense values by which all Africans lived.
Perhaps this caused some Slaves to ask: “Am I my new name or am I still my old name? Is this the work of the evil spirits or from my bad karma?” To worsen matters, a given new European label applied only to one aspect of the nature (whereas his/her original name referred to a total identity) of the enslaved and this was an effective way to try to fragment a victim's mindset. But the Slaves generally had two names--the one given by the slave owner (e.g. Brutus) and a private name (e.g. Sabe, Anque, Bumbo, Jobah, Quamana, Taynay, and Yearie) used in the Slave quarters. The private name served as a form of Selfhood Armor ("you can't take all of me, White man!"); gave them a sense of power over their captors; and provided their children with a sense of heritage and pride. The idea was for the children to enter the inhumane system of slavery protected by a sense of Selfhood and history.
Of the 972 names of male Slaves recorded between 1619 and 1799 the leading ones were Jack, Tom, Harry, Sam, Will, Caesar, Dick, John, Robin, Frank, Charles, Joe and Prince. The most common of 603 names of female Slaves were Bet, Mary, Jane, Hanna, Betty, Sarah, Phillis, Nan, Peg, and Sary. Private names used in the quarters included Abah, Bilah, Comba, Dibb, Juba, Kauchee, Mima, and Sena. In French-speaking Louisiana, Slave names reflected the dominant language and thus were generally different from those in the English colonies. Examples include: Francois, Jean, Pierre, and Leon for men; and Manon, Delphine, Marie Louise, Celeste, and Eugenie for women. Spanish areas had male Slave names as Francisco, Pedro, and Antonio; and for females: Maria, Isabella, and Juana. While enslaved almost all had just one name. But once freed most immediately chose surnames, with or without keeping their accustomed name. When retained, a given name was generally changed to its full form: Thomas, not Tom; Elizabeth, not Bet. The new surnames, often taken from a former slave owner, included: Williams, Jones, Johnson, Smith, Jackson, Thomas, Brown, Walker, Davis, Green, Robinson, Scott, Harris, Turner, and Anderson. |
