I just thought about what happened to our fathers, mothers, grandmothers, and grandfathers during colonial times: to go to school African children were forced by European missionaries to adopt a christian name such as John, Peter (Jean, Pierre), etc… as opposed to their good old African name Nomzimo, Makeba, Ndoumbe, Keïta, etc. Thus many Africans who would have just worn the name ‘Ndoumbe Mpondo‘ or ‘Binlin Dadié‘ or ‘Um Nyobé‘ had to adopt a European name such as John + their own name, such that they became: John Ndoumbe Mpondo or Bernard Binlin Dadié or Ruben Um Nyobé. To this day, the tradition has remained… most Africans would have three or four names: their family name, and their given name, plus the European first name and in some cases a European middle name as well. The poem below entitled ‘My name‘ by the South African poet Magoleng wa Selepe captures this very well.
My Name
Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa
Look what they have done to my name……..
the wonderful name of my great-great-grandmother
Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa
The burly bureaucrat was surprised
What he heard was music to his ears
‘Wat is daai, se nou weer?’
‘I am from Chief Daluxo Velayigodle of emalu podweni
And my name is Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa.’
Messia, help me !
My name is simple
And yet so meaningful
But to this man it is trash…..
He gives me a name
Convenient enough to answer his whim…..
I end up being
Maria…..
I…………..
Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa
by Magoleng wa Selepe
African Heritage 
Amazing poem, great writing before end! It made me understand a lot about the naming in our culture.
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Good insight..its sad to know how things sometimes take shape tho…thsnks for visiting my blog 🙂
Keep blogging
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Check it out men
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What a thought provoking poem. I was given a name Mapula by my grandmother but it was never used or registered by mom instead Patricia was used so as to make it easier for her employers to call my name.
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‘My name’ is such a wonderful poem to go through especially today,because its freedom day!
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10/10
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I taught this poem to my grade 7 Xhosa learners. They absolutely love it. One of them dramatized it in a competition and won a first prize. By the way, I am a white teacher
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Lovely poem indeed for a classroom study. Great idea! I love the idea of dramatizing the poem. Congratulations to the student for winning first prize.
Thanks for commenting on the blog.
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My name was also changed by this colonials my forfathers which was given to me which belonged to my greategreate grandfather is Mmushi bt was changed to be Moshe.
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i rly lv ths poem m a grd11 learner n i enjyd it
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It excites me to read this poem tjo i like it
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Ajmjaja
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I need the summary,theme and tone of the poem my name by Magoleng Wa Selepe
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analysis of this poem is very helpful but what i want to know why they called Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa in stanza number 4 in line 4?
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I was also given a name when my mother baptis me in church by white priest and i hate it with passion terressa instead of thabisile.
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this poem is wonderful
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I totally agree with you!
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I want a question and answers plz
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i also love this poem it kinda reminds me about our culture
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I totally agree with you Busi. Thanks for visiting the blog.
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I. love the poem alot we even learn about it, at school it. easy to understand n meanful
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This is such a great poem. It is part of our history. It is meaningful and easy to understand. I’m a grade 11 student, I studied it at school.
.
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I totally agree with you Ignatia. It is such an important poem, because it does talk about Africa’s history, and its colonization, and the subtle changes imposed upon us by colonization. Thank you for visiting the blog.
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may i ask you question. What indeed had they done to her name ?
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They had changed her name from Nomgqibelo Ncamisile Mnqhibisa to Maria, thus diminishing her existence, her being, the very essence of who she was.
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they changed her name Sanele, she was given a name called Nomgqibelo and the rude guy named her ”Maria”- how rude.
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I just remembered this poem today; I did it at my grade 11 in 2010,is a lovely poem and an illustration on how our parent and fore parents got their name even if they did not like them
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i lyk this poem,i’ve been doing it since grade8
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Thanks Sinalo! Me too!
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This is a very inspiring to people thAt have forgotten about their cultures and history of their aNcestors sooner or later they will regret it because you your culture anD Heritage is what maDe you who you are what you are
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a name is so much more than a string of sounds and syllables. It’s your heritage, it’s your identity. There is just so much ignorance and disrespect in a person refusing to call you by your name because it is inconvenient for them. This poem is so beautiful in that it captures that idea so simply-yet so profoundly.
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Absolutely agree with you!
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I would like to get the analysis I of this poem my name plz help
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Im from chief daluxolo emampondweni
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I really love this poem m a grd 10 learner it reminds me my heritage
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I totally agree with you Mukwebo. This poem indeed remind us of our heritage, and where we come from. Thanks for visiting the blog, and for commenting.
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Great poem please provide translation of the words that are written in english
Thank u
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Appreciation to my father who informed me concerning this website,
this webpage is actually remarkable.
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Perfectly put…
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This has always been my favourite poem for years. 10 years out of highschool but I still know it by heart.
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Wow… Wonderful Bridgey! It is indeed a powerful poem!
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I love your poem i did it for my oral it was very nice it made me feel like a real south african girl
I love your poem😇😇
I felt proud to be a South Afrivan
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Wow! what a Poem ma First time came across it i was on Grade 9 end it never forgot it till now Great Writting Wa selepe
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Yes indeed! It is a great poem!
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it was my first time coming across this poem this year but it has the power and make us to be proud of our culture
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Yes indeed slimecute. It does make us proud of who we are, and of wearing our culture and identity with pride. Thanks for commenting and for visiting the blog!
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Reblogged this on African Heritage and commented:
This poem by Magoleng wa Selepe has touched many strong chords. It is the truth, and still rings true today. As a reminder, our parents, grandparents, were stripped of their names, their identity during colonial times: to go to school, they had to have a European name, and very often their names were distorted because the European colonizer could not spell it right. Enjoy !!!
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That poem certainly opened my eyes. European names can be a form of colonization and in worst cases a form of cultural erasure. I’ve been affected since I don’t have an African name as so many African-Americans in the states. It reminds me of that iconic scene in Roots where Kunta Kinte is whipped and told his name was going to be Toby. Without a name or language, one’s culture and identity become missing.
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Yes… without a name or language, one’s culture and identity are missing.
I do remember that scene in Kunta Kinte… it broke my heart! and yes… the poem adapts to it so perfectly!
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Exactly and I’ve been really realizing it more often especially after winding out which African ethnic groups were in my DNA test. It’s even been fun learning Lingala for example.
Yes, and it’s still a heartbreaking scene to this day. That poem correlates to that scene on so many levels.
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my name is such a nice poem …it takes me back in high school where teachers changed my name into camisile permanently pronouncing it khamisile which gave my name a painful meaning ….but my question was is it fair for us to pronounce indains name appropriately while they pronounce ours inappropriately just because our names differ from their language …I mean English is not our language and so is Eastern languages but we try because we were all brought in to this would to learn regardless of who we are and what we’ve achieved
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Very well said Ncamisile. I think if we are making the effor to pronounce their names properly, they should do so as well… it is only normal.
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hey there. I love the poem and it wold be great if you went into detail about it.
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Hello Maladi… it is one of my favorite poems also. The author Magoleng wa Selepe does an amazing job conveying the suppressed feelings. Glad you like it.
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