In most parts of the world, names are known or thought to be a word or set of words by which a person, animal, place or thing is known, addressed or referred to. In other words, names are used by individuals to describe one another or a place.
With over 13 tribes and each having its own dialect, Oroko names are sometimes just horrible and they drive me crazy. I often ponder over these plethora of names from the Balue, Ngolo, Mbonge, Bakundu, Bima, Batanga and you name the rest.
Moving around Cameroon, i understand that the Oroko people occupy a special place as concerns naming children. I don't know if these names are a representative of our diversity, cultural heritage, beauty or tradition.
Be they for remembrance of events, happenings or circumstances, some of these names are just crazy and of little value especially when we grow up. I often think that these names also accompany us and may become a major player in our future life, character, destiny and achievements.
Let's now take a look at some very common Oroko names that beat my imagination and keep me pondering.
Just imagine that because death had visited your family several times before your birth, they name you Merima (graves), Njikobiya (i will not run), Misodi or Misori and Bekeli (tears).
Imagine that because your father is seriously sick and everyone thinks he's gonna die,so when you are born, they name you Bongor (fear). You were born when your family was undergoing serious financial difficulties, so they name you Ituka (suffering). Can someone tell me why name your child Mindako (blackmail), Besumbu (grass), Bea (leaves), Isselle (leave it), Ditake (let's talk), Njeya (road) etc etc?
Because your father was unable to repay his debts, so when you are born, he names you Marumbe (debts). There is another name depending on how you pronounce it,it may mean something else Makane (resemblance), (prayers) but sometimes i hear people saying Makana (insults).
Some common names include Ngoh (Tiger), Isoh (shame), Museke (beak), Bosani (they stayed at home), Mokori (hill), Mososo (talk), Mosongo (a kind of earthworm), njuma (fight), Emeri (remembrance) and so forth and so forth.
All i know is that the Oroko people should rethink and reconsider their naming strategy because it does not actually go down well with some of our brothers and sisters.
I am sick and tired of these names, Oroko Rise Up!
Traveling around the world should have made you wise enough to have noticed that Oroko people have more serious problems pending to be addressed than the meaning of names. I don't think the meaning of names has stopped children from getting education or caused poverty, things requiring grt concerns for the Oroko people! If know the history of Oroko, then u gonna kw why they use such names n Oroko people are not the only ones using such nomenclature!# Noheartfeellings#
ReplyDeleteTata,thank you very much for your comments.I greatly appreciate your stance. Do keep reading my blog and tell others.
DeleteMr. Carlson Ituka i am happy to hear from you that the Oroko people have more serious problems if that be the case i thing that the type of names the Oroko people use can be one of such problem, because it beats my imagination to see that most of our parent gave us names base on the circumstance we were born , my mom for example is call makana meaning insult just because my grand fathers friends and most of the villegers were insulting my grand father that he has no son, so when they gave birth to my mom hoping that she be a boy but came out a girl she was named makana (insult), another case is that of my junior brother because the person who gave him name love suit so much the name him koti (suit) there is another case that of my close brother he is call mosongo(hunter) all this kind of names are horrible they should or we the young generations should change this naming harbit of our parent then i thing we have solve one of such problems as mention by Ituka Carlson
ReplyDeleteTata,i am happy atleast someone sees it as i do but let's always disagree to agree and keep the Oroko flame burning.Thank you
DeleteA name does not make a person so change the situation you were named after. For example ituka the family was experiencing suffering and named a child after that problem. That was not the reason the reason was for the child to change that situation.
DeleteYOU ARE CLEVER IN HANDLING YOUR OROKO AFFAIRES. CONGRATULATIONS!! NONETHELESS, DO NOT MENTION BALONDO WITHOUT MY EXPRESS PERMISSION, BECAUSE I AM THE SPIRITUALLY ELECTED LEADER OF BALONDO. ALSO, THE BALONDO CULTURE IS NOW SYNDICTED TO STOP, SUE AND PROSECUTE OROKO CULTURAL BANDITS FOR DUBBING BALONDO PHENOMENA AS OROKO. BALONDO IS AN ENTITY NOT A SUBDIVISION OF YOUR OROKO BUSH COLONIAL STYLE EMPIRE YOU FORGED IN 1973 JUST SO YOU CAN FREE YOURSELF FROM 400 YEARS OF BALONDO HEGEMONY AND SUPREMACY VIS-À-VIS THE OROKOS.TO BE FOREWARNED IS TO BE FORE ARMED. STAY AWAY FROM BALONDO WHO ENSLAVED YOUR ANCESTORS. YOU ARE FREE NOW. THANKS FOR ACKNOWLEDGING THAT THE BALONDO LANGUAGE IS DIFFERENT FROM OROKO AND/OR MBONGE
ReplyDeletegreetings great people of Africa. we may be led by our different political atmosphere, our geographical factors and ergonomics; we're first humans, then Africans, black people. I think whether u're oroko, balondo or any other name u find to compare with, be humble and realistic and try to define what u will achieve if u're permitted to be different with an oroko person or identified as one.
Deleteno hard feelings Shar***
Konja Balondo,nya'a roni onga eh? am'a nye'e no tafake nanga,si sa beri da na njuma,si beri di sengene na di bobisse *Konja Oroko*, bey wa balondo ba diko, balondo ba nanga, ngolo, mbonge, balue,ekombe, si beri moto'o moko-OROKO.
ReplyDeleteKonja Balondo, oki?Si mayi na motoko monga,bassa na nanga!
Translation:Balondo Family,goodmorning to you people,from what you say,it seems as if we are fighting but we're not,we are trying to straighten-out and soften things,be you a balondo,mbonge,balue or any other Oroko clan,we are one,have you heard Balondo Family?Stop talking that way and close the topic.
YOU ARE IN DENIAL. AGAIN, WE KNOW YOU AND YOUR NGOE DESCENDANTS AS BAFAH BALONDO BECAUSE OUR ANCESTORS ENSLAVED YOURS THAT IS WHY THE VILLAGE OF MAASOLE BETWEEN EKONDO-ENENE AND EKONDO-ETI TI IS NOT COUNTED AS A BLONDO VILLAGE. IT IS CONSIDERED BAFH BALONDO OR OROKO IN CONTEMPORARY TIMES. GET IT INTO YOUR NUMB BALUE SKULL THAT BALONDO IS AN ETERNAL ENTITY THAT DERIVES FROM GOD NOT NGOE NOR OROKO. WE DO NOT SEEK YOU BECAUSEW E DESPISE YOU. YOU SEEK US BECAUSE YOU HAVE A COMPLEX. STAY AWY FROM US. OUR HISTORY, CULTURE AND LANGUAGE ARE DIFFERENT INCLUDING SETTLEMENT PATTERNS. WE ARE COASTAL AND PROUD WHILE YOU ARE HILL BILLIES AND SERVILE IN THAT YOU ENJOY COOKING AND CLEANING FOR PEOPLE IN AMERICA, EUROPE AND CAMEROON. STAY AWAY FROM US. WE DO NOT LIKE YOU NOR NEED.
ReplyDeleteWhat really are you fighting here, take a look at the bigger picture here and stop portraying your ethnocentrism here. Revert from having myopic view on issues, gushhhh!, who are you really dragging to court here...?
DeleteYou are free to educate yourself by visiting www.balondobakonja.net
ReplyDeleteOROKO APOLOGIZES TO BALONDO
ReplyDeleteSent from my iPhone
On Jun 30, 2013, at 9:52 PM, Edimo Andrew wrote:
Dear All,
Over a week ago, I excitedly shared this website belonging to the Balondobakonja people with you when I discovered it in the pamolite e-group. I had insinuated in that posting the they were people of the Oroko homeland, with no knowledge that the Balondobakonja people are distinct from the Orokos.
Candidly speaking, the aforementioned mistake I unknowingly made gave a leeway to the founder of the website to call me an idiot and threatened me with a law sue by July 1, 2013, if I fail to publicly make the correction that " Balondobakonja is not part of Orokoland."
I am therefore praying you all to henceforth know that Balondobakonja is not and has never been part of Oroko homeland and stop associating with them with anything Oroko.
This fellow Konja ya Balondo is a coward. I tried to engage him a while ago in a civil conversation but he prefers to be insulting. I will strongly suggest you don't respond to any of his rants because he does not belong to the company of humans.
ReplyDeleteSir,thank you for your continues contribution as we strive to achieve a better world for the Oroko man.
DeletePeople must always complain no matter how hard you try or how much you sacrifice.I always accept other people's views,it is part of the game.
According to Sigmund Freud,people like Konja Balondo constitute the atleast 5% insane people in every sane society.In other words, contradictory positions and obsessed with popularity in the negative connotation.
i agree with you on the naming issue iam kombe(hawk) which annoy me anytime i think about it,my sister is belole but still to find out what it means(i foolishly gave it to my daughter without finding out either)
ReplyDeleteO.M.G,sorry about that, I can feel your pain, I'm here looking for the meaning of "Bokone" cuz I might want to use it some day, if anyone has an idea of the meaning, please kindly mail it to me (bossmjr@gmail.com)
DeleteNANJE YA CREATIVE THINKING. KONJA BALONDO IS NOT A COWARD. HE JUST WANTS YOU SLAVES TO NOT INCLUDE BALONDO IN YOUR FAKE TRIBE BECAUSE THEY DO NOT WANT YOU AROUND THEM. THEY DO NOT SHARE ANY CULTURAL TIES AT ALL WITH YOU WRETCHES WHO GO THROUGH CULTURAL METAMORPHOSIS. WHY DO YOU WORSHIP THEM SO MUCH? IS IT BECAUSE THEIR ANCESTORS ENSLVED YOURS. BITCH YOU ANSWERED BALONDO FOR 300 YEARS. WHEN DID YOU EVER HEAR A BALONDO PERSON SAY HE WAS BALUE OR NGOLO? STAY AWY FROM THEM YOU WRETCHED OF THE EARTH
ReplyDeleteCalm down pa, if you take a look at the world where we are now, most of us in the next 100years will not be around, why then are we fighting for? Or is there something else you guys have got undercover?
ReplyDeleteAll this Balondo not Oroko is not helping and takes us nowhere, so what I know is that we all have similar dialects identifying us all as Oroko, so Balondo is not better than all the other 9 tribes in Oroko. Or is it better? Of course No. So why try to disassociate when you know you can't do it other tried and they left, you also will leave so it remains like that till we all dies.
ReplyDelete