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This article investigates the motivations and ideological foundations of religion-based personal names among a sampled population of the Tiv community who are predominantly found along the middle Benue Valley in Benue State, North-central Nigeria. The names bestowed by adherents of different re...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
University Library System, University of Pittsburgh
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Names |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://ans-names.pitt.edu/ans/article/view/2716 |
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| Summary: | This article investigates the motivations and ideological foundations of religion-based personal names among a sampled population of the Tiv community who are predominantly found along the middle Benue Valley in Benue State, North-central Nigeria. The names bestowed by adherents of different religions (traditional Tiv, Christianity and Islam) reflect a personally determined system of representation based on a belief in spiritual practices and icons like witchcraft, an afterlife, the influence of ancestors, and a supreme God. This investigation demonstrates how religious names in the Tiv sample reflect a strong symbolic association between the name-givers and their faith or beliefs. The names also provide a platform whereby religious adherents can initiate a dialogue with supernatural forces. Religion-based names also permit adherents to project a healthy self-image and create psychological unity thanks to the sense of protection that they are believed to confer.1
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| ISSN: | 0027-7738 1756-2279 |