KanoOnline Online Forum

Thank you Admin,

The website is very resourceful but sadly does not have the list of names I am after.

A quick google revealed that Prof Abdallah is no longer at BUK, but the VC of NOUN. I guess he'll be even harder to reach. But I'll keep trying.

Thanks so much for your help.

Quote from: AspiringKande on August 14, 2016, 01:54:02 AM

Quote from: bakangizo on May 26, 2011, 08:22:15 AM

Is it safe to assume that almost all Hausa traditional names are associated with the events, circumstances, locations etc surrounding the birth of the child?

A lot of them are, but not all. It's the same as in other cultures. In Hausa we have names like Wada (m) and Yalwa (f) which mean 'abundance' and are given to ensure wealth, most English names such as Jane, Mark etc had meanings too, but the meanings have been lost over centuries as the language evolved. The same way some Hausa names such as Yaquled, Turunku, Bakwa, Daurama etc are just plain names to us because their meanings have been lost because that version of Hausa is no longer spoken.

Lol! And here ws I thinking the name "Wada" has its origin from a dwarf  . Now, I have a colleague named Wadata. Is that a shortened form of 'Wada'? Because Wadata refers to affluence or abundance in a much better way than simply Wada.

Exactly, Wada, came from 'Wadata'. the name is given to ensure wealth/affluence.

Is it safe to assume that almost all Hausa traditional names are associated with the events, circumstances, locations etc surrounding the birth of the child?

A lot of them are, but not all. It's the same as in other cultures. In Hausa we have names like Wada (m) and Yalwa (f) which mean 'abundance' and are given to ensure wealth, most English names such as Jane, Mark etc had meanings too, but the meanings have been lost over centuries as the language evolved. The same way some Hausa names such as Yaquled, Turunku, Bakwa, Daurama etc are just plain names to us because their meanings have been lost because that version of Hausa is no longer spoken.