fertility and a safe delivery, and that the family
lineage and the community are being perpetuated
and strengthened. In many African communities,
however, festivities to celebrate the arrival of a
baby do not start until a few days after birth
because one must make sure that the baby is
healthy and will live on. Only then will the
rejoicing start. In fact, and more important, the
new child does not officially start existing until
he or she has been named as part of his or her
first rite of passage, that is, the naming cere-
mony. Among the Akamba people, a child is
named after 3 days. A goat is then slaughtered as
a token of appreciation for the ancestors who are
responsible for human fertility. Among the Akan,
a girl or a boy is named on the eighth day after
being physically born. Among the Yoruba, the
child is named on the eighth day as well. For the
Hutu, it is on the seventh day that naming cere-
monies take place. Until then, both mother and
baby are expected to remain alone in the home.
However, regardless of when the naming cere-
mony takes place, what is underscored is that
existence is first and foremost a social experi-
ence. Although one may be born in the physical
sense, one’s existence starts only when one has
been acknowledged as a member of a commu-
nity. Through the naming ceremony, a new
human being comes into being as it becomes
integrated into a community. Only at that point
is someone considered to exist. Thus, the funda-
mental assertion undergirding the naming cere-
mony is that existence is a corporate experience,
not an individual one. The names given to the
child further assign him or her a place in the
family, the community, and the universe. This is
why all community members take part in the
naming of the child, because the child belongs to
the whole community and because all have a
stake in its proper insertion in the society.
Among the Edo people, the naming ceremony
occurs on the seventh day after a child is born. In
the morning, close relatives and elders assemble
to pray for the newborn child and its parents:
they pray that they will be blessed with prosper-
ity, good health, and a long life. The elders, usu-
ally after having engaged in divination, offer a
name to the baby’s father. Divination helps deter-
mine which ancestor may be coming back
through the child. Later on, in the evening, others
in the community join to officially welcome the
newborn. Specific ritual food and drinks will be
used, such as kola nuts, honey, sugar, and alliga-
tor pepper for prayers; and gin and palm wine
for prayers and libation. A coconut full of water
will be broken and shown to the women as a
symbolic representation of the mystery of life.
Yams will be cooked and shared by the women.
All those in attendance will give a name to the
child and partake in a meal. In Africa, names are
always meaningful and are believed to be an
essential part of one’s spiritual and social iden-
tity. Names are therefore sacred.
In Akan society, names are determined by the
day on which the birth occurs. The Akan naming
ceremony is known asDen to. Until the time for
Den to has come, a baby is to remain in seclusion.
Each day of the week is governed by a particular
Obosom(or divinity created by God). Therefore,
the day on which a child is born is of great impor-
tance because the spiritual attributes of the
Obosom of that day are transferred to thekra(or
soul) of the child. Everyone receives a soul name
that is known askraden(plural:akraden) and that
is again determined by the day on which he or she
was born. Thus, a male born on a Sunday will be
named Kwesi, Kwasi, or Akwasi, whereas a
female will be named Akosua, Akousia, or Esi, all
after the Obosom Awusi or Asi, who is related to
the sun, and associated with leadership. In addi-
tion to their kraden, the child receives other
names, in particular, their formal name, known as
den pa, which identifies the child’s function and
potential as it relates to his or her clan. The nam-
ing ceremony starts early in the morning of the
eighth day. Family members and the elders gather
at the father’s house. Prayers are said, libations are
poured, and spirits are invoked. Two ritual cups
are used, one containing a strong alcoholic drink
(nsa) and the other containing water. An elder on
the father’s side will announce the child’s names.
Gifts are then presented to the newborn, whose
names are shared with every member of the com-
munity. Everyone, in honor of the child, will drink
from one of the cups where water and nsa have
been mixed and start sharing a meal.
In some communities, boys may be circum-
cised as part of the rituals associated with the
naming ceremony. Such is the case among the
Ewe people, who circumcise males on the seventhRites of Passage 571