I thought it might be interesting to share something that recently came up in my first draft and in research.
Background:
My horror (ugh, I hate that term for what I write...) is set in Victorian London in 1865+
A West African (The Gold Coast as was, Ghana nowadays) secondary, non-POV character called Apollo is a close friend/steward of a Captain Sir Benedict Ackley (ret.), and how he came to be in Sir Ned's life is briefly explored (they now live in a big pile in Romsey, Hants (called Marcombe in my wip)).
Their meeting goes back to the first Anglo-Ashanti War (1831+) where the Brits were 'protecting' (ahem) the Fante and Ga from the Ashantis who were invading the coast from inland (Kumasi).
Obviously Apollo is not this character's birth name, [and my knowledge of Ghanaian names is quite broad because of my work there, and my partner of 9 years being Ghanaian (an Ewe, from the Volta Region)] so I wanted to include a sentence about his birth name. Most will have four names, and often the defining name can have strange (to Britons) origins. In this case I wanted Apollo to be called Obímp3 (Obimpe) which means 'unwanted' or 'nobody wants'. (Usually down to a father disowning or refusing a child) . I'd decided the child was born on a Wednesday so tradition would dictate he be called Kweku, and I used a surname of Nsiah.
I checked with my partner who said it would cause problems as they are names that could possibly exist in Ghana. I said, yes, I knew that, and I was sure there were many characters in literature with real-life counterparts (There is a play called The Late Christopher Bean, FWIW). He said it was different because I was not using any English name, and when you use traditional names (especially as this character Apollo may or may not be homosexual, depending on the reader's interpretation) it would be very upsetting for the person who shared that name. He said I should just use Obímp3 (which I am fine with - there's no narrative need for a full name), or Kweku, but not a full name.
He said it's alright in literature like 'Things Fall Apart' etc which is culturally important story for W.Africa, but it would be troublesome for me as a writer of spec fiction, esp horror. Furthermore, in my experience there is an incredible juxtapostion amongst many African cultures who are often devout Christians, but also understand and believe in voudun/vodun - the so-called juju. So using a full name in this way, esp in what could be seen as a profane piece of literature, would be offensive.
[On a related note, names are sacred, far more so than in the UK. When I visit Ghana, the villagers shout "Akwesi Manu" at me instead of "Christopher", because after being 'adopted' by them, they prefer that I am labeled by my Ghanaian name (in this case, Akwesi can also be, Kwesi, Kwasi, Quarshie, or whatever, depending on tribe). Akwesi = born on a Sunday, Manu = second born, son.]
Anyway, I did feel pretty shocked that I could not put these two things together, despite my exposure to that particular culture. I thought it might be of use to those here who write outside of our cultural capital; no matter how good your research, there will be things others see through their cultural lens, that you cannot, or might miss.
pH
ETA: You should have seen his face when I asked him to translate my curse into Akan/Fanti
)
Background:
My horror (ugh, I hate that term for what I write...) is set in Victorian London in 1865+
A West African (The Gold Coast as was, Ghana nowadays) secondary, non-POV character called Apollo is a close friend/steward of a Captain Sir Benedict Ackley (ret.), and how he came to be in Sir Ned's life is briefly explored (they now live in a big pile in Romsey, Hants (called Marcombe in my wip)).
Their meeting goes back to the first Anglo-Ashanti War (1831+) where the Brits were 'protecting' (ahem) the Fante and Ga from the Ashantis who were invading the coast from inland (Kumasi).
Obviously Apollo is not this character's birth name, [and my knowledge of Ghanaian names is quite broad because of my work there, and my partner of 9 years being Ghanaian (an Ewe, from the Volta Region)] so I wanted to include a sentence about his birth name. Most will have four names, and often the defining name can have strange (to Britons) origins. In this case I wanted Apollo to be called Obímp3 (Obimpe) which means 'unwanted' or 'nobody wants'. (Usually down to a father disowning or refusing a child) . I'd decided the child was born on a Wednesday so tradition would dictate he be called Kweku, and I used a surname of Nsiah.
I checked with my partner who said it would cause problems as they are names that could possibly exist in Ghana. I said, yes, I knew that, and I was sure there were many characters in literature with real-life counterparts (There is a play called The Late Christopher Bean, FWIW). He said it was different because I was not using any English name, and when you use traditional names (especially as this character Apollo may or may not be homosexual, depending on the reader's interpretation) it would be very upsetting for the person who shared that name. He said I should just use Obímp3 (which I am fine with - there's no narrative need for a full name), or Kweku, but not a full name.
He said it's alright in literature like 'Things Fall Apart' etc which is culturally important story for W.Africa, but it would be troublesome for me as a writer of spec fiction, esp horror. Furthermore, in my experience there is an incredible juxtapostion amongst many African cultures who are often devout Christians, but also understand and believe in voudun/vodun - the so-called juju. So using a full name in this way, esp in what could be seen as a profane piece of literature, would be offensive.
[On a related note, names are sacred, far more so than in the UK. When I visit Ghana, the villagers shout "Akwesi Manu" at me instead of "Christopher", because after being 'adopted' by them, they prefer that I am labeled by my Ghanaian name (in this case, Akwesi can also be, Kwesi, Kwasi, Quarshie, or whatever, depending on tribe). Akwesi = born on a Sunday, Manu = second born, son.]
Anyway, I did feel pretty shocked that I could not put these two things together, despite my exposure to that particular culture. I thought it might be of use to those here who write outside of our cultural capital; no matter how good your research, there will be things others see through their cultural lens, that you cannot, or might miss.
pH
ETA: You should have seen his face when I asked him to translate my curse into Akan/Fanti
)
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