LAHORE: There is a flood of books on the market but precious little work on various aspects of language and linguistics. Dr Tariq Rahman’s recently launched book “Names – A Study of Personal Names, Identity, and Power in Pakistan” is, therefore, a refreshing study of a very important part of one’s life – name.

The scholarly study of personal names in Pakistan is based on an analysis of names from all over the country. It is unique in the sense that (according to the publisher’s account) the only earlier study was by Sir Richard Temple in 1883 and the data for that came from East Punjab, now in India.

“Thus there was only one chapter on Muslim names in it.”

The book, which is an endeavour to fill this vacuum, is largely based on the data the author has gleaned from all parts of the country and can be a resource work for students and researchers interested in the study of personal names. At the same time it is replete with anecdotes and interesting observations while highlighting the significance of names as marker of identity and power.

The distinguished scholar deliberated on the issues covered in his book at a talk at the Oxford University Press (OUP) outlet in Gulberg on Friday.

Sharing a Partition story with the audience according to which “a man asked another his name. Upon being told he killed him,” he underscored the importance of a name and what considerations go into choosing one. And unlike Shakespeare’s “What is in a name…” observation, he insisted there’s in fact a lot in a name.

“A name is more than a label attached to a person, for it has a lot to do with history and resonance with certain tradition,” he said.

Describing his work as a study of names as symbol of power and identity rather than a linguistic pursuit, he explained the phenomenon of changing names with improvement in social status. Quite interestingly, the names often get bigger with improved status in society and change according to modern/urban requirements.

The book analyses the names of the political elite in the national and provincial assemblies of Pakistan which corroborate what the author calls “piling up of titles”.

Dr Rahman reflected on the psychological aspect and said since it is man’s nature to attain power, many people prefer names with meanings showing strength and prowess. “The choice of names also depends on regional affiliations and conservatism or tradition,” he said while describing the selection of even nicknames as a symbol of power.

Another aspect, he said, was Islamization of names which is an attempt to add dignity to a name. He also referred to the British perception of names (that is class-based).

There is yet another aspect which the author called “no-naming”. In Pakistan, he said, there were many women who did not call their spouses by their names as a mark of respect. “There is nothing wrong with such a tradition and we must accommodate it,” he added.

He also talked about a depressing aspect, that is, the compulsion to conceal names or change these to stay out of harm’s way. It is dangerous to have certain names and people are forced to change these to avoid persecution.

The talk was followed by a brief question and answer session. Earlier, Ateeb Gul of the OUP said Friday’s event was a resumption of a series of discussion on books of high merit.

Published in Dawn, October 3rd , 2015

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