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Brownbeauty123
Veteran Poster
Username: Brownbeauty123
Post Number: 1160
Registered: 03-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 08:22 am: | 
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Their names are Yameeka,Tanyanika,NaNotchka,& Keisha.... |
Brownbeauty123
Veteran Poster
Username: Brownbeauty123
Post Number: 1161
Registered: 03-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 08:23 am: |
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They're all successful women with "ghetto" names.
Yameeka Jones was named assistant administrator at Trinity Hospital responsible for the hospital's cancer center, outpatient diagnostics, the Women's Health Boutique, diversity development and the Women's Advisory Council.
Tanyanika Samuels is a journalist for the NY daily news.
NaNotchka M. Chumley, D.O., M.P.H. is the president of The Association of Black Women Physicians.
Keisha Clark, another journalist, is currently a Web Producer for The Business Journal Serving Tampa Bay, her other professional stints include reporter, producer and online editorial positions for DSN Retailing Today, a Lebhar-Friedman publication, WFTS-TV, WAAY-TV and WHNT-TV.
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Tonya
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Tonya
Post Number: 3321
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 10:58 am: |
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Brownbeauty, I'd venture to say that the vast majority of successful black women have either "ghetto" or African or some kind of foreign black name. When I think back to my second high school, all of the smart black girls had names like Tamika and Nakida and Tyeasha. Plus ABC does a "best of the class" special at the end of each school year--and all of the black girls they feature almost always have "ghetto" black names. Plus every black nurse I know has a "ghetto" black name (except for my two aunts and two sisters.) And most of the black female doctors I've ever met had either an African name or an old fashioned Negro name. I think "ghetto" names only affect non-professionals. It's easy to dismiss a résumé when it does not come with a lot of credentials. |
Fortified
Regular Poster
Username: Fortified
Post Number: 347
Registered: 04-2006
Rating: 
Votes: 1 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 11:39 am: |
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Tonya said:
And most of the black female doctors I've ever met had either an African name or an old fashioned Negro name. I think "ghetto" names only affect non-professionals. It's easy to dismiss a résumé when it does not come with a lot of credentials.
I still wouldn't take that chance and give my children names that sound beyond ghetto. You don't need a "La" or a ridiculous hyphen, apostrophe or accent to make you children "blacker" than they already are. |
Tonya
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Tonya
Post Number: 3323
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: 
Votes: 2 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 12:38 pm: |
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Fortified, it's hard to disagree with you because, honestly, I don’t know what I’d do when the time comes. I only know that I'd want the best for my child. I've always planned on naming my first baby *Christina* (if it's a girl)--but I made this decision way before black names became a problem. Anyway, it’s hard to say. But I just think we'd be going down a dangerous path if we choose to put all of our energy into avoiding things that will make us "blacker" ...instead of making the notion of "blackness" more positive. We'll lose focus of that challenge, IMO, if we keep deciding to take the easy ways out. |
Grind
Regular Poster
Username: Grind
Post Number: 131
Registered: 04-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 01:13 pm: |
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"But I just think we'd be going down a dangerous path if we choose to put all of our energy into avoiding things that will make us "blacker" ...instead of making the notion of "blackness" more positive."
I don't think many people have a problem with genuine African names as opposed to "ghetto" names that often sound and/or look (the way they are spelled) like someone just made up a name, trying to make it sound vaguely African. I don't know why, call me a snob, but the latter just seems low class to me. |
Nolanfane
Regular Poster
Username: Nolanfane
Post Number: 93
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 01:16 pm: |
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Grind my brother I agree 100%. Until I started reading some African literature I didn't even realize that most of these names are not even African. "Laqueesha" really is a ghetto name.
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Grind
Regular Poster
Username: Grind
Post Number: 132
Registered: 04-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 01:20 pm: |
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However, one of my ex-gf's did have a made up name that I rather liked. But it sounded and looked like a "real" name. |
Grind
Regular Poster
Username: Grind
Post Number: 133
Registered: 04-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 01:27 pm: |
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Nolanfane,
Yeah, "Laqueesha" is a good example of what I'm talking about. To me, the spelling is a lot of what makes it "ghetto." If it were spelled Lakwisha, it wouldn't seem so ridiculous. |
Renata
Veteran Poster
Username: Renata
Post Number: 1420
Registered: 08-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 03:41 pm: |
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Tanyika (or Tanganyika) is the name of an area in Africa. I can't remember where exactly. I've had a friend with that name as well as Kinshasha. |
Igbogirl
Regular Poster
Username: Igbogirl
Post Number: 455
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 03:57 pm: |
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there's a difference between an African name and a "ghetto name. Big difference. I think giving your kids an AFrican name is great
Anyway, I do not actually think that the majority of black girls have "ghetto" names. Its sort of a class thing. I doubt that upper middle class black parents are going to call their kid Shaneequa and so on.
Some of the names black girls are often called - like Ebony, Precious, Destiny - are not actually ghetto but really just rather creative and pretty. Ebony is a great name as long as its spelled EBONY rather than Eboni.
But look at the nutty names WHITE celebrities are giving their kids nowadays! Some of those names will make Shaneequa looks almost like a classy name |
Renata
Veteran Poster
Username: Renata
Post Number: 1421
Registered: 08-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 - 06:09 pm: |
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LOL....Scout.....Rumor....Fifi Trixibelle. |
Shemika
Regular Poster
Username: Shemika
Post Number: 253
Registered: 02-2006
Rating:
Votes: 3 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, October 04, 2006 - 03:14 am: |
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I don't have a problem with so called ghetto names; it’s only a negative thing if people perceive it as such, just as kinky hair has been considered negative when its should be celebrated. I think those names are creative and original. All names originated from someone being creative at some point and time, they didn't always exist.
I think allowing ourselves to be ourselves and creative here in America is what opened the door to appreciating our African Heritage, and coming up with all sorts of new styles including music like jazz, hip hop, the blues, funk and even creative dances like break dancing. Many blacks and whites were resistant to and judgmental of all those styles of music when they first came about, calling them too black, niggerish or ghetto. However, once blacks begin dismissing them the whites took them over as if they were their own.
And it does not surprise me that we were at the height of black & African pride (for our kinky hair and dark skin as well), creativity and civil rights progress when we also embraced the creation of these so called 'ghetto' names. The ghetto is the place we may reside but it is not who we are.
Looking for white approval simply keeps us from growing in our own distinct and beautiful direction as a people and making excuses to keep wearing mental chains. Having a European name never got us out of the back of the bus or won us any civil rights, nor will it compel anyone to give us a job. Self respect for what makes us a people got us that far and the loss if it will send us back.
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