Yoruba Names: Language, Culture, and History

This book focuses on the naming tradition among the Yoruba, one of Africa’s largest ethnic groups, consisting of over 40 million people.

Investigating the sociocultural significance of names in Yoruba society, the book shows how names act as distinctive markers, separating the Yoruba out from over 250 other ethnic groups in Nigeria. These names are not just labels, but affirmations of a shared identity and heritage. Names can serve as symbolic representations of a family’s history, ancestral...