Semantics, Morphology and Gender-Marking in Datooga Personal Names

Abstract

This paper describes the Datooga personal names in terms of theirsemantics and morphology as well as how gender is marked inthose names. Based on a sample of 490 personal names,the paperre-affirms that Datooga personal names are meaningful as theyreflect various events and activities in the society. Themeaningfulness of personal names is attributed to the fact thatthey are derived from the said events and activities. The majormorphological processes involved in the derivation of the personalnames are affixation, conversion, verbal negation, borrowing andcompounding. In marking the gender of personal names, an arrayof linguistic and extra-linguistic factors is involved for genderdifferentiation in the Datooga naming system. Further, themeaning of certain lexical items is central in determining howgender is marked in personal names. Female names derive fromlexical items with the themes beauty, docility and small size whilemale names are associated with the themes bad looking, big sizeand dangerous/destructive events/activities. The semantics of thenames are best captured through an encyclopaedic view ofmeaning since their meanings are interwoven with the generalculture of the Datooga community.Key words: Datooga, gender, gender