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What's in a Name?

by MANJYOT KAUR (formerly, Laurie Bolger)

Since my very childhood, I have been fascinated by given names and their meanings.  So, naturally, once I knew I had passed the "point of no return" in my journey of becoming a Sikh, I wanted to learn as much as I could about Sikh names: what they signify and how they are derived.

Devoting time and thought to selecting the name that would be mine when I formally embraced Sikhi, through taking Amrit, turned into a source of great satisfaction and enjoyment for me.  The process was indeed an illuminating one  -  not only did I learn a lot about the Punjabi language, but also about the ideals of my chosen faith and what becoming an Amritdhari Sikh means to me.

As the absolute core of Sikhi, Guru Granth Sahib is given utmost primacy in all matters of Sikh life.  So it was not at all surprising for me to learn that Naamkaran, the ceremony whereby a Sikh name is chosen, revolves around deriving the name's initial letter from taking a Hukam, or Vaak: opening the sacred scripture at random and using the letter from the first word of the Shabd at the start of the upper left-hand page (or the page before that, if the one turned to is a continuation).

It seemed tremendously meaningful, and totally appropriate, that Guru Granth Sahib, as our eternal and living Guru, would occupy such a position of centrality in the important process of name selection.

It deeply impressed me that almost all elements that make up Sikh names are derived from Gurbani.  Some refer directly to God, the Lord of all, through a  variety of names, in a uniquely Sikh approach to the Ultimate Deity  -  such as "Brahm", "Dev", "Har",  "Inder", "Ishar", and "Prabh". Many others describe attributes of the Divine: for example, "Amar" - immortal, "Deep" - light, "Ik" -  one, and "Jit" -  victorious.  

Yet others speak of actions or qualities we would do well to cultivate in our human lives on Earth, like meditation on God ("Simran"), love ("Preet"), virtue ("Gun"), and humility ("Nimarta").

Two other major characteristics of Sikh names were also of great interest to me.  One was their unique unisex nature, reflecting the gender equality inherent to Sikhi.  Traits such as bravery or beauty that, in most other cultures, are deemed to be specifically masculine or feminine become, quite rightly, applicable to all people, regardless of sex.  The presence of "Singh" for males and "Kaur" for females is almost always the only way of determining the gender of a Sikh name.

The second was their compound composition: the fact that the vast majority of names are constructed with combinations of two or more segments.  Sometimes, these elements can act as either prefixes or suffixes.  For example, "Inderdeep" and "Deepinder" both mean "Light of God".

I know that many Sikh children are not named right away. After the name's initial letter is determined by the Vaak, Sikh parents often take considerable time to choose what they believe would be the perfect name for their son or daughter, consulting books and websites designed specifically for this purpose, and deliberating at length with family and friends.  It seems quite safe to say that newborns are unaware of this time lapse, and retain no conscious memory of ever having been nameless.

As an adult, however, I felt this option was not the right one for me. I knew I wanted to possess a Sikh name immediately upon formally converting to Sikhi.  Even though more than one person told me, "Get your letter first; why have the burden of needing to find a name for every letter of the alphabet?", I nonetheless welcomed and relished the research and reflection this task would entail.

So the linguistic challenge began.  First, I tried to familiarize myself as much as I could with the Punjabi alphabet.  Coming to the conclusion that I could disregard letters (such as "jhajhaa" and "njanjaa") that do not commonly occur at the beginning of words, I figured out that I would need to find names starting with 27 of Punjabi's 35 letters (40 letters, if one counts the 5 added to accomodate the sounds of "loan words" from Urdu), in order to feel reasonably secure that my list would cover every eventuality.

A concept inherent to Sikhi that immensely captivates me is the idea of Jot, or Divine Light.   I firmly adhere to the fundamental tenet that the first Sikh Guru, Nanak, was not only himself imbued with Jot, but also that the very same Light was transferred to all of his nine human successors, and that it now dwells perpetually in Guru Granth Sahib.  Moreover, I believe that it pervades the entire universe, including within us mere mortals  -  that there is nowhere that Divine Light does not reside.  

So right away, I knew I wanted to include "Jyot" (with an added "y" for the sake of easier phonetic pronunciation) in many of the names on my list.  More than a dozen names that made the final cut fell into this category.

I then thought I would like to come up with some "wishful thinking" names.  Don't all parents want their offspring to be happy, intelligent, attractive, strong, and so forth?  Of course, they do!

But, being that I was choosing a name for my own self, I decided that many of these types of names might come across as boastful or pretentious.  

Therefore, appelations like "Pargat" (one who blossoms forth into fame), "Kuldev" (the Godlike person in the family), "Jagmohan" (one who captivates the world) and "Anokh" (extraordinary and wondrous), while splendid names in their own right, seemed like they might be more than just a bit excessive, at least in my very humble case.  So, I decided some serious self-introspection was in order  -  what quality am I now sorely lacking that I would most like to have?  

That is how I came to add "Bachint" (without worry) and "Sehej" (patient and equipoised) to my candidates.

Some letters of the Punjabi alphabet do not often start words  -  like "ghaghaa", "chhachhaa", and "phaphaa"  -  but, wanting to be as assiduous as possible, I thought it unwise to leave them off the list completely.  So off to the dictionary I went.  I was relieved to find one word for each of these unusual initials that I felt would work well as a name.

Finally, after much revision, I ended up with a list of more than forty names I really loved.  I showed it to two of my dearest friends, who both gave me "thumbs up" on my choices.  Then, I was ready to face the big day.  Whatever letter Guru Granth Sahib would bestow upon me, I knew I would have a Sikh name I would feel immensely honored and privileged to carry for the rest of my life.  (I have taken the liberty of including all these names at the end of this piece.  I hope readers will like them.)

Through the Grace of the Guru, I was infinitely blessed with the incomparable gift of Amrit on the day before Vaisakhi this year. The Vaak that provided my initial letter was a beautiful Shabd, but then, what Shabd is not beautiful?  

It began with the line:

Man tan prabh aaraadheeai,
mil saadh samaagai.  

"Worship and adore God in your mind and body,
Join the company of the holy".

So now, I am Manjyot Kaur  -  "light of the mind".  

I truly hope and pray that I will always live up to the gift of my new name.


* * * * *

And here's the list of names I considered

 

OORHA:
USTAT -- praise
UPDESH -- Guru's precepts and teachings

AIRHAA:
ANTARJYOT -- the Divine light within
ANHAD -- the "unstruck" music

EERHEE:
INDERJOT -- God's light
IKJYOT -- one light

SASSA:
SHABDPRIT -- the love of God's Word
SEHEJ -- patient and equipoised

HAHAA:
HARSIMRAN -- meditation on God /  remembrance of God
HARLOCHAN -- eyes of God

KAKKAA:
KARAMJYOT -- the light of God's grace
KANIKA -- an atom, a particle

KHAKHAA:
KHIVI -- lemon grass; name of Guru Angad's wife
KHEMVIR -- joyous and brave

GAGGAA:
GURDARSHAN -- vision of the Guru
GURTEJ -- glory of the Guru

GHAGHAA:
GHARCHEEN -- one who realizes the Home within

CHACHCHAA:
CHARANJYOT -- light of the Guru's feet
CHANDERJYOT -- moon light

CHHACHHAA:
CHHAYA -- shadow

JAJJAA:
JYOTI -- flame
JAPNAAM -- meditation on Naam

TAINKAA:
TEKJYOT -- support of the Divine light

THATTHAA:
THAKURJIT -- winning the Master's love

TATTAA:
TRILOCHAN -- literally, having three eyes (i.e., one of higher
knowledge)

DADDAA:
DARSHAN -- vision of God
DARSHANJYOT --  vision of God's light

DHADDHAA:
DHARAMJYOT -- light of faith
DHARAMPRIT -- love of faith

NANNAA:
NAAMJYOT -- the light of Naam
NAVJYOT -- new light

PAPPAA:
PURAN -- fulfilled, complete
PURANJYOT -- perfect light

PHAPHAA:
PHURMAAN -- supreme command

BABBAA:
BACHINT -- without worry

BHABHAA:
BHAKTI -- devotion

MAMMAA:
MANJYOT -- light of the mind
MANVIR -- brave heart

YAYYAA:
YUVRANI -- princess

RAARAA:
RASNAAM -- one who drinks the elixir of Naam
RASJEEVAN -- one whose life is full of the elixir of Naam

LALLAA:
LIVJYOT -- absorbed in the light of God
LIVNAAM -- absorbed in Naam

VAAVAA:
VICHAAR -- thoughtful reflection, contemplation
VIDYA --  learning, knowledge

Conversation about this article

1: Manjit Kaur (Gaithersburg, Maryland), May 01, 2007, 9:36 AM.

Congratulations on becoming a Khalsa. May your journey be a successful one. And everyday, may you be one with Waheguru and enjoy the bliss.

2: Amrik Singh (New Delhi, India), May 02, 2007, 4:25 AM.

It is inspiring to see someone put so much thought and commitment into something that we simply take for granted. Thank you for sharing an experience which most of us will never get to have.

3: Farid Kaur (Vancouver, Canada), May 03, 2007, 7:05 AM.

A treasure-trove of Sikh names for new-borns! Some of them are bound to surface in the next crop of Kaurs and Singhs. Thanks for digging them out - and publishing them.

4: Roopinder Singh (Surrey, B.C., Canada), May 04, 2007, 4:32 PM.

Lakh lakh Mubarak! Great to see that you have taken Amrit.

5: Baljeet Kaur (New Zealand), May 22, 2007, 4:31 PM.

Welcome to the Khalsa Family! You have come up with some great names and their wonderful meanings.

6: Roopinder Singh (Surrey, B.C., Canada), May 28, 2007, 12:35 PM.

Sikh names: any name with Singh or Kaur attached is a Sikh name ? [Editor: The simple rule is: All Sikhs are "Singhs", but all "Singhs" are not Sikhs! Some Rajputs, Garhwalis, Nepalese, and few other communities have used the name as well. Some Hindu communities also use a derivation, "Sinha". However, "Kaur" as a name for women is unique to Sikhs and, contrary to some bad and pseudo "scholarship" that has surfaced recently on this topic, it has been the standard Sikh female last name since the beginning of the 18th century.]

7: Roopinder Singh (Surrey, British Columbia, Canada), September 05, 2007, 5:36 PM.

Daya, Dharam, Himmat, Mohkam and Sahib, after taking amrit, became Daya Singh, Dharam Singh, Himmat Singh, Mohkam Singh and Sahib Singh, respectively. Guru Gobind Rai became Guru Gobind Singh.

8: Santokh Singh (Malaysia), September 23, 2007, 11:45 AM.

Your article is linked to sikhphilosophy.net under thread name: "Why I chose Sikhism".

9: Jasnik/Jasneek (Delhi, India), November 14, 2007, 5:16 AM.

Can someone help me with the meaning of my name?

10: Amrit Pal Singh (India), November 23, 2007, 3:16 AM.

Contratulations on becoming aember of the coveted Khalsa. Just wanted to share: we named our second daughter, coming to us after a gap of 11 years after our first one, as HARKIRPA KAUR - indeed she came as a "blessing" - "Saheb Tutthe Jo Miley".

11: Sukhwinder Singh (Birmingham, United Kingdom), July 07, 2010, 6:42 AM.

Wow! I felt so inspired by your article. Although my three God given children, Amrit Kaur, Amanveer Singh and Simran Kaur were named without the Guru's blessing, it was my wife's wish that we do not turn to the Guru Granth in case she got a letter that she did not like (God bless her). I always wanted to do it with a vaak from Guru Granth Sahib. However, we are blessed by Waheguru. God bless you, my sister, for sharing this blessing.

12: Amrutpal Singh (Mumbai, India), August 08, 2016, 10:17 AM.

Can any one tell me the meaning of my name Amrutpal Singh, please?

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