All about the amazing name Nana
Many people in the US associate nana with music. How many
songs have you heard with nana in it? Loads.
When Rhiana sings: Oh, na na.
I respond: That’s my name. Instead of What;s my name?
The name Nana may be exotic or grandparentish most of the
world, but in Ghana, calling out the name Nana in a crowd will get a lot of
heads turning in your direction.
When I first started writing I had to decide which name I’d
use. Would I use my own or a pseudonym. I chose my own because I love it so
much. I have three names – technically one is a title of sorts. Nana Araba Prah
In Ghana many people are named after the day they were born.
We have lots of other names, too, but you'll find these to be the most
common. Since I am a Fante by tribe I will share those, but many of the other
tribes have similar names and the names can differ in spelling even within a
tribe. Things change when you travel to the North of Ghana, though.
|
Day
|
Female
|
Male
|
|
Sunday
|
Esi
|
Kwesi
|
|
Monday
|
Adwoa
|
Kodwo
|
|
Tuesday
|
Araba / Abena
|
Kobina
|
|
Wednesday
|
Ekua
|
Kweku
|
|
Thursday
|
Aba / Yaa
|
Ekow / Yaw
|
|
Friday
|
Efua
|
Kofi
|
|
Saturday
|
Ama
|
Kwamena
|
With a population of 28 million you can see how things would
get confusing when people have similar Ghanaian names. We have titles to help
differentiate, especially when they are born on the same day in the same
family. The title may also denote that the person was named after a family
member.
There are many titles, but a couple are Nana and Maame for
females and Uncle and Paapa for males.
Nana is common among both males and females.
So when it came to choosing my author name I went for the most
simple and popular of my names. The one that everyone in the US called me when
I lived there because they could pronounce it. Nana Prah. There are so many published
authors from Ghana with the first name of Nanal. For those from the rest of the
world the name may seem unique (unless talking about grandmothers) but it’s
not. It is actually the title of royalty.
Some Nana authors that come to mind.
Nana Prah Awesome Me!
And I’m sure there are many more.
