PREFACE

CONTENTS 

87. Fontoymont. “Toponymie de Tananarive.” Bulletin de l’académie malgache 26 (1941): 179-186.

This article presents the first part of Fontoymont’s project which consists of editing and updating an incomplete book on the toponymy of Tananarive, the capital city of the colonial Madagascar, written by the late Mithridate. In his introduction the author describes the circumstances in which his project took place and the importance he attaches to it. The rest of the article is a vivid toponymic description of the architectural, economic and social story of a city in constant change. Whole areas of the town, its main streets and avenues, seem take a life of their own and reveal the multi-layered story of the colonial experience.

88. Humphreys, A. J. B. “The Significance of Place Names in Archeological Research (With Particular Reference to the Northern Cape).” African Studies 52, no. 1 (1993): 43-53. [Bibliography]

Humphreys underscores the epistemological importance of the study of place names in archaelogical research. His methodological approach is grounded in the observation that “place names can be highly revealing because of the way they capture people’s perceptions.” Based on three case studies done in the Cape region he shows how place names can indeed be a good indication of the way people who lived in these places perceived the nature around them and what their relationships to these places were. A set of graphs, a table and an appendix on the meaning of Tswana place names make this article accessible even to the non specialist.

89. Jenkins, Elwyn. Public Participation in Recent and Future Place Name Changes. Johannesburg: South African Institute of Race Relations, 1996. 13 p. [Bibliography]

This article is an account of the democratic name change process that started in South Africa since the lifting of the ban on the African National Congress in 1990. Jenkins shows how, despite a conservative resistance to the upsurge of interest in changing place names to reflect the new democratic reality, the will of the people has prevailed and official supervision has channeled the public participation that has been, and still is positive overall. The author warns against slippage away from the decisions of the arbitration agency, the National Place Name Committee (NPNC). Slippage can come from three sides: first, some governmental agencies might simply ignore or bypass the authority of the NPNC; second, local communities may insist on their own chosen names; and third, businesses are chiefly interested in the marketability of certain name changes.

90. Jenkins, E. R., P.E. Raper, and L.A. Moller. Changing Place Names. Durban: Indicator Press, 1996. 112 p. [Bibliography]

This short book seems to be written for the non-expert seeking an introduction to the topic of how toponyms have changed over time. While seeking to describe the patterns of historical name changes as universal phenomena, the authors draw the bulk of their examples from the history of place name changes in the Republic of South Africa. Each chapter ends with a list of references that a newcomer or an expert could use to further pursue the topic. The authors use humorous cartoons by Anthony Stidolph to accentuate the variety of humorous situations human beings find themselves in when faced with unfamiliar place names.

91. Koopman, Adrian. “Naming as Marketing Strategy in a Coastal Resort: The Case of St. Lucia.” Nomina Africana 16, nos. 1-2 (2002): 42-55. [Bibliography ; notes]

The object of this interesting and stimulating article is the study of the ways in which the names of hotels, holiday flats, caravan parks , restaurants and other vendor-venues of St. Lucia, a South-African coastal resort, are used as a marketing strategy to attract potential customers. These names constitute complex messages conveyed through linguistic means which are enhanced with lyrics and iconographic images. Koopman gives us a minute and convincing analysis of these messages after dividing the names into what he calls different semantic categories which are, I surmise, cultural and ergonymic contexts such as peace, rest and tranquility, the fish and the fowl. Koopman defines his work as a bridge between the well-established discipline of toponymy and “the relatively (almost totally) un-established discipline of brand-name study”. Brand-name study which is a sub-discipline of onomastics known to specialists as ergonymy is absent from African onomastics and, for that reason Koopman’s article is an exemplary and welcome contribution. But ergonomy is by no means an un-established discipline outside Africa.

92. Larson, Pier M. “Desperately Seeking ‘The Merina’ (Central Madagascar): Reading Ethnonyms and Their Semantic Fields in African Identity Histories.” Journal of Southern African Studies 22, no. 4 (1996): 541-60. [Notes]

“Desperately seeking the Merina” is a subtle, incisive and well-documented critique of the ethnicization of politically generated corporate names. The author applies what he calls a temporally and semantically deep reading of African ethnic names to the case of the Merina of central Madagascar. He argues forcefully that not only are the meanings of ethnic names changing over time but that ethnic identities are themselves shifting. The use of numerous texts in Malagasy language and the well supported comparison of Merina and Zulu identities in the 19th century lend a certain authority to Larson’s critical method. The author concludes by recommending that this method be applied to the rest of pre-colonial Africa. The innumerable footnotes constitute in themselves a sort of parallel text which adds further weight to Larson’s historical analysis and testifies to his deep knowledge of the issue at hand.

93. Lestrade, G. P. “The Spelling of Names of Bantu Languages and Tribes in English.” Bantu Studies 11, no. 4 (1937): 373-75.

This short article consists of a report on the results of a memorandum on the spelling of Southern African Bantu names in English. The article spells out the objective of the memorandum and the methodological principles and guidelines under which the memorandum operated. It ends with a list of examples of the concrete application of these principles to different southern African languages.

94. Meiring, Barbara. “Dialects in Toponymic Guidelines: A Multilingual South Africa.” Actas do XX Congreso Internacional de Ciencias Onomasticas. Santiago: Institudo da Lingua Galega, 1999. [Bibliography ; notes]

Why should dialectology matter to toponymy? In her 1998 article (see below) Babara Amorcet Meiring warned against the neglect of dialectical variations in the process of formalizing place names because it could lead to the suppression of human creativity inherent in language innovation. In this 1999 article, Meiring elaborates on this plea for the integration of dialectology into toponomy, particularly in the multicultural context of post-apartheid South-Africa. She makes a series of arguments to support her position and backs them up with an analysis of a variety of texts. Two arguments are particularly worth mentioning. First, she reminds us that standardized language is another form of language, albeit a normative one, and that we should not ignore its relationship to other forms of language. Second, she claims that the dialectical variations of a language contain an important part of the motivation behind the bestowing of names under consideration. To ignore these variations, she infers, would amount to depriving oneself of the precious cultural and social knowledge encapsulated in those names. Finally, Meiring states that resorting to dialectical variations can be of methodological importance in the case of seemingly unaccountable or otherwise contentious toponyms.

95. ----------. “New Names for a New South Africa.” In Proceedings of the XIXth International Congress of Onomastic Sciences, Aberdeen, August 4-11, 1996: Scope, Perspectives and Methods of Onomastics, edited by W.F.H. Nicolaisen, vol. 2, 241-7. Aberdeen: Dept. of English, University of Aberdeen, 1998.

In this article Barbara Amorcet (Babs) Meiring warns against the excessive and counterproductive insistence on the “technical factor” in name change practices and policies in South Africa. Accordingly, she argues, guidelines, methods and standardization should be paramount regarding name changes. She points to the important but seemingly neglected aspect which she calls the “human factor”, underscoring the fact that names are the creation of human minds. The author advocates a balanced approach to name change that is sensitive to dialectical variations of names which are the expression of the human creativity.

96. ----------. “Semantiese Velde as Kategoriee in Plekname.” Nomina Africana 11, no. 2 (1997): 21-36. [Bibliography ; introduction and summary in English]

Babs Meiring’s article is a semantically elegant exposition of one of the major tenets of African onomastics which contends that all proper names are condensed sentences. She calls these information bearing sentences “propositions”, but she takes great care to explain that the natural form of these propositions is often cryptic, metaphoric, and approximate. Provided that one reconstructs these approximate forms through an etymological inquiry that takes into account semantic domains, one can discover or rather uncover the cognitive value of toponyms. By cognitive value, Meiring means the knowledge gained by recovering the motivations behind the actual naming of places. This is, undoubtedly, a new and promising approach to African onomastics, but whose logical format needs to be fully developed.

97. ----------. “Toponymic Innovation and Change”. Nomina Africana 8, no. 1 (1994): 65-79. [Bibliography ; notes]

The author draws on the recent history of South Africa to make and support her central statement that political and historical events effect social change, which in turn involves changes of names. According to Meiring, names are ‘indicators of how people think and see the world around them’. Proceeding from this statement, the author goes on to claim that in order to make these changes acceptable, and their diffusion effective, one needs to look at how change is managed. In other words, public participation is key to any successful diffusion of toponymic innovation.

98. Moller, Lucie A. “Scope and Method of Toponymic Research in Southern Africa.” In Proceedings of the XIXth International Congress of Onomastic Sciences, Aberdeen, August 4-11, 1996: Scope, Perspectives and Methods of Onomastics, edited by W. F. H. Nicolaisen, vol. 1, 214-21. Aberdeen: Dept. of English, University of Aberdeen, 1998.

In this book chapter, Lucie Moller takes note of the fact that change in the political, economic and social order of South Africa has affected the toponymic landscape, and calls for an adjustment of the toponymic scope. This implies community involvement and empowerment and requires toponymic training and research. In brief, the new toponymic landscape of South Africa should be defined by a “toponymic network of participation” at various levels: academic, administrative, technical and community level.

99. Names Society of Southern Africa. Concise Gazetteer of South Africa. Pretoria: Names Society of Southern Africa, 1994.

This gazetteer represents one small piece of a much larger project in South Africa, that of establishing place name standards. The introduction presents the multi-faceted linguistic history of South Africa, but also suggests a movement towards the standardization of place names originating from the two official languages: English and Afrikaans. There is much for a scholar to learn about the multiple languages of the country and their many aspects such as spelling and pronunciation rules. Place names are listed in alphabetical order and are described by feature, location district, and by whether the name is official or unofficial.

100. Pirie, G.H. “Letters, Words, Worlds: The Naming of SOWETO.” African Studies Journal 43, no. 1 (1984): 43-51.

It is amazing how a contrived name such as Soweto, an anagram for “South West Township” has evolved beyond the paucity of its original meaning to represent a multitude of political, social and historical meanings for the entire world. In this dense article, Pirie provides us with some elements of understanding about the naming of Soweto. The first section describes the naming process from the 1930’s to the 1960’s. Using information from local archives, the author brings to light a long series of power struggles between the different boards around the issue of what the linguistic and ethnic origin of the name should be. In a second section, Pirie reflects on the meaning of the large number of proposed names and some of the insights these names provide into the minds of South Africans of that era. The author states that even the names that did not make it to the top of the list are “rich depositories of information about the perception of places.” Pirie concludes with an epistemological reflection on the genesis of toponyms. He rejects the concept of toponyms as “historical signposts” which he attributes to Taylor and foregrounds the social conditions surrounding the emergence of certain toponyms which are exemplified by the genesis and the meaning of the name Soweto.

101. Raper, Pieter E. “Standardising Geographical Names in a Changed Society.” In Proceedings of the XIXth International Congress of Onomastic Sciences, Aberdeen, August 4-11, 1996: Scope, Perspectives and Methods of Onomastics, edited by W. F. H. Nicolaisen, vol. 1, 264-74. Aberdeen: Dept. of English, University of Aberdeen, 1998.

The bulk of this highly informative article consists of a description of the South African experience of standardization of place names. The author begins this article by defining the concept of “standardization of geographical names” and underlining the guiding role of the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographic Names (UNGEGN) as well as the role of National Standardization as a prerequisite for international standardization. In the remainder of this article, Raper describes the South African experience in great detail: the challenges (for instance, the many languages involved and the problem of the choice of names and spelling); the procedure (the establishment of a dynamic name authority and other instances of communication and diffusion); the means (for instance, the creation of maps, gazetteers and databases); etc. This is a very useful source particularly for those who are looking for a good model of place name standardization.

102. ----------. Dictionary of Southern African Place Names. 2nd ed. Johannesburg: J. Ball, 1987. 608 p. [Bibliography]

This second edition of Raper’s dictionary includes 4,000 entries of place names throughout Southern Africa. In addition to the Republic of South Africa, this dictionary includes Botswana, Ciskei, Lesotho, Namibia, Swaziland, Transkei and Venda. Peter Raper, a former representative for South Africa to the United Group of Experts on Geographic Names (UNGEGN), has used his expertise in writing this dictionary. But the dictionary was produced as a scientific undertaking insofar as it seeks to list and describes all the known place names, not just those recognized by the National Place Names Committee (NPNC). The dictionary entries are alphabetically arranged. Each name is followed by a description of the administrative region, a verbal description of the location, and the history and origins of the toponym.

103. ----------. “Language Contact as Reflected in Toponyms in South-West Africa/Namibia.” Names 35, no. 1 (1987): 59-63. [Notes]

This note shows how and to what degree ethnonyms can reveal language contacts. It presents the findings of a study done in South–West Africa/Namibia. The languages involved in the study were Khoekhoen languages, Afrikaans, Nama and German. One finding is that when names from different languages compete for the same or proximate geographical features, the more recently bestowed name is often only a translation of the older one. It was also found that linguistically hybrid toponyms also give evidence of language contact. A third important result is that a topological entity can receive different names from successive language groups that come into contact with it. A final discovery shows that popular etymology is the locus of language contacts.

104. ----------. “Portuguese Place Names in South Africa.” Miscelanea Luso-Africana/Colectanea d’Etudos Coligidos, edited by Marius F. Valkhoff, 265-91. Lisbon: Junta de Investigacoes do Ultramar, 1975. [Notes]

Portuguese mariners were among the first Europeans to explore the African continent. They marked the places in which they set foot by giving them names. In this paper, Raper gives us a picture of the impact of the Portuguese toponymy on South Africa’s culture and history by analyzing 97 toponyms. He gives the etymology of each name, along with the description of the circumstances surrounding the name and the motivations behind the naming, thus providing us with important geographical and historical data, as well as an insightful glimpse into the motivations of the namers and the characteristics of the African tribes encountered by the mariners. The toponyms are alphabetically arranged. This organization, along with a highly informative introduction and abundant notes, makes Raper’s text easy to navigate.

105. Wilson, M. L. Notes on the Nomenclature of the Khoisan. Cape Town: South African Museum, 1986. [Bibliography]

In this article, Wilson reflects on the outcomes of the 1971 conference on the People of South Africa. The participants to this conference agreed to use the terms ‘San’ and ‘Khoikhoi’ to designate biological entities, ‘Bushman’ and ‘Hottentots’ for languages, and ‘Hunters’ or ‘Pastoralists’ for economy or way of life. Wilson calls into question the motives and reasons for such a designations and documents the origin, meaning and history of each term. He arrives at the conclusion that the use of these terms is not based on clear disciplinary reasons but depends on the context and on individual preferences.

106. Zwinoira, Robert T. “Some Toponyms and Ethnonyms of Swaziland.” In African Ethnonyms and Toponyms: Report and Papers of the Meeting of Experts, 23-38. Paris: UNESCO, 1984.

Zwinoira’s article contains an excellent example of how ethnonyms and toponyms can be of great help to history, notably the history of Swaziland. The author walks us through three steps. After establishing the linguistic and historical context of his study, he analyses the meanings, origin and history of Swazi ethnonyms including the country’s name, and finally draws informative links between Swazi ethnonyms and toponyms on the one hand, and between the two onomastic entities and population migrations on the other hand. Zwinoira closes his article with a brief discussion of the reasons why the standardization of the transcription of African languages is a daunting task.