| Abstract: |
Personal names serve as significant linguistic and cultural resources that express identity, social experience,
and worldview. Among the Igbo people of Eastern Nigeria, names function not only as markers of
individual identity but also as reflections of cultural values and lived realities. This study examines
circumstantial female names through the lens of truth-conditional semantics, focusing on how such names
derive meaning from the conditions surrounding their bestowal. Adopting a mixed-methods approach
combining interviews, observation, and textual analysis, the study draws on both primary and secondary
data, which are analysed using descriptive qualitative analysis and basic quantitative categorisation. The
findings identify four major categories of circumstantial female names: those reflecting family lineage,
commemorating familial events, indicating the timing of birth, and expressing women’s experiences during
pregnancy or prior to childbirth. These categories demonstrate that such names operate as semantic
expressions grounded in verifiable and/or culturally perceived socio-cultural conditions. The study
concludes that Igbo circumstantial female names function as culturally embedded propositions that reveal
both individual and communal realities, thereby underscoring the relationship between language, culture,
and identity. It further highlights the importance of preserving indigenous naming practices as a means of
sustaining cultural heritage. |
EBONYI JOURNAL OF LANGUAGE
