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Mastiff and felt boots by Dropenling http://www.tibetcraft.com |
And these are the names that made it into our final list – ladies
first:
Name
|
Meaning
|
Remark
|
Dalha
|
Tibetan for “moon goddess”
|
Contraction of Dawa and Lhamo
|
Ema
|
Exclamation of joy
|
Comparable to Spanish olé!
In Tibetan, an
identical sounding word is used to denote “Sichuan pepper”
|
Gandhara
|
Name of an ancient Buddhist kingdom
|
Covered Northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan; beautiful
Graeco-Buddhist art
|
Karlha
|
Tibetan for “star goddess”
|
Contraction of Karma and Lhamo
|
Jaya
|
Hindi for “victory”
|
Tib: Gyaltsen
|
Lhatso
|
Tibetan for “divine lake”
|
Popular eastern Tibetan name; the combination of “L” followed by “h”
is difficult to pronounce for Anglophones
|
Lodée
|
Tibetan for “true to mind”
(double-check meaning with a qualified native speaker; I'm not sure on this one) |
Fancy way of spelling Loden
|
Lolha
|
Tibetan for “good mind goddess”
|
Contraction of Lobsang and Lhamo
|
Lumo
|
Tibetan for a female Naga (klu)
|
Mythical and magical serpent-like beings (from Tibetan Buddhism)
believed to be living under the sea
|
Maya
|
Name of Queen Maya, Buddha Shakyamuni’s mother.
|
In some eastern Tibetan dialects the word for “peacock” rma bya is pronounced “maya.”
|
Samaya
|
Sanskrit for “vows”
|
Tib. sdom pa - Buddhist
vows
|
Shanti
|
Sanskrit for “peace”
|
Tib. shiwa
|
Sumati
|
Sanskrit for “good mind”
|
Tib. Lobsang
|
Uttara
|
Hindi for “northern star”
|
|
Yara
|
Name of a mountain
|
After “Yara Lhatse”, a peak in eastern Tibet
|
Yutso
|
Tibetan for “turquoise lake”
|
Alternative spelling: Yumtso
|
And now for the boys:
Aden
|
Eastern Tibetan nickname
|
Letter “A” + syllable –den
from boy’s name Palden
|
Ananda
|
Sanskrit for “the one loved by everyone”
|
Buddha Shakyamuni’s cousin and favourite disciple
|
Ben
|
After the Kadampa
master Geshe Ben Gungyel
|
|
Gaden
|
Tibetan for “place of joy”
|
After Ganden Monastery in Tibet
|
Garab
|
Tibetan for “adorable”
|
Literally “loved beyond all things”
|
Norbu
|
Tibetan for “jewel, treasure, precious”
|
Always a good choice, timeless
|
Rabga
|
Tibetan for “adorable”
|
Reversed form of Garab; name of a Tibetan reformer
|
Yaden
|
Neo-Tibetan
|
|
Yeshi
|
Tibetan for “wisdom”
|
Always a good choice, timeless, suitable for both boys and girls
|
At this point, I should stress that if you prefer requesting a
name from a Lama as is customary, that’s totally alright. In a Western setting however, it may be difficult for a family to find a
Lama who is readily accessible and gives guidance. Few families are lucky to
have such an intimate relationship with a Lama, a true Root Guru or Tsawai’i Lama, and so a lot of people resort
to the top level and request a name for their child from the Dalai Lama.
Some parents however consciously choose not to delegate this competency
to a third person. It’s not a sign of disrespect for the clergy or for
tradition, but a sign that people are becoming more self-reliant. A name can
define a person even before that person is born so if you don’t want to leave
that to chance, and if you prefer a modern Tibetan name for your baby, by all means,
go for it.
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Buddha depicted in Gandharan style |
Don’t just pick a name from a ready-made list though. It’s worth
creating your own baby names list. There is so much to learn and discover in
the pursuit.
When my partner and I built our list, we used all kinds of sources and
learned a lot about Tibetan name-giving. Had we not gone through this process,
our kids’ names would not have so much personal history in them. And since your
children are the most precious thing in your life, you absolutely want to make
sure they receive the most beautiful names so that everyone who comes into contact with your children in life will love and cherish them.
There are a few basic points however, we should be aware of when opting
for the do-it-yourself approach:
For one, ignore the line “Tibetans usually only go by one name” which
you often see in Western media reports. Whoever put that bee into the bonnet didn’t have a clue. Have you ever met a Tibetan with only
one name or are you one of them? – See! I bet there is no single Tibetan in the whole of Tibet nor
abroad that goes only by one name.
Apart from the family name, Tibetans traditionally have two first names
and, as a rule, these two must add up in combination since conceptually they
are treated as one entity. Take for example a typical name duo like Tenzin Norbu. The name which carries the
main meaning is always in the second place. The first-placed name is a
qualifying attribute. “Tenzin” means “defender of the faith” and “Norbu” means
“treasure”. Thus, the meaning of the name is something like “faith-defending
treasure”. You want to be aware of this custom: Make sure your names make sense
together and are not just two beautiful names randomly put next to each other.
Another special feature of Tibetan names is that most names are
gender-neutral and can be used for boys and girls – but only as “standalones”. I am not sure what the linguistic term is but I’ve seen “binomials” (Lat. bi =
two, nomial = name) to refer to this type of gender-neutral names. My gut
feeling is they account for more than half of all “typical” Tibetan names.
Examples include Tashi, Nyima, Dawa, Karma, Lhakpa, Norbu, Tenzin, Tsering,
Tseten.
It’s only the specific combination of a gender-neutral name with a
typically male or female name that determines whether a name is perceived to be
for a boy or a girl.
Typically female include Lhamo, Dolma, Yangchen, Dolkar or Yudon.
Generally names ending with – mo and –ma are grammatically feminine. A
typically male name would be Dorje. There must be more but I can’t think of any
off the top of my head:--)
Based on these three name categories, the following combinations are
possible:
1. Binomial
+ Binomial = boy (Tashi Dawa)
2.
Binomial + male name = boy (Nima Dorje)
3.
Female name + binomial = boy (Dolma Tsering, Lhamo Kyab)
4.
Binomial + female name = girl (Tsering Dolma, Karma Lhamo)
5.
Female + female name = girl (Yangchen Lhamo)
6.
Male name + female name = girl (Dorje Yudon)
Combinations 3 and 6 may be confusing but when you remember the rule
that it’s always the second name which carries the weight and the first name is
the attribute, it all becomes logical. Note also that the same two names can
change their gender depending on the sequence: “Dolma Tsering” in line 3 is a
guy but “Tsering Dolma” in line 4 is a girl. Again, the name in second place
determines the gender. Yes, Tsering is actually gender-neutral but only as a
theoretical standalone. In practice however, first names always come in twos
and in this case, a binomial is treated as masculine when it appears in second
place, that’s the practice.
Central Tibetan males usually don’t have feminine names like “Dolma” and
“Lhamo” as part of their name as in line 3. These name combinations are an
Eastern Tibetan specialty. A prominent example is the current Dalai Lama whose birth
name was Lhamo Dondup before he was
discovered and enthroned as “Tenzin Gyatso”.
Okay, now you have enough background to go about creating your own baby
names. There are several approaches. Try them all out and if you can think of
more, please share them for the benefit of all.
Merge two conventional names
into one cool new name
It’s a Lhasan custom to take two first names and then merge them into
one. So Tenzin Norbu becomes Tennor
or Tsering Lhamo becomes Tselha. Note
that a Tibetan name is usually made up of two syllables. So with two first
names you get four syllables to work with. Collect all the names you can find
and combine the syllables with each other, until you find a combination that
not only has a reasonable meaning, but also sounds great. Usually people fuse
the first syllable of each name, but you can also take the first syllable of
the first name and fuse it with the second syllable of the second name if that
sounds better, that’s also customary.
Proceed systematically. Play through all varieties using Excel. Check
the sound, check the meaning. To take an example from my list: Da-wa merged with Lha-mo gives you Dalha meaning “moon goddess”,
looking cool, sounding great, easy to pronounce, a divine name for a beautiful
baby-girl.
Derive a cool name from an
experience that inspired you
In a Buddhist teaching that lasted for several days from morning till
evening, I happened to sit near a Buryat boy by the name of Ananda. He was
maybe eight years old and sat peacefully throughout the entire sessions. I was
impressed. If I ever had a boy, “Ananda” would be his name. Not only was it the
name of one of Lord Buddha’s disciples, it also had a beautiful meaning: “The
one loved by everyone”. The Tibetan equivalent was Kunga but that didn’t interest me.
Another name I loved for boys was Yaden.
Now that’s definitely not Tibetan. It’s not even from anywhere near Tibet. But
there was this naughty, blond boy at my Dharma centre: An astute and cheerful
kid. Even if the name looked Yiddish, I wouldn’t care as long as it could be
pronounced by a native speaker. But it does sound Tibetan just like Palden,
Gaden and so forth, my partner insisted, which is one of the main reasons why he
liked it nevertheless. And it could also be a place name, he said. For me the
name was simply “neo-Tibetan”, a new Tibetan name because I chose to make it a
part of my culture. - Is this preposterous? I don’t think so. I think it’s
empowering. It’s my culture after all, it’s most certainly my kid, and totally
my decision. And so one of my favourite name combinations for boys became Yaden Ananda or “the one loved by
everyone (hailing from) Yaden”.
And now you: Which experience inspired you?
Try a regional variation of a
conventional Tibetan name
If you’re bored with the traditional names, try to give them a regional
twist and they may become attractive again. Take for example the name Sherab (“wisdom”). It sounds dangerously
close to English “shut up” when pronounced in High Tibetan. But with an Eastern
accent and spelled Shiro it no longer
sound like an offence and looks cool too. Or take the name Kelsang also spelled
Kesang or Kalsang (“who sang”?) which means “good aeon”: Regional variations
include Kazon, Kezon, and even Karon
which may look and sound cooler. Try out various names and fit them into your
Western language context. Do they make sense?
Unlike with Tibetan place names where a clear-cut system to transcribe
them properly into English and also Chinese is absolutely necessary and highly
desirable, writing a Tibetan personal name is different.
Here I believe, we can have the artistic freedom of how to spell a name because
names have become an expression of individuality and personal preference and
the baby is basically your “extension”, so you decide.
Discover regional name
specialties
There are also local names not so known to the mainstream. Ask around
and collect. Funny ones we came across during the brainstorming phase included Lotue and Polue. Probably nick names and perhaps for twin brothers :--)
Choetso (“Dharma lake”) seems
to be popular for girls in Kham. Frequent combinations are Choetso Dolma or Sonam Choetso and so forth.
In Amdo, Kyab (“protect”) or Tso (“lake”) and Kyi (“happy”) are frequent for the name in the second place. The latter group is also the exception to the four-syllable rule in Tibetan first names where you have people with three-syllable names such as Dukar Tso or Menlha Kyab or Jamyang Kyi.
In Amdo, Kyab (“protect”) or Tso (“lake”) and Kyi (“happy”) are frequent for the name in the second place. The latter group is also the exception to the four-syllable rule in Tibetan first names where you have people with three-syllable names such as Dukar Tso or Menlha Kyab or Jamyang Kyi.
In Kham, some people add the suffix –ga
(“beloved” or “sweetheart”) to their kid’s name. This pet name often sticks
with the person for life. So for example a kid named Lobsang becomes Loga or a girl named Dechen
(“fortunate”) would become Dega. A
famous historical person with such a name was Rabga Pandatsang, a 20th
century Tibetan reformer. With –ga
names you have ample possibilities again to come up with a good name. The
ending might sound girlish in English but in Tibetan, it’s neutral. Use Excel
to exhaust all combinations.
Another thing they do in Kham is to create a nickname by adding the
letter “A” as a prefix. Take “A” and combine that with the first or second
syllable of a regular name, for example Palden, in which case you
then get Aden. I quite like it.
Why “A” in the first place? I guess because the sound is all-encompassing making the "A" the “best” letter of the Tibetan alphabet giving it a holy ring. It's also one of the first sound babies can produce :--)
Why “A” in the first place? I guess because the sound is all-encompassing making the "A" the “best” letter of the Tibetan alphabet giving it a holy ring. It's also one of the first sound babies can produce :--)
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"The fully enlightened one arises from A; A is the best of all characters, a holy letter with great meaning arisen from within and unborn, free of words, the highest cause for all expression, well elucidating all words."
From Arya Manjushri Nama Sangiti
|
My guess is that the “Horseman In The Snow”, Nyarong Aten, whose life-story was retold by Jamyang Norbu, also has such a merged name with “A”. Perhaps “A” combined with -ten from “Tupten” or “Rabten” or “Loten” or something to that effect.
Even though this type of names with “A” at the beginning is more on the rustic side, you may still find a good sound combination. These names are literally the Alpha and the Omega:--) Do the Excel Sheet!
Historical personalities as
inspiration
Some prefer famous names for their children, especially for boys, such
as Gesar or Siddharta, Mila(-repa) or
Songtsen and even Choegyal (Dharma King) and of course Sangay (“Buddha”). In the West too there
is a tradition to name children after famous personalities. With Jesús the Spaniards even have their
equivalent of our Sangay:--) Look up
Tibetan history books and flip through the index for person names if you’re
into this type of names.
Toponyms
If you can conceive of giving your child the name of a Tibetan place, a
mountain or a lake, take a guidebook on Tibet and go through the index. Gyurme
Dorje’s “Tibet Handbook” is old but as far as names go, the author made an
effort to provide the Tibetan original for all places on the entire plateau and
not just the Autonomous Region. It’s therefore a good reference. Remember Welcome To Babylon though where place name are completely messed up and double-check the spelling before you really
decide on a toponym.
Names with religious connotation
Some Tibetan names have a religious connotation. Personally I love Ganden (“full of joy”) or pronounced a
bit rougher around the edges with an eastern accent “Gaden”, but the name
didn’t make it through the finals when we were picking our children’s names
because I found it “too Gelugpa”.
Kunga is associated with the
Sakya order due to its founding fathers carrying that name. Pema is associated with the Nyingma
order because of Padmasambhava and Sherab
is a Bon name because of its founder. But all this is just me acting
hypersensitive. You don’t have to care two figs about these considerations,
just go for it, if you like one of these names. It’s really all about personal
preference.
Some Don’ts
Since we have this pesky problem of demarcation with China, it’s
advisable to avoid names that quickly look Chinky when written with Latin
letters. Especially names containing –ang
and –ung are absolute no-gos. Avoid
names like Wangdrag, Ngawang; Yangchen,
Deyang; Norsang, Sangmo; Yungdrug, Bhuchung and so forth.
Personally I would also never pick a girl’s name containing -kyi such as Dekyi, Lhakyi, Kyizom
etc. which can sound sissy and shrill. Imagine calling your kid home from the
playground: Deeeeeekyeeeee! Have mercy on your neighbours :--)
I would also advise against picking a name containing a Rata which is a sound most Western
languages can’t accurately reproduce. Of course some of the most popular names
like Drolma and Trashi actually contain that little “r” but the spelling and
pronunciation were simplified to fit in, which then make the names sound really
odd to a native speaker – as a deterrent, just think of Phurbu T. Namgyal who blares “Champa
Döööööma-la” into his microphone sounding as if he had a massive speech
impediment.
Dealing with an unusual name from
a Tibetan perspective
Even our parents may frown at first when you inform them about your
child’s modern name. Be prepared to explain well.
Among foreign names, Indic ones tend to have a higher social acceptance simply because the Buddha was Indian. So if you decided to go for a Sanskrit name, you could invoke the Buddha connection by pointing out the name is Choekay (“Dharma langague”). If you can give the Tibetan equivalent in addition, that’s even better. People will be able to create a connection and accept more easily.
Among foreign names, Indic ones tend to have a higher social acceptance simply because the Buddha was Indian. So if you decided to go for a Sanskrit name, you could invoke the Buddha connection by pointing out the name is Choekay (“Dharma langague”). If you can give the Tibetan equivalent in addition, that’s even better. People will be able to create a connection and accept more easily.
If you opt for a completely foreign name, it is key that the name is pronounceable. Hurdle one is overcome when native speakers can say the name with ease and understand the meaning. Have a short and easy explanation ready.
Last but not least your kid: Whatever crazy, modern, “untibetan” name
you may give your child, as long as you as the parent can ensure that your
child retains the ability to communicate in Tibetan, almost anything goes.
That’s the good news and the bottom line: As long as the essence is safeguarded,
the packaging is secondary.
Sounds like a fair deal to me. So let’s be bold and let’s pick the names we adore.
Happy baby-names hunting and a big hug to all Tibetan babies out there :--)
Mountain Phoenix
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