Luo Naming Ceremony

The Luo have a long and rich history in welcoming new members into the community – and the world. Prior to birth, speculation of the child’s gender was considered taboo for it was feared that such discussions would curse the unborn child’s journey into the world.

In the olden days, once a baby was born, they were immediately massaged. A month after the child’s birth, an important ritual followed: shaving of its head. It was often done by the grandmother – the mother in law of the expectant mother – or a respected elderly woman from the same clan if the child’s grandmother was not around. Once the blade had done its deed, the grandmother would inquire on the events around the time of birth. From seasons and weather to the time of day and hour that the child was born – and this determined the name that the child was given.

The interesting aspects of the names given – both then and even now – is that both girls and boys have similar names with only a slight difference in the first letter. While boys’ names begin with ‘O’, girls’ names begin with ‘A’.

The various seasons that would inform the name a child is given range from rainy seasons to seasons of cloudiness or periods of famine or abundance. From these, any stranger would immediately know when a person was born. For instance, Okoth and Akoth were given to those born during the rains; Oluoch and Aluoch to those born during cloudy days; Oketch and Aketch to the blessings that came during famine; and names like Odero to those born when granaries were filled. Other aspects that influenced the names given were the time and hours of the day: Omolo and Amolo were born in the early hours of the morning while Onyango and Anyango were born in the later hours of the morning; Ochieng and Achieng came into the world while the sun was up in the sky and Odhiambo and Adhiambo in the afternoon or just before evening; Otieno and Atieno came at night while Owuor and Awuor arrived between midnight and 2:00 A.M.

However, the naming rituals among the Luo didn’t stop there. If there were twins, the first would be Opiyo or Apiyo and the second would be Odongo or Adongo.

To date, there are still several Luo clans that follow these birth and naming rituals, and among us we still hear these and several names tied to seasons. What we’d like to know from you is the other Luo names and the significance they hold. Perhaps you could tell us about the name ‘Jowi’ and its back story… or even the names given to triplets.

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