Copyright held by The John Cooke Fraud Report. Reprint rights are granted with attribution to The John Cooke Fraud Report with a link to this website.
Understanding the naming conventions of non-European cultures is important for an investigator or anyone wishing to certainly and correctly identify people in our diverse country. The following column information is an attempt to assist the reader in correctly applying the conventions of uniquely ethnic names so identification is possible. This article should not be interpreted as indicating any unusual prevalence of any specific ethnic group toward unlawful or immoral activities, since no such intention exists. In coming issues of The John Cooke Fraud Report, we will explore the mysteries of the naming practices of many ethnic cultures. In this issue, we look at the various naming traditions of the Indian and Pakistani people.
India is one of the most linguistically diverse places in today’s world. The over 500 languages and dialects spoken in the northern regions are descended from Indo-European roots. The 50 or so languages in the southern region originated from the Dravidian language family. Where the two meet in central India, there may be a blending of the two roots, for example, the language of Telegu is estimated to be about 40 percent Dravidian and 60 percent Indo-European. It is thought that the Indian continent was originally populated by Dravidian-speaking people and that these people and their languages were eventually supplanted by the Indo-European people who arrived later and migrated southward.
Besides the different linguistic traditions found in the area, there are several religions practiced by the people of India and Pakistan. These various religious groups, located in the different regions of India, all have their own traditions. Followers of some of these religions practiced by the people of India and Pakistan. These various religious groups, located in the different regions of India, all have their own traditions. Followers of some of these religions give children names with a religious origin, naming the children after their own particular gods and goddesses. So it stands to reason that between the different religions and the variety of spoken languages, the naming traditions would vary widely throughout the country.
For example, in the northern Indian continent, including areas of Pakistan and Bangladesh, there is a strong Muslim tradition, and the naming traditions in this region are based in the religion. All Muslim men are given a first name of Mohammad (Although in Bangladesh, the name is generally spelled Mohammed). When written, this name is usually abbreviated as MD (sometimes leading uninitiated Westerners to conclude that the person may be a medical doctor). Next, there is a personal name, followed by a family name. Women in these areas, on the other hand, often do not receive a family name. Until these women marry, they have only two names, a religious name (taken from the Prophet’s wives and daughters) and a personal name. When a woman marries, she takes her husband’s name. Personal names are chosen from the Koran.
Also in northern India live the Sikhs. All Sikh men have a last name of Singh (meaning lion) while all Sikh women have a last name of Kaur (princess). First names are chosen by opening the writings of Guru Arjun at random. The name is chosen by locating the first word of the first line on the randomly chosen left page. A name is then picked that begins with the same letter as this word. These names are often unisex and are given to both boys and girls.
Names such as Chatterjee or Bhatterjee reflect the caste system and are given to those of the highest social group, the Brahmins.
The name Patel, on the other hand, is generally . found in the areas of Bombay and Gujarat. Those so-named are usually in some kind of business for themselves.
Some of the longest names in the world come from Southern India where the individual’s name is almost a personal history, taking into account his personal name, his father’s name, his grandfather’s name, the village he comes from, his profession, etc. Recently, the news media had a difficult time learning to pronounce such a name when the Los Angeles County Coroner, Dr. Lakshmanan Sathyavagiswatan, was called to testify in the ongoing O. J. Simpson trial.
Others in the southern part of the country may have Christian last names. These derive from the Christian missionaries who came to the country during the period of British rule.
In some parts of India, people have only two names, a given name and a family name. The woman takes her husband’s name when she marries and her first name is often changed to harmonize with her new last name, often with the help of numerology. In these cases, the woman, for all intents and purposes, loses her entire premarriage identity when she marries. Children are given their father’s last name and remain with the family even after they are grown. It is very unusual for an Indian man or woman to leave the family home and move out into his or her own residence prior to marriage. A daughter remains with the family until she marries, then usually moves in with her new husband’s family.
Some commonly seen last names include: Singh, Patel, Shah, karma, Rao, Kumar, Krishnan, Rajan, Venkatram, Gupta, Prakash, Agarwal, Jain, Mukurjee, Wadwani, Adwani, and Bhattacharya.
Common male first names may include: Sandeep, Rajiv, Vijay, Sanjiv, Haresh, Shalesh, Naresh, Mukesh, Danesh, Narsing, Raj.
Common names for women are often chosen for their beautiful meanings:
Laxmi (flower), Usha (morning), Durga, Parvati.
As often happens with immigrants, Indian nationals may change their names to blend in with the new culture. Names are often Americanized when the immigrant comes to this country. This makes the names easier to pronounce and it avoids the stigma of having an unusual name, particularly for a school-age child. A name like Mahinder may be changed to Mike or Rajiv may become Ray.
Indian names generally have an underlying meaning, so they are less likely to be changed lightly. However, with the various languages and dialects that exist in this area, there are many variations on the common names. Sometimes a name many be almost the same in different areas with only one or two letters different. For example, Varma may become Verman; Srinivasan may become Streenivasan or Srinivasa; Ararwal may become Agrawal or Aggarwal. The difference may be regional, such as the addition of an “a” to Singh in the southern part of the country to form Singha or to Narsing to form Narsinga.
Also of interest is the possible confusion that can result when people have the same name. For example, take the case of three Indian roommates with exactly the same name. The very good driving record of one was nearly ruined by the many accidents sustained by his less-careful roommate. The mix-up was finally straightened out using the men’s social security numbers. An experienced underwriter or adjuster would not be alarmed and would know to check further when faced with a questionable record in the name of say “John Smith.” However, that same underwriter or adjuster would likely become concerned if faced with a questionable record in the name of Rajiv Patel, not realizing that the name Patel occurs about the same number of times in the Indian culture that Smith does in Western culture. With some names, such as Singh, the name may be even more common than Smith.
Hindi, one of the main languages of the Indian continent, uses 12 vowels and 36 consonants. The sounds are written in an alphabet derived from Sanskrit, giving rise to a common problem of transliteration. Since there is no one-to-one correspondence of sounds, there can be different spellings of the same name. Vowels may he modified, or if the name has a double vowel, one of the two may be dropped to simplify pronunciation or spelling. A commonly used transcription system is that of the Royal Asiatic Society. Pronunciation is very similar to English, but with some important variations: c is pronounced as in “chip,” while g is pronounced as in “gate.” The letter combinations of dh, gh, ch, th, ph, etc., have the h sound, half-separated as in the English phrases “white house” or “big hat.” These combinations are often transcribed as a single consonant (ie. s rather than sh or p rather than ph). Some letters include extra marks such as a dot or an accent which change the pronunciation. An r or an I with a dot underneath is sounded almost as though it includes the vowel i as in “ri” or “Ii.” An ň is pronounced as a nasal sound, closely connected to the sound that follows.
As you can see from the above information, trying to sort out the naming traditions of this part of the world can be a real headache. With the variety of languages and religious customs, it is difficult to make any useful generalizations. The majority of the fraudulent claims submitted from this group are of the life/health/disability variety. Although it may change, as far as we know, there is currently very little showing up in the way organized auto accident fraud.
The insurance professional faced with a claim from this area would be well advised to consult an expert in these naming customs. A professional interpreter may be a good source. When indexing such a claimant, the claims professional should try a variety of spellings. Try changing or adding vowels. Or feel free to contact us and we will be glad to share what we know about this complex subject.
If you are a new subscriber, you may be interested in obtaining back issues of The John Cooke Fraud Report. In previous issues we have covered the naming traditions of other cultures:
Vietnamese (May/Jun ’94 and Jul/Aug ’95)
Arabic (Jul/Aug ’94)
Hispanic (.Sep/Oct ’94)
Korean (Nov/Dec ’94)
Hmong, Cambodian & Laotian (Jan/Feb ’95)
Russian (Var/Apr ’95)
Gypsies (May/Jun ’95)
© 1995 John Cooke Fraud Report