There are many cultures that place huge importance in names and naming of their child, in these cultures a name is more than a nice-sounding label, a name can tell a story and pave way for a destiny. For example, in Igboland where I originate from, names are very important, all names given to a child not only have a meaning but carry a spiritual blessing. I have two Igbo names which I see as blessings, the first Achama means to shine brightly and the second Uzomaka means the road is good, these names were specifically chosen to bless me and to pave the way for my life steps (destiny), I fully believe that when these names were given to me that something happened that would link the utterance of those sounds to a spiritual blessing, I will shine brightly and my road will be a good one!
There is a huge debate whether Igbos are Jews, I know that some Igbos have been claimed as having Hebrew heritage but irrelevant of the truth of this I see many similarities between Igbo and Hebrew culture for example with naming. I have never seen one incidence in the bible where the name of a person had no significance at all, but more interestingly are two additional facts:
- That the names of individuals (particularly of Hebrews/Jewish people) are linked to their destiny
- That God has played a siginificant role in naming and even re-naming individuals.
Check out the websites which speak of naming and names in the Bible
Why would God play such an important part in naming individuals? I believe that outside of the fact that names can have a meaning, I believe that names are spiritually important to the destiny and well-being of the individual. There are a number of reasons why this may be so but today I would just like to focus on one, the power of the spoken word. If you have not read any of my previous posts on the power of the tongue and words then you might want to do so, so you have an understanding of where I am coming from.