Dundulanyä/Names
The Dundulanyä people have a naming tradition which strongly reflects their traditional matriarchal and matrilocal society. Their naming customs, originating in ancient times and only slightly changed since then, are not just continued by the Neo-Dundulanyä or Lārutäteṣai peoples, but they have also been extended to all other ethnicities of the present-day Dundulanyä Confederation, as well as to other peoples of Lusaṃrīte and Jūhma.
All names are adapted to the morphophonology of their language and accordingly written in the Dundulanyä script.
Dundulanyä people have three names - the lilene or surname (traditionally the clan name); the matronymic and the given name. While today clanic structures are no longer legally binding anywhere in the Dundulanyä Confederation - but are still an important part of interpersonal relationships - surnames are still transmitted exclusively matrilinearly.
Given names come from a variety of sources: some of them are native Dundulanyä roots with a clear meaning, while others are from cultures absorbed during the two millennia of Dundulanyä expansion across Lusaṃrīte and Jūhma: the earliest ones, from the cultures of Mandabuda, the Lusamritene Inland Seas, North Lusaṃrīte and some of the East Lusamritene Islands, are found and used in most of the Dundulanyä-speaking world, while others - with a few exceptions - are mostly regionally used.
The standard format is surname - matronymic - personal name(s)[1]; the latter are usually romanized in italic in order to better distinguish them.
Surnames
Matronymics
Personal names (lilarañjiḫe)
Dundulanyä personal names (lilarañjiḫe, pl. lilarāñjiḫi, from lila "person" and rañjiḫe "name") have a large variety of origins.
The majority of pan-Dundulanyä given names, not tied to any particular region or culture, are those from native Dundulanyä words or from ancient languages of Mandabuda and neighboring areas in Central Lusaṃrīte, such as Ancient Naṃratausulu, Ancient Ūdhatausulu, or Ancient Nanaḫmairulu[2], as well as a few other given names of very old, but uncertain etymology.
Many of the most common names are compound, especially those from native Dundulanyä words, and there are a few suffixes that can be used to derive new nouns from existing ones, sometimes male ones from female ones and viceversa. Being Dundulanyä itself a language with no grammatical gender, there are no regular ending patterns tied to gendered names, and it is especially notable with names from Ancient Naṃratausulu, which are head-first rather than head-final as Dundulanyä ones are; another example is the common suffix -śīlan, which forms female names when added to female ones and male names when added to male ones. Many names, furthermore, are epicene.
Despite the majority being compounds or loanwords, a few given names of Dundulanyä origin are made of a single word, such as Imāma "light" (also among the most common female names), Laire "sky", Śanu "sunset", Dāvan "sun".
Many areas of the Dundulanyä world also have their own local or regional names, taken from pre-Dundulanyä or present-day local languages; this is particularly common areas such as the Toyubeshian realms, which often spread outside that area. Some names traditionally tied to a particular region have, especially in the last century, spread through the entire Dundulanyä world (such as Amabu and Nimālśi, of Kumañjike origin, from northeastern Jūhma).
Most common given names at the 4136 census
The 4136 (248812) federal census found these names as the most common among the population of the Confederacy of the United Dundulanyä Republics.
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Female names:
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Male names:
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Common given names and their meanings
Reconstructed meanings for non-Dundulanyä names are given when known, but note that the actual etymology of nearly all such names is often unknown to the average Dundulanyä.
Female names
| Name | Meaning (origin) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Amabu | sunlight (Kumañjike) | |
| Anāka | name of a turtle (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Āpita | truth (Classical Toyubeshian) | |
| Baiñśima | hand of the wind (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Boyuñīla | female variant of Boyuna | |
| Bundukāri | sure woman (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Bunduṣulga | woman of happiness (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Bhājñafaula | of the caretaker's hearth (Dun.) | |
| Camifaula | of the great hearth (Dun.) | |
| Chaudaṃde | voice of a puma (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ejindīddha | from Ancient Naṃratausulu yezen (star), also found as a component of many common names + the general morpheme -dīddha | |
| Emeni | diminutive of eme "star" (Dun.) | |
| Emeniśīlan | Emeni + the general morpheme -śīlan (originally "keeper") | |
| Faula | of the hearth (Dun.) | |
| Fulābhājña | caretaker of the hearth (Dun.) | |
| Fulādāvan | sun of the hearth (Dun.) | |
| Fulāśīlan | keeper of the hearth (Dun.) | variants: Fulahśīlan, Fulaɂśīlan |
| Fulaɂimāma | light of the hearth (Dun.) | |
| Garjaghande | sun through the darkness (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Hālyähaika | first element from Tamukāyulu haaliye "river", second element -haika of unknown origin | |
| Hālyähulca | post-classical corruption of Hālyähaika | |
| Hamiläṣṇa | first sage (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Hāreṇe | dawn (Dun.) | e-stem |
| Homānaiṣa | bounty of flowers (?) (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Hūmīnaiṣa | likely a variant (more commonly found) of Homānaiṣa | |
| Hundarīmya | leading woman (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | |
| Imāma | light (Dun.) | |
| Imika | courageous (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Iñika | possibly a variant of Imika | |
| Kālomīye | unknown | e-stem |
| Kalyahīṃsa | gifted of splendour (Tamukāyulu) | |
| Kilahkalya | splendour of the village (Tamukāyulu) | |
| Kilahmulla | protector of the village (Tamukāyulu) | |
| Khaguśīla | female variant of Khaguṣan | |
| Laire | sky, day, air (Dun.) | |
| Lallafaula | of the great hearth (Dun.) | |
| Lanailulya | island flower (Dun.) | |
| Lähimausa | emerald (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Läṣam̃b̃alka | daughter of the sage (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Lilämāvya | shy [and] brave (Tamukāyulu) | |
| Liläkuhla | probably from Tamukāyulu | |
| Lulauśima | blessed hand (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Lulūb̃alka | blessed daughter (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | variants: Lulaub̃alka |
| Lulūmausa | blessed gem (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Mambap̃iṅga | water pearl (Tamukāyulu) | |
| Mämihomah | red flower, beautiful flower (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Mämihūmya | likely a variant of Mämihomah | |
| Mämijūltä | beautiful song (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Mämiläṣṇa | red sage (?) (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Mämimausa | red gem, beautiful gem (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Mäminaiṣa | red wealth (?) (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Mausahomah | gem flower (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Mausahūmya | likely a variant of Mausahomah | |
| Mumūya | plenty (Dun.) | |
| Naive | name of a flower (Dun.) | |
| Nimālśi | the young one (Kumañjike) | |
| Nimūlśime | the young one (Kumañjike) | from a different language of the K. family compared to Nimālśi |
| Numminaiṣa | first element unknown, the second from Ancient Nanaḫmairulu naysh "wealth" | |
| Ñīladala | strong daughter (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ñīlaigam | daughter of the full moon (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ñīlājan | daughter of the star(s) (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ñīlāṅgal | welcome daughter (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ñīlaṣulga | daughter of happiness (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Śanūdīddha | from śanu (sunset), also a masculine name (Dun.) | |
| Śūbhājña | great caregiver (Dun.) | |
| Ṣastira | water fairy (Tamukāyulu) | |
| Ṣulega | happiness (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ṣulegdīddha | from ṣulega | |
| Ṣurlāśīla | female variant of Ṣurlāke | |
| Tālimausa | first element unknown, the second from Ancient Nanaḫmairulu mowsa "gem" | |
| Tainah | gem (Tamukāyulu) | |
| Tūva | name of a flower (Dun.) | |
| Ūrghnajūṇa | female variant of Ūrghan | |
Male names
| Name | Meaning (origin) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ādhra | name of a predatory bird (Dun.) | |
| Boyuna | Ancient Nanaḫmairulu, etymologically related to Baina | |
| Bham̃p̃a | lion (Dun.) | |
| Daladārḫa | lucky strength (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Dalaigam | strength of the full moon (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Daṃdhidala | strong puma (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Daṃdhikāri | sure puma (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Dārḫa | lucky (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ejiṅghai | blue star (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ejināde | distant star (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Emayāsmyam | star watcher (Dun.) | |
| Fulaɂudai | servant of the hearth (Dun.) | |
| Hundaraśība | leading man (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | |
| Ḫurdhārḫa | lucky message (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ḫurthāṅgal | welcome message (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Imāṃdālu | having light (Dun.) | |
| Jariśūṭ | sea wind (Dun.) | root ablaut noun |
| Kāltaryan | painted man (Tamukāyulu) | |
| Khaguṣan | righteous (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | |
| Khālbayam | quick man (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Khālejña | star man (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Khālṣulga | man of happiness (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Läṣaṅkam̃u | son of the sage (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Lulaukam̃u | blessed son (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | variants: Lulūkam̃u |
| Māṅgadu | trusted spirit; friend (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | formerly epicene; variants: Māṅgudu |
| Oṅgodu | companion spirit (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | |
| Oṅgūdam | a variant of Oṅgodu | |
| Oṅguśība | companion man (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | |
| Śanu | sunset (Dun.) | |
| Ṣastirdālu | male variant of Ṣastira | |
| Śindagharja | son of the sun (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Śindaigam | son of the full moon (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Śindāṅgal | welcome son (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ṣurlāke | miracle (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Ṣurqam | name of a bird (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | |
| Turābayam | quick step (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Turāde | distant step (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Turāghande | step through the dark (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Turākāri | sure step (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Tūvākṣan | male variant of Tūva | |
| Ūrghan | unknown | |
| Ubukhai | follower of the light (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
Epicene names
| Name | Meaning (origin) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Baina | wind (?) (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Cambhugra | eagle (Dun.) | |
| Chaukāri | sure voice (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | in the last 90 years more commonly male, and almost exclusively given to males in the last 40 years |
| Dāvan | sun (Dun.) | |
| Dāvañśīlan | Dāvan + the general morpheme -śīlan (originally "keeper") | |
| Hūlya | greater moon of Eventoa (Dun.) | |
| Julāghande | conqueror of the darkness (Ancient Naṃratausulu) | |
| Läṣañśima | hand of the sage / sage hand (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Lulau | blessing (Ancient Nanaḫmairulu) | |
| Lūm̃am̃a | "painted quail" (Dun.) | name of a bird featured in multiple Central Lusaṃrītene legends and folktales due to its colors and birdsong |
| Ñäfä | child (Classical Toyubeshian) | |
| Qūdalgu | name of a bird (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | |
| Savu | pelican (Dun.) | |
| Śugdah | (long-)awaited child (Ancient Ūdhatausulu) | ṛ-stem |
| Taɂona | lesser moon of Eventoa (Dun.) | |
| Ūruśi | unknown | |
Notes
- ^ It is uncommon for people to have more than one given name among the Lārutäteṣai and many other cultures; however, among some ethnicities two or more names are sometimes given to newborns, often a more broadly used Dundulanyä one and another one from that specific ethnicity.
- ^ Ancient languages spoken in the present-day regions of Naṃratūsa, Ūdhatūsa and Nanaḫmīra respectively.