Exploring the Sociolinguistic Dynamics of Naming Motivations among Telugu Catholics

Authors

  • Smita Joseph English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31273/eirj.v13i2.1827

Keywords:

socio-onomastics, Social Identity Theory (SIT), Telugu Catholic, Social Categorisation Theory (SCT), naming motivations, personal names, Indian Christianity

Abstract

This study focuses on exploring the motivations behind given names among the Telugu Catholics. By distributing survey questionnaires, data were collected on participants' motivations, aiming to generate qualitative insights. A total of 173 Telugu Catholics participated in this study on naming motivations. The findings revealed that Telugu Catholics negotiate their pre-Christian and Christian identities through naming styles. It is noteworthy that Telugu Catholic parents had the option of choosing between Christian names or pre-convert Hindu names. Consequently, parents tend to associate with specific categories of names while dissociating from others when selecting names for their children. The research conducted on the naming practices of this Indian Christian group opens up possibilities for further socio-onomastic investigations. Future studies can explore how different Indian Christian communities adapt through naming and examine the various naming techniques employed. By delving deeper into these areas, one can gain a more comprehensive understanding of the sociolinguistic dynamics within Indian Christian communities and their naming practices.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.
A woman in a sheer indigo sari with embroidered flowers, which covers her head, kneels before a confessional where a priest wearing a white robe and gold vestments sits. Neither of their faces is visible.

Downloads

Published

2026-05-20

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 2 (2026): Spring 2026

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Smita Joseph

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY), which permits use and redistribution of the work provided that the original author and source are credited, a link to the license is included, and an indication of changes which were made. Third-party users may not apply legal terms or technological measures to the published article which legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

If accepted for publication authors’ work will be made open access and distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license unless previously agreed with Exchanges’ Editor-in-Chief prior to submission.

Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work. (see: The Effect of Open Access)