sikh and hindu indian thai naming by semantic domains
TRANSCRIPT
Dialectologia19(2017),41-66.ISSN:2013-2247
41
Received11March2015.
Accepted10June2015.
SIKHANDHINDUINDIANTHAINAMINGBYSEMANTICDOMAINS
WarintornBENJASRI
MahidolUniversity(Thailand)*∗
Abstract
This article will explore the traits of Sikh and Hindu Indian Thai naming by semantic domains.
According to Nida (1975: 174), groups of meanings, such as names, which share a similar semantic
componentareknownassemanticdomains.Ottenheimer(2006:19)sawasemanticdomainas“aspecific
areaofculturalemphasis”.TheresultsofthisstudywillshedlightonthedifferentworldviewsofHindus
andSikhs.TheresultsshowthesemanticdomainofHinduIndianThais’namingisdividedinto3types;1)
entities,2)abstractand3)events in sequence.ThesemanticdomainsofSikh IndianThaisnaming is1)
abstract,2)entitiesand3)eventsinsequence.
Keywords
naming,semanticdomains,ethnolinguistics,IndianThai
SIJYTAILANDÉSHINDÚYLADESIGNACIÓNDECAMPOSSEMÁNTICOS
Resumen
EsteartículoexplorarálosrasgosdeSijytailandéshindúenladesignacióndecampossemánticos.
SegúnNida (1975:174), losgruposdesignificados,como losnombres,quecompartenuncomponente
semántico similar, se denominan campos semánticos. Ottenheimer (2006: 19) consideró un campo
semántico como “una área específica de énfasis cultural”. Los resultadosde este estudio arrojarán luz
sobrelasdiferentesvisionesdemundodehindúesysijsydemuestraránqueelcamposemánticodela
∗*999Phuttamonthon4Road,Salaya,NakhonPathom73170,Thailand.
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denominacióndelostailandeseshindúessedivideen3tipos;1)entidades,2)abstraccionesy3)eventos
en secuencia. Los campos semánticos de la denominación tailandesa india sij son: 1) abstracciones, 2)
entidadesy3)eventosensecuencia.
Palabrasclave
denominación,campossemánticos,etnolingüística,tailandéshindú
1.Introduction
One of themost prominent and unique features of any and all societies is the
nameswhichitspeoplebear. Forit is inthenamesofthepeoplethatalloftheroots
and influences on that society and its culture are reflected. In Mphande’s (2006)
opinion, these special linguistic phenomena are not only self-significant but are also
indicative of cultural and societal influences such as social status, legendary histories,
andphonologicalprocesses.Forallofthesereasons,namesareanimportantsubjectfor
linguistic study. According to James (1975), the study of these influences takes place
withinthefieldofEthnosemantics,whichbydefinitionfocusesonthebehaviorofethnic
groups and attempts to understand the semantic domains (categories) used by each.
Ethnosemanticsespecially focusesonstudying thevocabularyofaparticular language
giventhatthevocabularywillgenerallysomewhatreflecttheentirerangeofsemantic
ideaswithinthatlanguage’sspeakers.
ThenationofIndiahasbeenanimportantinfluenceonThailand,particularlywith
regard to the court system. Dhiravegin (2008) stated that, generally speaking, the
Brahminism of the Indian subcontinent and its peoples has been one of the most
powerful influencers on Thai beliefs and values. The Office of the Defence Attache,
Royal Thai Embassy (2011) reports that currently there are approximately 150,000
IndianpeoplelivinginThailand;inadditiontothese,manyhavemigratedtothenearby
countriesofBrunei,Indonesia,Singapore,andMalaysia.Withregardtobeliefsystems,
thetwomaingroupsofIndiansthathavesettledinThailandcanbedifferentiatedinto
HindusandSikhs.ThemajorityoftheseareHindus.
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ArchaeologistshavediscoveredthatitwasduringtheeraofAshokatheGreatthat
muchofIndianculturewasbroughtintoThailandbymigrants;evidenceforthisincludes
theerectionofseveralstatuesatthesiteofPhraPathominNakhonPathomandthesite
ofPhingTuk. Thestatues therehavestoodsince the3rdor4thcenturyA.D. (Cœdès
196817-18). Great conflictwithin Indiaafter the reignofKingRamaV resulted inmass
migrationtoThailand.
Justoveracenturyago,theSikhmigrationbegan.In1885,twogroupsofSikhs—the
Khalsa and the Namdhari—migrated to Sukhumvit Road and Ban Khaek, Lampang, and
Phitsanulok.Pongsapit (1991)stated that91SikhsmovedtoThailandat this time. Now,
therearebetween30,000and40,000SikhIndianThaisinthecityofBangkok,mostofthem
havingsettledinPahurat,Thaphra,BanKhaek,SukhumvitandKlongton.
FromtheperspectiveoftheThaipeople,mostHindusandSikhsareseenasforeigners
eventhoughtheyhavebeengrantedlegalcitizenshipasThais.Thisisduetothefactthat
thesepeoplesstilladheretotheirownnativecustomsandtraditionsandstillspeaktheir
native languages. Furthermore Thai Indians do not intermarry because of the great
differencesbetweenthetwocultures.Onewayforthemtomaintaintheirethnicidentityis
byadheringtotheirtraditionalnamingconventions,usuallyabstainingfromtheuseofThai
names,exceptincertaincircumstances.
Traditionally in India, names were based on location, religion, caste, and
profession and were composed of a phrase, single unit-word, or word-division.
According to Kaushik (2000), the probability of occurrence of the last namedoes not
impactthereliabledistributioninallterminologyplaces.Inmanycases,thefirstpartof
anamewillrefertotheplaceofone’shome,andthe lastpartofanamewillreferto
casteorsomeotherreference.
PreviouslytherehavebeenfewstudiesaboutIndianThaigroups,andtheresearch
thathasbeendonehastendedtobeaboutdescriptiveandhistoricalfeaturesofthese
groups.ThisresearchfocusesonHinduandSikhIndianThaisduetothefactthatthey
arethe largestandoldestgroups inThailand.This is thefirststudyto inquire intothe
conventions for assigning names and surnames to Indian Thais in terms of
ethnolinguisticsandtheculturalperspectivesreflectedinthenames
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2.Objective
Themain intent of this research is to examine the linguistic structure of Indian
Thainamingconventions.Various linguisticcomponentsofthenameswillbeanalyzed
semanticdomains.
3.MaterialsandMethods
This research will follow a standardized procedure involving the following four
categories: (1)Data Limitation, (2)DataPreparation, (3)Data collection and (4)Data
analyses.
3.1DataLimitation
Thedata limitation for this research isData for this research approximately 1000
IndianThaisinBangkok,gatheredforanalysisofconventionsandmeanings.
3.2DataPreparation
Importanttothisstudywillbetheuseof journals,articles,textbooksandtheses
that are pertinent to Indian Thai naming conventions. The theoretical frameworks
thereinwillbeimportantforthisstudy.Foundationaltothisstudywillbethecollection
of data (Indian Thai names) from 1000 informants around Thailand (Bangkok,
Pathumthani, Nakhon Pathom, Chonburi, Chiang Mai, Lampun, Lampang, Nakhon
Ratchasrima,Phuket,YalaandTrang).
3.3Datacollection
Fordataaboutnamingconventions,sourcessuchastextbooks,dissertations,and
journalswillbeconsulted.Thiswillallowtheresearchertoinvestigatethestructuresof
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thenamingconventionsand thewordcomponents themselves, leading toa coherent
semanticanalysisofsocialandculturalfactorsinfluencingnamingconventions.
Asamplebaseofapproximately1000IndianThais(500beingSikhand500being
Hindu)andtheirrelativeswillbeinterviewedforthisresearch.Thesamplewillconsistof
Indian Thais whose ancestors migrated to Thailand from India. This data will include
focusgroupswithinthreetofourgenerationspersample.
3.4Dataanalyses
BecausemostThainamesareSanskritized,therootsofthewords/namesmustbe
determined. To do this, linguistic features will be analyzed from the data from an
ethnolinguistic and semantic perspective. This will be followed by semantic analysis
whichwill involve the categorizationof thewordsbasedonmeaninganda varietyof
socio-culturalfactors.Finally,therewillbeadiscussionofthefindings.
Foundationaltothisstudywillbethecollectionofdata(IndianThainames)from
1000 informants around Thailand (Bangkok, Pathumthani, Nakhon Pathom, Chonburi,
ChiangMai,Lampun,Lampang,NakhonRatchasrima,Phuket,YalaandTrang).
BecausemostThainamesareSanskritized,therootsofthewords/namesmustbe
determined. To do this, linguistic features will be analyzed from the data from an
ethnolinguistic and semantic perspective. This will be followed by semantic analysis
whichwillinvolvethecategorizationofthewordsbasedonmeaningand.Finally,there
willbeadiscussionofthefindings.
4.HinduIndianThainaming
HinduIndianThainamesareinfluencedbyavarietyofsocialconstructs,including
the four castes: the brahmanas, or priests, representing purity; the kshatriyas, or
warriors,representingcourage;theVaishyas,orbusinessmen,representingprosperity;
andtheShudras,orlaborers,representinghardwork.TheShudrasareoftenseenasthe
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lowest caste in Indian society. Shudras include servants (Kaushik 2000: 13-42).
Nowadays,moreweightisputinpersonalpreferencethanincaste.
4.1Firstnames
4.1.1Entitiessemanticdomain
Entitiesareusedfor62%ofHinduThainames,asfollows:
4.1.1.1 Inanimateentities
a) Natural inanimate entities: Natural phenomena account for 26.8% of Hindu
IndianThainames(15%ofmalenames;11.8%offemalenames),asfollows:
Celestial-atmosphericentitiesincludethefollowingexamples(15.2%ofnamesare
celestial-atmosphericentities;8.68%ofmalenames;6.51%offemalenames):
(1)Raveena (Female,Urdu) /ɾavina/ ‘beautyoftheSun’
(2)Nabh (Male,Sanskrit) /nab/ ‘thesky’
(3)Arundhati (Female,Hindi) /ʔaɾunthati?/ ‘thestar’
(4)Sabrang (Male,Hindi) /sapɾaŋ/ ‘rainbow’
Entities related to earth, geography, and names of cities include the following
examples (3% of names are earth, geography (1.5% of male names; 1.5% of female
names):
(5)Pavan (Male,Hindi) /pawan/ ‘wind,air,breeze’
(6)Hemadri (Male,Hindi) /himatɾi/ ‘Himalayamountain’
(7)Swarg (Male,Hindi) /sawak/ ‘nameofcity’
Gemsmakeupfor3.2%ofnames,includethefollowingexamples(1.92%ofmale
names;1.28%offemalenames):
(8)Himank (Male,Hindi) /himaŋ/ ‘diamond’
(9)Neelar (Male,Sanskrit) /nila/ ‘emerald’
(10)Panna (Female,Hindi) /panna/ ‘gem’
Names reflecting fire and flame include the following examples [1.2% of names
arefireandflame(0.8%ofmalenames;0.4%offemalenames)]:
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(11)Patag (Male,Hindi) /patak/ ‘fire’
(12)Prajuala (Female,Sanskrit) /pɾattɕhuala/ ‘fire’
Namesreflectingwaterincludethefollowing[1.4%ofnamesarevariousformsof
water(0.7%ofmalenames;0.7%offemalenames)]:
(13)Karana (Male,Hindi) /kaɾana/ ‘tide’
(14)Kavana (Female,Sanskrit) /kawana/ ‘tide’
Floraandplantproductsincludethefollowing[2.8%ofnamesarefloraandplants
(1.4%ofmalenames;1.4%offemalenamesasinthefollowingexamples)]:
(15)Kalakar (Male,Hindi) /kalakan/ ‘tree’
(16)Kusumakar (Male,Sanskrit) /kusumakan/ ‘thebundleofflower’
(17)Laksha (Female,Sanskrit) /laktɕha/ ‘flower,whiterose’
(18)Kamal (Female,Hindi,Punjabi)/kaman/ ‘lotus’
b) Manufactured or constructed inanimate entities: Only 2.8% (2.45% of male
names; 0.35% of female names) of Hindu Indian Thais’ naming are based on these
entitiesasinthefollowingexamples:
Decoration:
(19)Kirit (Male,Sanskrit) /ki?ɾit/ ‘crown’
(20)Mudrika (Female,Sanskrit) /matthaɾika/ ‘ring’
(21)Trishar (Male,Hindi) /tɾitɕha/ ‘necklace’
Lightingandlamps:
(22)Pradeep (Male,Sanskrit,Hindi) /pɾathip/ ‘lamp’
(23)Deepak (Male,Hindi) /dipak/ ‘lamp,kindle’
Musicalinstruments:
(24)Bansi (Male,Hindi,Punjabi) /bansi/ ‘flute’
Processedsubstances:
(25)Ikshu (Male,Sanskrit) /Ɂiktɕhu/ ‘sugarcane’
(26)Madhur (Male,Hindi) /mathuɾa/ ‘sweet’
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4.1.1.2Animateentities
Thesenamesmakeup32.4% (27.7%ofmalenames;4.7%of femalenames)of
HinduIndianThainamesasinthefollowingexamples:
a)Animals:3.14%ofnamesarerelatedtoanimals:
1.57%ofnamesrefertopoultry:
(27)Vihang (Male,Sanskrit,Hindi) /wihaŋ/ ‘bird’
1.05%ofnamesrefertoquadrupeds:
(28)Kamboj (Male,Sanskrit) /kambot/ ‘elephant’
(29)Neshu (Male,Sanskrit) /net/ ‘lion’
0.52%ofnamesrefertobodypartsofanimal:
(30)Muktā (Female,Sanskrit) /mukta/ ‘pearl’
b)Humanbeings
13.6% of names are human beings (male 12.54%, female 1.05%) consist of the
followingsub-domains:
Genericanddistinguishedbyageandsex:
(31)Bhupen (Male,Bangala) /phupen/ ‘king’
(32)Kanvar (Male,Punjabi) /khanwara/ ‘youngPrince’
(33)Riya (Female,Arabic) /ɾiya/ ‘singer’
Males:
(34)Manish (Male,Sanskrit,Hindi)/manit/ ‘manwhocancontrolthought’
(35)Hadrik (Male,Urdu) /hatthaɾika/ ‘boy’
Offspring:
(36)HareshKumar (Male,Hindi) /haɾetkuman/ ‘ThesonofLordSiva’
(37)JitendraKumar (Male,Hindi) /tɕithendɾakuman/‘Sonofvirtuousfather’
(38)MaheshKumar (Male,Hindi) /mahetkuman/ ‘thesonofGod’
(40)Anusha (Male,Sanskrit) /?anutɕha/ ‘youngerbrother’
(41)FalakKumar (Male,Urdu) /falakkuman/ ‘sonofthesky’
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Affinals:
(42)Ira (Female,Hindi) /?iɾa/ ‘thewifeofManu’
(43)Harini (Female,Urdu) /harini/ ‘deer,darling’
Brothersandsisters:
(44)Pehlaj (Male,Persian) /pelat/ ‘elderbrother’
(45)Anusha (Male,Sanskrit) /ʔanutɕha/ ‘youngersister’
Groupconsistsofsocio-politics:
(46)Pandey (Male,Hindi)/pande/ ‘aBrahminsub-caste’
Body,bodyparts,andbodyexpressions:
(47)Citrākṣa (Male,Hindi) /tɕitɾaksa/ ‘expressiveeyes’
(48)Nayan (Male,Sanskrit,Hindi)/najan/ ‘eyes’
c)Supernaturalpowersorbeings
15.26% of supernatural powers or beings are divided into powers or
personificationsandpersonalbeings:
4.73%ofnames refertopowersorpersonifications:
(49)Kripa (Female,Sanskrit) /kɾipha/ ‘merciful’
(50)Rujul (Male,Sanskrit) /rutɕhun/ ‘honest,faithful’
(51)Riddhi (Female,Sanskrit) /ɾitthi?/ ‘power’
10.53%ofnamesrefertopersonalbeings:
(52)Adhi (Male,Sanskrit) /?athi?/ ‘NameofLordGanesha’
(53)Biharikunj (Male,Sanskrit) /phihanrikun/ ‘NameofLordKrishna’
(54)Gajadhar (Male,Hindi) /katɕhathan/ ‘NameofLordVishnu’
(55)Jogishwar (Male,Sanskrit) /jokhitɕhawa/ ‘TheGodofyoga’
(56)KumarNandana (Male,Sanskrit) /kumannandana/‘sonofGod’
(57)Abhayā (Female,Hindi) /?apheja/ ‘Goddess’
(58)MaheshKumar (Male,Hindi) /mahetkuman/‘NameofLordGan@esa’
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4.1.2Abstractsemanticdomain
22.8%ofabstractdomain isusedfornamingwhichreferstothefollowingname
groups:
8.2%ofnamesrefertocapacity:
(59)Ashvath (Male,Hindi) /ʔattɕhawat/ ‘Stronglikebanyantree’
(60)Dak◌ฺsi (Female,Sanskrit) /thaksi) ‘expert’
(61)Aiswarya (Female,Hindi) /ʔaytɕhawa:raya:/‘prosperous’
5.6%ofnamesrefertonumber:
(62)Anit (Male,Hindi) /ʔanit/ ‘small,alittle’
(63)Balraj (Male,Hindi) /banrat/ ‘great,big’
4.8%ofnamesrefertotime:
(64)Arun (Male,Punjabi) /ʔarun/ ‘dawn’
(65)Rajni (Female,Hindi)/ ratɕhani/ ‘night’
3.4%ofnamesrefertogood-bad:
(66)Uttam (Male,Hindi) /ʔattam/ ‘good’
(67)Suchir (Male,Hindi) /sutþhə/ ‘Goodforlongtime’
2.6%ofnamesrefertoattractiveness:
(68)Sanjula (Female,Hindi) /sanjula/ ‘beautiful’
(69)Jahi (Male,Persian,Hindi) /jahi/ ‘chic,stylish,handsome’
(70)Kashish (Female,Persian,Hindi)/katɕhit/ ‘charming’
2.2%ofnamesrefertostatus:
(71)Aiswarya (Female,Hindi) /ʔaytɕhawaraya/‘prosperous’
(72)Udbal (Male,Hindi) /ʔatbaw/ ‘famous’
2%ofnamesrefertocolor:
(73)Shweta (Female,Hindi) /tɕhaweta/ ‘white’
(74)Neela (Female,Hindi,Urdu) /nila/ ‘blue’
1.2%ofnamesrefertovolumewhicharemales:
(75)Suran (Male,Hindi) /suran/ ‘melodious’
0.2%ofnamesrefertovelocity:
(76)Ranam (Male,Urdu) /ranam/ ‘fast/quick’
0.2%ofnamesrefertotruth-falsehood:
(77)Tatbir (Male,Persian) /thatbə/ ‘truth’
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4.1.3Eventssemanticdomain
Thissemanticdomainrelatestoemotions,intellect,andcontrol.HinduIndianThai
namesarebasedon15.2%ofthissub-domain.
16.4%ofnamesrefertoemotions:
(78)Khushi (Female,Punjabi,Urdu)/khutɕhi/ ‘happiness’
(79)Akanksha (Female,Hindi) /?akaŋtɕha/ ‘desire’
(80)Himal (Urdu,Punjabi) /himan/ ‘calm’
1.64%ofnamesrefertointellect:
(81)Jignasa (Female,Sanskrit,Hindi)/tɕhiknasa/‘curiosity’
3.28%ofnamesrefertocontrol:
(82)Amarjeet (Male,Punjabi) /?amaratɕhit/‘victory’
(83)Shamak (Male,Persian,Sanskrit)/tɕhamak/ ‘peace’
4.2Surnames
The Hindu Indian Thai surnames can be analyzed into 3 semantic domains and
severalsubdomainsasfollows:
4.2.1Entitiessemanticdomain
Thissemanticdomainaccountsfor48.6%ofHinduIndianThaiSurnames,withthe
followingexamples:
4.2.1.1Inanimateentities
The inanimate (sub-)domain refers to nature, the supernatural, substances,
flora/plantentitiesandmanufacturedorconstructedentities,asfollows:
a) Natural inanimate entities: Natural phenomena account for 22.4% of Hindu
IndianThaisurnames,asfollows:
12.92%ofsurnamesrefertocelestial-atmosphericentities:
(84)Lalitaditya (Sanskrit) /lalita:thittaya/ ‘thebeautifulsun’
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(85)Kshitij (Hindi) /kasidit/ ‘horizon’
3.3%ofsurnamesrefertogeography:
(86)Jaldhar (Hindi) /tɕhanthara/ ‘stream,waterway’
(87)Sagardutt(Hindi) /sakaradut/ ‘giftofocean’
3.2%ofsurnamesrefertogems:
(88)Kanchan (Hindi) /kantɕhan/ ‘gold’
(89)Neelam (Hindi) /nilam/ ‘bluesapphire’
0.9%ofsurnamesrefertovariousformsofwater:
(90)Mehul (Persian,Hindi)/mehun/ ‘rain’
(91)Jaldhar (Hindi) /jathan/ ‘stream,waterway’
2.08%ofsurnamesrefertoflowers:
(92)Kusum (Hindi) /kusum/ ‘flower’
b) Manufactured or constructed inanimate entities: Only 2.2% of Hindu Indian
surnamesarebasedontheseentitiesasinthefollowingexamples:
Decoration:
(93)Suvarnamālā (Sanskrit) /suwanmala/ ‘goldnecklace’
4.2.1.2Animatesubdomain
24%oftheanimatesub-domainisusedforHinduIndianThaisurnamesaccording
tothefollowingnamegroups:
a)Humanbeings:7%ofnamesrelatedtohumanbeings.Theseconsistof0.4%of
kinshipterms:
(94)Nandini (Hindi) /nandini/ ‘Daughter’
(95)Hridyanshu (Hindi) /haɾitjantɕhu/ ‘Lightofheart’
b)Supernaturalpowersorbeings:Supernaturalpowersorbeings(17%)consistof
thefollowingnamegroups:
2.2%ofsurnamesrefertopowersorpersonifications:
(96)Dhaval (Sanskrit,Hindi) /thawan/ ‘fair’
(97)Palin (Hindi) /palin/ ‘safeguard’
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14.8%ofsurnamesrefertopersonalbeings:
(98)Khagesh (Hindi) /khaket/ ‘Godofbirds’
(99)Manju (Hindi) /mantɕhu/ ‘LordSiva’
4.2.2Abstractsemanticdomain
42.4%ofabstractdomainisusedforsurnameswhichrefertothefollowingname
groups:
10.8%ofsurnamesrefertotime:
(100)Nishita (Hindi) /nitɕhita/ ‘night ’
(101)Prathysha (Hindi) /pratya/ ‘morning’
0.2%ofsurnamesrefertovelocity:
(102)Chapal (Hindi) /tɕha:pan/ ‘fast’
2.8%ofsurnamesrefertonumber:
(103)Yakta (Hindi) /yakta/ ‘unique’
(104)Nikhil(Sanskrit) /nikhiw/ ‘infinite,limitless’
3.45%ofsurnamesrefertostatus:
(105)Darlat (Persian,Hindi) /dalat/ ‘stability’
(106)Dhureen (Punjabi,Hindi) /thuɾi:n/ ‘achievement’
8.2%ofsurnamesrefertoreligiouscharacter:
(107)Ashish (Hindi) /?atɕhit/ ‘blessing’
(108)Oni (Hindi) /?oni/ 'borninaholyplace'
8.6%ofsurnamesrefertoattractiveness:
(109)Manjulas (Hindi) /mantɕhulat/ ‘loveable’
(110)Mohit (Hindi) /mohit/ ‘charming’
(111)Nikhil (Sanskrit) /nikhiw/ ‘perfection’
0.2%ofsurnamesrefertotruth-falsehood:
(112)Tatbir (Persian) /tatbə/ ‘truth’
0.2%ofsurnamesrefertoGood-bad:
(113)Sheil (Hindi) /tɕhiw/ ‘goodconduct’
7.4%ofsurnamesrefertocapacity:
(114)Sonya (Punjabi,Hindi) /sonya/ ‘wisdom,clever’
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(115)Yukta (Hindi) /yukta/ ‘attentive,skillful’
4.2.3Eventssemanticdomain
8.8% of events are used as surnames relate to physiological entities; emotions;
intellect,controlandmovementasinthefollowingexamples:
0.4%ofsurnamesrefertophysiologicalentities:
(116)Janam (Hindi) /tɕanam/ ‘birth’
5.75%ofsurnamesrefertoemotions:
(117)Kanth (Hindi) /kan/ ‘beloved’
(118)Parmanand (Hindi) /paɾamanan/ ‘superlativejoy’
2.46%ofsurnamesrefertointellectual:
(119)Tatva (Hindi) /tatwa/ 'Fundamentalidea’
2.46%ofsurnamesrefertocontrol:
(120)Baljit(Punjabi) /bantɕit/ ‘winningpower’
(121)Jishnu (Hindi) /tɕhitsanu/ ‘victorious’
0.4%ofsurnamesrefertomovement:
(122)Pretvan (Hindi) /pɾetwan/ ‘movingalong’
5.SikhIndianThainaming
Cole&Sambhi(1978:43-97)explainedthatintheNamingCeremonyofSikhism,a
hymnfromtheGranth(Sikhism’scentraltext)ischosenatrandom.Thefirstletterofthe
hymn,anyletterofthealphabet,ischosenastheinitialofthechild'sname.Afterthis,
thecongregationisaskedtosuggestasuitablenamebeginningwiththatletter.TheSikh
IndianThais'namingcanbedividedintofirstnamesandsurnames:
5.1Firstnames
Sikh Indian Thai first names can be analyzed into three semantic domains
(Abstract,Entities,andEvents).
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5.1.1Abstractsemanticdomain
52.68% of abstract domain is used for the Sikh nameswhich refers to religious
character, time,attractiveness,capacity,number, status,good-bad,velocity,andcolor
asinthefollowingdetail.SikhismworshipstheGuruGranthSahibandbelievesinpeace.
39.86%ofnamesrefertoreligiouscharacter(30.97%ofmale;8.89%offemale):
(123)Darvesh (Male,Hindi) /daɾawet/ ‘religious,gentleman’
(124)Diksha (Female,Punjabi) /thitɕha/ ‘initiation,consecration’
3.21%ofnamesrefertotime(2.5%ofmale;0.71%offemale):
(125)Basant (Female,Punjabi) /phasan/ ‘springseason’
(126)Chiranjiv (Male,Sanskir,Hindi) /tɕhiɾantɕhip/ ‘immortal’
2.81%ofnamesrefertoattractiveness(1.405%ofmale;1.405%offemale):
(127)Komal (Female,Punjabi) /koman/ ‘tender,soft,delicate’
(128)Mohanbir (Male,Punjabi) /mo:hanbə:/ ‘beauteous,brave’
2.2%ofnamesrefertocapacity(1.65%ofmale;0.99%offemale):
(129)Chathuv (Female,Punjabi) /tɕatthuwa/ ‘clever’
1.4%ofnamesrefertonumber(0.33%ofmale;0.33%offemale):
(130)Asankh (Male,Punjabi) /ʔasan/ ‘countless’
(131)Ekam (Female,Punjabi)/ʔekam/ ‘one,united’
1%ofnamesrefertostatus:(0.75%ofmale;0.25%offemale)
(132)Anokh (Male,Punjabi) /ʔanok/ ‘extraordinary’
(133)Darvesh (Male,Hindi) /daɾawet/ ‘humble’
1%ofnamesrefertogood-bad(0.75%ofmale;0.25%offemale):
(134)Adarsh (Male,Hindi) /ʔadat/ ‘ideal’
(135)Nirmai (Female,Hindi) /niramay/ ‘withoutflaw’
0.4%ofnamesrefertovelocity(0.4%ofmale):
(136)Teja (Male,Punjabi) /tetɕha/ ‘fast,speedy,sharp’
0.2%ofnamesrefertocolor(0.2%offemale):
(137)Basant (Female,Punjabi) /phasan/ ‘yellow’
0.6%ofnamesrefertoage:(0.2%ofonlyfemale):
(138)Yuvleen (Male,Punjabi) /yuwalin/ ‘absorbedinyouthfulness’
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5.1.2Entitiessemanticdomain
42.32% of entities domain are used for Sikh names, including animate entities
(animal, human beings and supernatural powers or beings) and inanimate entities
(naturalandmanufacturedorconstructedentities).
5.1.2.1Animateentities
Animateentitiessub-domainconsistsofanimals,humanbeingsandsupernatural
asfollows:
a)Animals:1%ofnamesareAnimals,asfollows:
(139)Arjun (Male,Hindi) /?aɾajun/ ‘peacock’
(140)Variam (Male,Punjabi) /waɾi?am/ ‘lion’
b) Human beings: 2.6% of names are human beings (2.2% of male; 0.4% of
female),asfollows:
Genericanddistinctionsbyageandsex:
(141)Hamin (Female,Urdu) /hamin/ ‘woman’
(142)Nina (Female,European) /nina/ ‘littlegirl’
Groupconsistsofsociopolitical:
(143)Fauja (Male,Punjabi) /faoja/ ‘army,general’
(144)Meeta (Male,Punjabi) /mita/ ‘friend’
Body,bodyparts,andbodyproducts:
(145)Mukhlapa (Female,Punjabi) /mukkhalapha/‘face’
(146)Netter (Male,Punjabi) /net/ ‘eyes’
c) Supernatural powers or beings: 20.3% of names are related to supernatural
powersorbeings,asfollows:
Powersorpersonifications:
(147)Taan (Male,Punjabi) /ta?an/ ‘power’
(148)Wafa (Male,Urdu) /wafa/ ‘faithful’
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Personalbeings:
(149)Aditya (Male,Sanskrit,Hindi)/ʔathittaya/ ‘sun,lordSurya’
(150)Arvindera (Male,Punjabi)/ʔaɾawindəra/ ‘lordofHorses,lord’
5.1.1.2Inanimateentities
a) Natural inanimate entities: Natural phenomena account for 11.42% of Sikh
IndianThaisnames,asfollows:
6%ofnamesrefertocelestial-atmosphericentities:
(151)Dhoop (Male,Punjabi) /thup/ ‘attheedgeofsunshine’
(152)Divjot (Female,Punjabi) /thipjot/ ‘divinelight’
2.1%ofnamesrefertoentitiesrelatedtoearth,geography:
(153)Deenaagal (Male,Punjabi) /dinakan/ ‘valley’
(154)Gulzar (Male,Urdu) /kunsa/ ‘garden’
0.52%ofnamesrefertogems:
(155)Kanchan (Female,Hindi) /kantɕhan/ ‘gold’
2%ofnamesrefertofireandflame:
(156)Jyoti (Male,Sanskrit,Hindi) /tɕhayoti?/ ‘flame’
(157)Jujhar (Male,Punjabi) /tɕhuthan/ ‘flame’
0.8%ofnamesrefertofloraandplantproducts:
(158)Harzadan(Male,Punjabi) /hasadan/ ‘flower’
(159)Kinshuk (Male,Punjabi) /kintɕhuk/ ‘flower’
b)Manufacturedorconstructedinanimateentities:Only2.2%ofSikhIndianThais’
namingarebasedontheseentitiesasinthefollowingexamples:
1.8%ofnamesrefertooffenseweapons:
(160)Talwar (Male,Urdu) /tanwan/ ‘swordordagger’
0.4%ofnamesrefertodecoration:
(161)Deenaagal (Male,Punjabi) /dinakan/ ‘decoration’
1.96%ofnamesrefertolightingandlampstands:
(162)Deepak (Male,Male,Hindi) /dipak/ ‘lamp’
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5.1.2Eventssemanticdomain
Events(5%)arerelatedtophysiology,emotion,intellect,control,andtransfer.The
meaningofeventsisindicatedbytheSikhIndianThaipeople’sidealcharacter.
1%ofnamesrefertophysiology:
(163)Ankur (Male,Hindi) /ʔaŋkun/ ‘sprout,glow’
(164)Deepak (Male,Sanskrit,Hindi)/dipak/ ‘kindle’
3.2%ofnamesrefertoemotion(2%ofmales;0.2%offemales):
(165)Akalsukh (Male,Punjabi) /ʔakansuk/ ‘delight’
(166)Premdeep (Female,Hindi) /premthip/ ‘Thelampoflove’
1.8%ofnamesrefertointellect:
(167)Gianparkash (Male,Punjabi) /ki?anpakat/‘Lightofdivineknowledge’(168)Gianpreet (Male/Female,Punjabi)/ki?anprit/‘Loverofdivineknowledge’
5.2Surnames
The Sikh Indian Thai surnames can be analyzed into 3 semantic domains and
severalsubdomainsasfollows:
5.2.1Abstractsemanticdomain
Abstract domain is used for the Sikhs’ surnames (52.57%) as in the following
examples:
35.11%ofsurnamesrefertoreligiouscharacter:
(169)Adish (Punjabi) /ʔadit/ ‘exalted’
(170)Sharan (Punjabi) /tɕharan/‘takingshelteroftheGuru’
10.04%ofsurnamesrefertostatus:
(171)Yash (Sanskrit,Hindi) /yat/ ‘glory’
(172)Yashas (Sanskrit,Hindi) /yatɕhat/ ‘famous’
4.41%ofsurnamesrefertoattractiveness:
(173)Mehar (Punjabi,Hindi) /mehan/ ‘kindness,grace’
(174)Mohit (Punjabi) /mohit/ ‘beauty,charming’
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2.81%ofsurnamesrefertonumber:
(175)Pehila (Punjabi) /pehila/ ‘first’
0.2%ofsurnamesrefertotime:
(176)Prabhat (Hindi) /pɾaphat/ ‘dawn’
5.2.2Entitiessemanticdomain
41.34%of Sikh surnamesare from theentitiesdomain,which refers to animate
entities (animal, human beings and supernatural powers or beings) and inanimate
entities(naturalandmanufacturedorconstructedentities).
5.2.2.1Animateentities
Theanimate(sub-)domainreferstoanimals,humanbeings,andthesupernatural,
asfollows:
a) Supernatural powers or beings: Supernatural powers or beings include the
followingexamples:
0.2%ofsurnamesrelatetopowersorpersonifications:
(177)Kalyan (Hindi) /kala:yan/ ‘auspicious’
19.87%ofsurnamesrelatetosupernaturalbeings
(178)Akaal (Punjabi) /ʔakan/ ‘God/GoddessSaraswati’
(179)Mahadev (Hindi) /mahathep/ ‘LordofSiva’
(180)Surina (Punjabi) /suɾina/ ‘Goddess
b)HumanBeings:Humanbeings (18.47%) are representedby social caste,as in
thefollowingexamples:
(181)Singh (Punjabi) /siŋ/ ‘derivefromKshatriyacaste’
(182)Sirinetkul (Sanskrit) /siɾinetkun/ ‘derivedfromKshatriyacasteofHindu
VarnasystemfromRajputsofRajasthan’
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5.2.2.2Inanimateentities
The inanimate (sub-)domain refers to nature, the supernatural, substances,
flora/plantentitiesandmanufacturedorconstructedentities,asfollows:
a)Naturalinanimateentities:Naturalphenomenaaccountfor2.4%ofSikhIndian
Thaisurnames:
1.6%ofsurnamesrelatetocelestial-atmosphericentities:
(183)Mehal (Urdu) /mehan/ ‘cloud’
(184)Sudipti (Punjabi) /suthipti?/ ‘brightness’
0.2%ofsurnamesrelatetogems:
(185)Hira (Punjabi) /hira/ ‘diamond’
0.4%ofsurnamesrelatetofloraandplantproducts:
(186)Vigsai (Punjabi) /vigsay/ ‘blossom’
b)Manufacturedorconstructedinanimateentities:Manufacturedorconstructed
entities refer to artifacts which can be divided into generic items and offensive
weapons.Only 0.6%of Sikh Indian Thais names are basedon these entities as in the
followingexamples:
0.2%ofsurnamesaregeneric:
(187)Nidhi (Hindi) /ni?thi?/ ‘treasure,wealth’
0.4%ofsurnamesrelatetooffensiveweapons:
(188)Tulwa (Punjabi) /tunwa/ ‘sword’
5.2.3Eventssemanticdomain
EventsareusedfortheSikhs’surnamesat6.09%.Themeaningofevents,intermof
semanticdomains,conveystheSikhIndianThaipeople’sidealcharacter.
3.02%ofsurnamesrelatetoemotion:
(189)Kaan (Punjabi) /ka/an/ ‘wish,desire’
(190)Preet (Hindi) /prit/ ‘love’
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1.78%ofsurnamesrelatetointellect:
(191)Sochai (Punjabi) /sotɕhay/ ‘bythinking’
1.29%ofsurnamesrelatetomovement:
(192)Rijak (Sanskrit) /ritɕhak/ ‘sustenance’
(193)Vigsai (Punjabi) /vigsay/ ‘tocomeintobloom’
6.Summary
HinduandSikhnamesaremostcommoninregardstothosenameswhichreflect
‘emotions.’Regardingfemalenames,thoseHinduandSikhfemalenameswhichreferto
‘emotions’ are most similar, and those referring to ‘religious characters’ are second-
mostsimilar.
Hindu males and females are named similarly as regards entities; of these,
‘natural’and‘animals’sub-domainsarehighest.The‘emotion’sub-domainthesecond-
highest.
Sikhmalesandfemalesarenamedmostlyas‘religiouscharacters’.
Fromthisstudy,theprincipalsemanticdomainis‘religiouscharacters.’ForHindu
Indian Thais, values about holy God, spirit and cosmos are important. Most Hindus
believe in a few foundational ideas, such as inherent sacredness in nature. Hindus
believethataneducatedexpert,orsatguru,isrequiredforanaveragepersontoknow
transcendence. They believe that all life forms are holy, to be loved; therefore they
exerciseahimsa,ornon-injury.
Sikhismisamonotheisticfaith.SikhismidentifiesGodasbeingonlyone.ToSikhs,
God istheDesigneroftheGalaxy,omniscient,timelessandomnipotent. Sikhsdonot
recognizeanyothergods.
The results of the data analysis are consistent with the concept of Nida (1975:
174).Theresultexposedthatasemanticsectoriscomprisedofanumberofmeanings
whichsharesemanticelements.
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7.PopularIndianThaiNaming
Ferguson (1864) said: “...theetymologyofpropernames is theonlybranch thenof the
subjectwhichcaninanysensebecalledpopular,forwhatmen,evenofthosewhocarenotto
enquire theoriginof the language they speak, feel some interestor curiosity inknowing the
meaningofthenamestheybear...”(FergusonapudRosenthal2005:3).
7.1MaleHinduIndianThainames
Name PercentageArsok‘Withoutsorrow,happiness,nameofemperor’ 18%Suchir‘Goodforalongtime’ 12%Aruna ‘Dawn,agodoftheHindus’ 9%Others 61%Table1.PopularMaleHinduIndianThainames
Threesuchnameswereidentified.ArsokisaformoftheIndianAshoka,denoting
theimportanceofhappiness.Ashoka,anancientIndianruler,urgedhiskintopractice
Buddhistvalues,heencouragedanairofappreciationforallreligions.Ashokaservedas
anillustrationoftoleranceforhissubjects(Thapar1973:51).Suchir(thesecondname)
istherepresentativeofHinduismwhichisthe“Everlastingway”.EverlastinginHinduism
impliesthoselivingcreatureswhowillstayaliveonEarthuntiltheendofthismodern
age. The third name,Aruna, is an exemplification of the ruddy gleamof the climbing
Sun,whichisconsideredtohaveotherworldlypowers.InHinduTradition,Arunaisthe
charioteer of Surya (the Sun God) and he is additionally the red sky of first light or
throughout dawn. The story of his heavenly conception is said in the Astika Parva of
Mahabharata(Klostermaier2007).
7.2FemaleHinduIndianThainames
Name PercentageRidhhi‘Power,HinduGod’ 20%Neela‘AcharacterinHindumythology,beautiful’ 11%
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Mukta‘Liberated,pearl’ 7%Others 62%Table2.PopularFemaleHinduIndianThainames
ThenameRidhhiranksthehighest inpopularity.SiddhiandRiddhiarethewives
ofthegodGanesha.Thus,anyonewhohonorsGaneshaarelikewisehonoredbyRiddhi
and Siddhi and can accomplish everything in their life (Brown 1991: 115-140). The
secondname,Neela/Nala,isthegoddessofNishadhaKingdom,childofVeerasenaand
possessed by the GodShani (Doniger 1999). This name is associated with the Hindu
female ideal. The thirdname,Mukta, represents freedom.This is reflected in the fact
thatmanyinformantsmigratedfromIndiatostartalifeinThailand.
7.3MaleSikhIndianThainames
Name PercentageHarsharan‘OnewhotakesshelterintheLord’ 40%Deepak‘Lamp,kindle 15%Hukam‘GodswhoCommand,authority,direction’ 9%Others 36%Table3.PopularMaleSikhIndianThainames
HarsharanisthemostpopularofMaleSikhIndiannames.Sikhismrecognizesthat
thespiritualandphysicalworldareentwined(Cole&Sambhi1995)andthusseeksto
securetheprivilegesofallindividuals.Thesecondname,Deepak,meansanoillight.The
oilintheDeepakrepresentsthedarkpartofahumanspiritthatpeoplehaveatendency
tosustain,andburningthewickistypicaloftheatman(self).Toaccomplishillumination
andunitewiththepreeminentforce,onemustdisposeofmaterialism(Cole&Sambhi
1995).
Thethirdname,Hukam,isalsoassociatedwithSikhism.IntheSikhScripture,Guru
Nanak,theauthorofthereligion,says:“ONanak,bytheHukamofGod'sCommand,we
travel every which way in resurrection. The entirety of the Universe is liable to the
Hukam of the Creator God. Nothing ever happens without the Will of Him.” This is
acknowledgedasoneoftheessentialideasofSikhism.
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7.4FemaleSikhIndianThainames
Name PercentageLivsharan‘AbsorbedintheLotusFeetofGod’ 35%Ishwari ‘SupremeGoddess’ 18%Jasdeep‘ThelampradiatingGod’sGlories’ 8%Others 39%Table4.PopularFemaleSikhIndianThainames
Livsharan is themostpopular femaleSikh IndianThainame, followedby Ishwari
andJasdeep.ThesethreenamesrefertotheSikhOnenessofGod.
Accordingtothedata,themostpopularofmaleandfemaleSikhIndiannamesare
associatedwithSikhism.ThenamesofSikhsareconsistentinbothsexes.
7.5Thelanguageusedinnaming
Language Hindu'sNaming Sikh'sNamingHindi 73.13% 24.39%Sanskrit 13.53% 2.38%Punjabi 1.38% 65.36%Others 11.95% 7.87%Total 100% 100%Table5.Languagesusedinnaming
ForHindu Indian Thai names,Hindi is themost popular for names, followed by
PunjabiandthenSanskrit.ForSikhs,Punjabiisthemostpopularfornames,followedby
Hindi and then Sanskrit. A different language is sometimes used because of Sikh
migrationfromUttarPradesh.
The semantic domains in Indian Thais Naming are composed of 3 domains: the
semanticdomainofHindu’snamesisuptoentities,abstractandevents.Thesemantic
domainofHindu’ssurnamesisuptoentities,abstractandevents.Thesemanticdomain
ofSikh’snamesisuptoabstract,entitiesandevent.AndthesemanticdomainofSikh’s
surnames is up to abstract, entities and event. There is not relational because the
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relationalisthegrammaticalwords.Thiswordisnotidentifyinganindividualascontent
words.
8.Conclusion
The results of the data analysis are consistent with the concept of Nida (1975:
174). The result exposed that a semantic sector comprises basically of a number of
meanings which share certain semantic elements of each group. The salient of the
semantic domains are religious characters. Hindu Indian Thais people named entities
(naturalandanimals)thatrelatedtothemainconceptsofHinduism.Valuesaboutholy
God, spirit and cosmos are important to a person’s lifestyle. Sikhism respects a
monotheistic faith.Sikhism identifiesGodas theonlyOne.God is theDesignerof the
Galaxy, courageous, not topic to time or area, and does not take beginning or die. It
reflectsthatbothofgroupsstillbelievefirmlyownphilosophyofregion.
Acknowledgements
Theresearchpresentedherewas financiallysupportedbyThailandResearchFund(TRF)
through the Royal Golden Jubilee Ph.D. Program (Grant No. PHD/0341/2550). I would like to
expressmygratitude toAssoc.Prof.SophanaSrichampa,mydissertationadvisor, forherkind
supportinmyresearch.Inaddition,itgivesmegreatpleasureinacknowledgingthesupportand
help of Assoc. Prof. Amarjiva Lochan, an expertise in Indian studies, Prof. Suwilai Premsrirat,
whoseenthusiasmforlinguisticsconventionshadlastingeffect.Mydeepgratitudeisalsodueto
the generosity of Assoc. Professor Amon Sangmanee, and Assoc. Prof. Samniang Leurmsai,
whoseguidanceisthekeytomysuccess.AveryspecialgratitudeneedstobegiventomyIndian
Thai informants who dedicated their valuable time and patience during the data collection.
Many thanks must be given to Thailand Research Fund who granted me the Royal Golden
Jubilee Scholarship throughout the research process and provided me several noteworthy
opportunities.
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