More than just a matter of name
JAKARTA (JP): I was on a bus, heading for my parents' home over the weekend. Two guys were sitting in front of me. One of them said he wanted to get off at the next stop at the entrance of the Bir Bintang factory to fetch a new acquaintance, a girl. His friend teased him, asking whether he was sure that the girl's name was Iroh, not Ira. The guy answered in a similar teasing tone: "Sure, Iroh, Umairoh,"
Overhearing this snatch of conversation, I suddenly realized that I have once again found an example of how our society is developing a strong inclination towards anything western. In particular, any outwardly things like dress, food, furniture, houses, lifestyles, and most important of all, names.
Boys prefer to be called Joni, rather than being addressed by their original names of Jono or Sujono. In the same way they prefer to be called Tomi rather than Sutomo. And the story goes that "she was Siti before she moved to the city, now she says she is Susi", in reference to the female penchant for foreign names.
Despite the fact that many young people write their names in line with the phonetic spelling characteristic of Indonesia, we can sense that the names are western ones. Examples are: Rudi, Jimi, Diki, Susi, Lusi and the like.
Many of us will argue that choosing a name is everyone's right. If so, why do Indonesians of Chinese descent not have the liberty to keep the Chinese names derived from their ancestral heritage? As we all know, in the 1970's a government regulation stipulated that all Indonesians of Chinese descent must change their names to Indonesian names. Not only their given names, but their family names as well. Some wanted to keep the oral flavor of their Chinese names by choosing names which sounded in harmony with them. Examples are Wijaya, or Wibowo (from Oey or Oei) and Tanumiharja and Tanuatmaja from Tan, or even Salim from Liem. If the Chinese names are foreign and do not conform to the character of the nation, why isn't taking western names considered un- Indonesian?
It is interesting to note that the western names are mostly taken from the Bible. Examples are Peter, John, Tom (Thomas), Jim (James), Paul, Sam (Samuel), Becky (Rebecca), Andy (Andrew), Anna, Sarah, Martha, and many others. Some are derived from the names of Catholic patron saints, such as Agatha, Lydia, Sandra, Rosa, Stephen, Alexander, Leo and George.
I noticed that such an inclination towards western names is conspicuously common among members of the show-business circle. It seems such names are more saleable. In turn, the trend finds loyal adherents from all walks of life, young and old, male and female.
Then we may say, why bother? What is in a name, anyway?
I have found, however, that our tendency to take western names may lead to embarrassing situations, especially if the name sounds very biblical.
It is not necessary for Indonesian Christians to put their baptismal names on their ID cards. Even those who converted mostly keep their original names due to practical reasons. Embarrassment occurs, however, if seemingly Bible-derived name have nothing to do with the religion of the bearer.
This happened to me when I was on an official visit to one of our local branch offices. Knowing that the name of one of the staff members was Astrid, I simply asked her about the time of Sunday mass. Her answer discouraged me from making further enquiries, and I blamed myself for my naivete.
On the other hand, my English friend suffered a similar embarrassment when she hesitatingly asked the name of the new Indonesian student at her school: Yusuf or Joseph? The new student briskly said: "I am Catholic."
Now, don't we, Indonesians, consider names very significant? Our parents painstakingly look for names bearing good meanings that would bring wealth, luck, prosperity and good health to the bearer. Customarily we would choose or change a name more for spiritual considerations, rather than simply picking one that sounds modern, western, or saleable.
Should I, again, remind myself that what we consider modern is in fact just being westernized and only skin-deep?
-- Mona Lohanda