Introduction-E

parents or relatives and I was aware of their situation, would I name our own or our
grandchildren after theirs, because they had no children to name. That’s how it would
be in those days, and it’s still practiced today. My parents and I had our own tradition
in that we didn’t go around naming our newborns after other people’s relatives. My
mother did not agree with the Anglican minister baptizing and naming whomever he
baptized as he pleased. I am just following her footsteps. I name newborns, but I don’t
often name them after a person who died. We are all different; we name newborns as we
please. I am not saying you should do as I do; I am just saying that’s how I do it. What
was your original question? I am talking without thinking of your question.
No, it’s fine. I would like to ask you [something about] my son who
is named after my cousin who drowned.
Elisapee: Jupie?
Yes, he’s named after Jupie. My cousin drowned.… well, they drowned…
shortly after my son was born. Should I keep him from water as much
as I can for that reason?
Elisapee: As I stated earlier, it is not a common practice for me to name a person after
someone who died. The people of Kangitugaapik seem to practice naming after a person
who died more than the people of Mittimatalik do. They name the child and treat it as
if it is the person who died. They are two separate people with separate souls. It is a
different body. It is noticeable that they name newborns after people that have died. I
have noticed that even the people of Mittimatalik are starting to practice naming their
newborns after those who have died. Among us, if we had parents or parents-in-law,
they named our children. Some of us never named our own children. Even my
grandmother Makpainnuk is named among my children, but I did not name her; my
mother-in-law did. My mother-in-law was the only one who named my children. One
of my sons is named Kipumii after my father, and I did not even name him. It is not his
first name, but it is his name. I do not want to follow other people’s customs, I have my
own. I am not saying follow my way.
I have a question regarding names. Was it allowed to name someone
after a person who was still alive?
Elisapee: Our grandmother left by the ship C.D. Howe to go to a sanatorium because of
tuberculosis. We just saw her as she was passing through, but she died within the same
year, as she was an elderly lady, in Montreal or Hamilton. There was a baby who wasn’t
a newborn anymore who was named after my grandmother by my mother. The baby
40 Introduction to the Oral Traditions