Short read: Why getting a name right matters

Some North Indians do it to South Indians. Some Westerns do it to Indians. Some Indians do it to Africans. Mispronouncing the same person’s name repeatedly is not just an insult; it is also a subtle signal to the person whose name is being mispronounced that they should fall in-line with whatever is deemed mainstream in that society. As this BBC article highlights, “Getting people’s names right is earning more attention than even thanks to Kamala Harris’s recent bid for the presidency. As the first female, black and Asian American to serve as US vice-president, Harris has faced consistent mispronunciations of her name. “Don’t worry about it. It doesn’t matter what I say,” former president Donald Trump said about the pronunciation of Harris’ name at a campaign rally in Florida last week. “If I mispronounce it or not, I couldn’t care less.”

In some cases, mispronunciations present as apparently wilful errors used to suggest ‘otherness’, or draw attention to her ethnicity. Harris has made a point of correcting mispronunciations publicly, sending an important signal that there’s no excuse for failing to master names – and serving as a role model for those who want to reclaim their identities.”

Research shows that the racial signals emitted by names is so potent that many choose to mask the signal. Zulekha Nathoo of the BBC writes: “Changing one’s name to fit in happens more often than some may think, especially on resumés. According to research from Stanford University and the University of Toronto, nearly half of black and Asian job applicants who altered their resumés did so by changing the presentation of their name in an effort to erase any racial cues. (The researchers found those who “whitened” their resumés were twice as likely to get call-backs for an interview, compared to those who left ethnic details intact.)

Some also use nicknames or Anglicised names in professional or social environments. Zhao’s recent research showed that about half of Chinese international students surveyed who attend US universities had adopted Anglicised versions of their given names to make it easier for others to pronounce them. But this can have consequences: Zhao says he uncovered a pattern showing the use of an ‘Anglo’ name is associated with lower levels of self-esteem, which can also be an indicator for lower levels of health and wellbeing.”

Increasingly, people of colour are calling out the mispronouncers: “In 2019, American comedian Hasan Minhaj, who often discussed his Indian-Muslim background on his Netflix show Patriot Act, used his appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show to correct the TV host on her pronunciation of his name: “If you can pronounce Ansel Elgort, you can pronounce Hasan Minhaj.” The clip has been viewed more than four million times on his Twitter page.”

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