I've had the same question. My coworker,who is Caucasian, and I have discussed this very issue. I've been told that it is because slave names were stripped and given one or two syllable names and this is an attempt to regain a sense of control over self. Well, I don't believe that because it seems that a lot of these names come from a generation of folks that couldn't provide one complete sentence of African American history.
User Detail :
Name : Renee30155, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 37, City : Memphis, State : TN Country : United States, Occupation : Government, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, African American Children do not ALWAYS have unusual names. My first name is Kimberly and I can assure you that I was once a child. My first cousin's names are: Stacy, Chappell, Shawn, Alfred, Joseph, Jared, Julian, Jacalyn, Carita, Bernadette, Felicia, and Conrad. I am sure you have heard of most of these names. Many names 'most people' have never heard of are either African names or made-up names...as some AfrAms can be creative when naming children.
User Detail :
Name : Coquinegra, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 39, City : DC Suburbs, State : MD Country : United States, Occupation : college professor, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I think that it has a lot to do with not identifying with the traditional eurocentric names place upon us. Alot of us also dont like the standard way things work. Thats why we created jazz because we long for freedom from constraints And traditional names can be constrictions. Some say who is going to hire a person with a name like that I say if he produces who cares? If the person makes you a billion dollars you could care less what his name is.
User Detail :
Name : Reggie30127, City : Columbus, State : OH Country : United States, African-Americans do not have extremely Unusual names. They're just unique and creative.
User Detail :
Name : Ayanna23432, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 29, City : winston-salem, State : NC Country : United States, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, Honestly, this is a question that I've wondered about since it became popular years ago. I've been told that unusual black names really became more prevalent in the late 70s after the television miniseries Roots. It started out being a way to give one's child a unique, seemingly strong name. However, during the 80s, 90s, to today, the names have morphed in ways that really leave me scratching my head. We are products of pop culture via television, magazines, films, and it's influence. Evidence of that can be seen by the contortion of today's children's names which in my opinion, ends up hurting children in the long run. I am veeeery glad that my parents gave my brothers and I mainstream names. We were named after our father and grandfathers. I couldn't imagine going through life with some of the names I've seen given to kids today. Sometimes, I'd like to grab these mothers, shake them, and ask 'Can you imagine your child's name on an office door, or desk nameplate?' Personally, I wish it would stop! It's embarassing.
User Detail :
Name : Carl S., Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 38, City : Memphis, State : TN Country : United States, Occupation : Computer Programmer, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 'Always' have extremely unusual names? 'Names 'most' people have never heard of?' Hmmmm.... I will admit, some of us black folks do get awfully creative when we name our children, but I'd attribute it to our inherent creativity and uniqueness more than anything else. It's called 'not subscribing to the norm.'
User Detail :
Name : LaShawn, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Age : 31, City : Chicago, State : IL Country : United States, For your information I am a black female I speak english well and i have what you would see as a 'NORMAL NAME' what if you were told you had an unusua name how would you feel? Maybe they name there children these names because they are oringinal and want to stand out from a crowd what if eveyones name was lizzie, or micheal, or ashley no one would stand out or be different.
User Detail :
Name : Susan27504, Race : Black/African American, Age : 27, City : Baltimore, State : MD Country : United States, I've wondered about this, too. But I've noticed that it is not just African-Americans who do this. I've no idea why Whites do this, but do African-Americans: make up names that they think sound good; really select ethnically correct names or is it a mixture of both? When did this trend start? I've spent a lot of time with old census records and it's been my experience that on the old enumerations 'Coloreds' (the old term used, not mine. Don't flame me, please!) had very traditonal names even decades after the Civil War and abolition. William, Charles, Anna, Mary, etc. While on the other hand, there were many Whites with odd names like: Jerusha, Barzilla, Telitha (these names are from my own family tree and belonged to Americans - born in America as opposed to immigrants). When did this change? Why? Thanks for any insight.
User Detail :
Name : Marie, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 36, City : Jeffersonville, State : IN Country : United States, Social class : Upper middle class, In response to your question - 'Why do African-American children always have extremely unusual names - names most people have never heard of?' I would honestly have to say 'it depends'. My name is Larisa. My parents are black Americans from Texas, but I was born in Brazil while they lived there. My name is Brazilian, and means 'the smile'. My father named me that because he swears that when he held me for the first time, I opened my eyes and smiled at him. In Russia, however the name 'Larisa' means 'Laura', and is very common. Although I knew this, I never met another Larisa until I moved to Los Angeles, and shopped in a Russian neighborhood. Everyone there made a point of smiling at me and asking me if I knew I had a Russian name. I would say yes, and also let them know what it meant in Brazilian Portuguese. I have no children myself, but if I had to guess, I would venture to say that some black Americans give their children unusual or 'African sounding' names in order to cultivate a sense of identity. Perhaps they have looked the name up in a book, and found that it means something in an African language. Perhaps they strung some syllables together and liked the way they sounded. But just know this - for every 'Ayesha', there is a Mary, a Janet and a Francis out there. If you meet someone with an unusual name, ask what it means. If the person dosen't know, look it up online together and find out. It might mean something beautiful, and give her an additional sense of pride; or at least bring a smile to her face.
User Detail :
Name : Larisa, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, Age : 34, City : Glendale, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Executive, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, Hmmm...I think that you need to be careful when you use the word 'always'.... My name is Nicole, my sister is Camille, my best friends are named Marla, Judy and Jessica...mmmm...all 'usual' names. The only other person who is close to me is named Gian - pronounce Jan in 'American' - and that's because her father lived in France. So, for the people whos children have 'odd' names, just chalk it up to independence from the mainstream and creativity.
User Detail :
Name : NF20228, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Seventh-Day Adventist, Age : 22, City : Aurora, State : CO Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, I believe this is because we were once given names by white slave holders that appealed to them and we dont want to carry those names anymore. It is a sort of rebeling. I agree some names are farfetched even to other blacks.
User Detail :
Name : Shani G., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Age : 19, City : Stone Mountain, State : GA Country : United States, Occupation : student, Education level : 4 Years of College, Being African American, when parents name their children these unusual names like Shandarevous and Laquisha, it just makes me angry. It is ghetto, sounds uneducated and is not good when a person is job hunting. I mean, to me it doesn't sound professional when a girl's name is kiki. Sorry, but the creativity is not needed.
User Detail :
Name : xiomara, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, City : Augusta, State : GA Country : United States, My friends and I have discussed this issue many times, and to make it simple, I think that for many years, African Americans have been forced to acknowledge names given to them by slavemasters. Now I think they feel more liberated to create more unique names for their children. Although my children's names are not traditional, I feel pride in knowing that I chose them to represent their identities in my family. Some of my friends have African-originated names and have been faced with ridicule. Other cultures may think that the more common U.S. names like Sue, Bill and Kyle may be strange, just like we find other names strange. Many African Americans are developing their own identity since many of them have lost a connection with their African culture. I do feel that sometimes people may go to the extreme, like naming their children after alcoholic beverages.
User Detail :
Name : Teresa, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Age : 30, City : Detroit, State : MI Country : United States, Occupation : student/counselor, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, "Always" seems to be harsh. I'm black and my name is Joe (Joseph to be exact). None of my friends have unusual names, either.
User Detail :
Name : Joe30607, Gender : M, City : Jacksonville, State : FL Country : United States, From what I've heard, it all started with the mini-series "Roots" in the 1970s. If you're unfamiliar with it, there is a scene in which a slavemaster is trying to force a new slave named Kunte into accepting his 'slave name' Toby by whipping him every time he refuses. This very powerful scene inspired many blacks to name their children traditional African names. Whether or not that's the intention nowadays is outside my knowledge.
User Detail :
Name : Jackson, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Atheist, Age : 19, City : Tucson, State : AZ Country : United States, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Lower class, 
Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences .
