Pride vs. Prejudice

Baby Names and the African-American Experience

By Mark Stackpole

People often guess that Dayshawnna Littleton of San Jose, Calif., is African-American before they ever meet her. In fact, after a job interview, she asked the interview committee if they thought that she was African-American based on the name on her resume. They said that they did. Regardless of any potentially preconceived notions, she got the job as an educational administrator.

Presumably, their assumption has to do with the fact that her name has the unique qualities of a created name. And while her family did in fact create the name, it has little to do with her ethnicity. Her father wanted to honor his own tradition of having the names of all his daughters begin with the letter "S." (Her mother wisely rejected his first suggestion, Stevetta, after himself.) They decided on Shawnna, but there were complications during the delivery of Dayshawwna and her twin brother, and all of them came very close to death.

"When they learned that everyone was out of the woods, they looked outside and saw the light of day," says Littleton. "My uncle suggested adding 'day' to my name. That's where my name comes from." She identifies very strongly with her name, largely because of the dramatic circumstances that gave rise to it.

Littleton's family places a great deal of importance on family history. Many of the names of her relatives come about by blending the names of parents, grandparents or other beloved family members. Among the many unique names in her family is Jackae Natoy, a niece whose name is based on those of her parents, Jacqueline and Nathan. Littleton's twin brother named his daughter Dayja, not only thinking that it sounded pretty, but also looking to honor his sister.

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