OKANAGAN NAME-GIVING CEROMONY

Today I was fortunate enough to be invited along to the Okanagan Indian Name-Giving Ceremony. This is a ceremony where an Indian has an Okanagan name bestowed upon them. The name can be derived from nature or a particular event in a person’s life and the name will then stay with them forever.

The event is held in the local Okanagan Indian School which is a modern facility that caters for children from kindergarten to grade 7. Amongst a standard Canadian curriculum, Indian cultural studies and Okanagan language are taught at the school.


The event is conducted by a revered Okanagan Indian elder, Modesta Betterton in both Okanagan language and English. After the opening address Modesta conducts a prayer in Okanagan.


Unlike most events and ceremonies the meal comes before the ceremony and Modesta explained that this is because they want everyone to be sated and satisfied so a hungry belly won’t turn one’s attention away from the Name-Giving.

As at any Indian feast there were copious amounts of fresh salmon and bannock (fried bread). After the meal there was a singing and drumming of the Grandmother song. The singers and drummer moved around the hall in a procession with the four children who were about to be named. The beat is infectious and it is hard not to tap the feet. The chant is haunting as it resounds throughout the hall.


Finally the procession stops at the front of the hall and the ceremony begins. Each of the four children, two boys and two girls has a sponsor who is either a family member or a friend. This is an important position and it is not unlike that of a godfather or godmother.


All the children move forward and stand on ceremonial birch and fir tree boughs. Modesta moves to the front of each child and in both Okanagan and English states what there name means and where it came from.




Today’s ceremony provided the Indian names of, Braveheart, Thunder, Little Prancing Deer and Good Hearted. It was a short and simple ceremony and at its conclusion each child will forevermore be known by both a Christian name and an Okanagan name. All the audience then moves past the participants in a long line and shakes their hand and wishes them well.

You can’t escape politics anywhere and after the ceremony the Osoyoos Indian Band Chief and two Councilors spoke of the importance of the Name Giving Ceremony. There were plans afoot that this would be the last such ceremony as many families want to conduct private family ceremonies. But after each Councilor spoke of the importance of the Name-Giving Ceremony to the community it appears likely that the Name-Giving will carry on into the future.

The final event of the ceremony was a give-away. That is everyone who attended the Name-Giving received a gift which ranged from blankets and DVD’s to antique cases and Spiderman shirts. I received a nice Indian blanket and a turtle necklace. The gift’s are provided by the families of the Name-Giving participants and is an indication of Indian culture and generosity.

My day was capped off by a photo with a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officer. Not exactly my idea, but one I appreciated.


The Name-Giving ceremony was a great event and one I feel that I was very fortunate to attend as it gives a unique snapshot into Indian culture and tradition.