Naamkaran at the border: Reflections on naming, identity, and belonging

Authors

Vejoya Viren, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-2025

Abstract

Names serve as primary anchors of identity, carrying histories, cultural markers, and personal significance. Yet individuals with non-Western names frequently encounter mispronunciation, abbreviation, or simplification— practices that subtly diminish or erase aspects of identity. This article employs an autoethnographic lens to explore the complex terrain of naming across personal and professional contexts. Drawing on lived experience from India to the U.S.–Mexico border, the essay examines the emotional and social labor associated with names, the negotiation of linguistic difference, and the ethical imperative of respectful pronunciation. It situates personal narrative within scholarship on microaggressions, identity construction, and linguistic justice, demonstrating how the act of saying a name correctly constitutes a gesture of recognition, care, and inclusion.

Comments

Copyright the Author.

Recommended Citation

Naamkaran at the border: Reflections on naming, identity, and belonging. (2025). Educational Borderlands , 3, 52-58. https://doi.org/10.51734/9nfbqa56    

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Publication Title

Educational Borderlands

DOI

10.51734/9nfbqa56