AN ONOMASTIC STUDY OF SELECTED CHURCHES IN GHANA

Abstract

This paper examines names and their meanings of selected charismatic churches in Ghana.  The aims are to establish how these names are formed and to identify their naming patterns by closely observing and studying the texts (names) from sign posts and buildings of these places of worship. Through purposive sampling, thirty (30) charismatic church names were selected in the Bosomtwe District of the Ashanti Region. The findings revealed that charismatic church names have peculiar naming patterns just as personal naming patterns. These peculiarities are mirrored in their generic and quasi-generic terms that are used to represent their identity as Christian places of worship. It was also realized that givers of such names picked out specific expressions of their choice to modify these generic and quasi-generic terms. The words/phrases used for modifications were sometimes inventive (coinages), descriptive, commendatory or possessive. All the sampled names focused on two themes – an ecstatic emotionalism and an upward/outward spiritual expansiveness as described by Zelinsky (2002) on African-American religion in the contemporary Cook County. It can therefore be concluded that naming of these places of worship depended critically on the understanding of words/phrases used by these givers of religious names.