A Child Named Thanksgiving

We give thanks to the rain. Siyabonga in the Zulu language.

My name is Thanksgiving.

What does it mean, exactly?  It means thank you, Siyabonga in Zulu, a language spoken in South Africa, Swaziland, Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

Kids will be born on Thanksgiving in the United States on 22 November because it is a kid thing to do.  They get tired of hanging out in women’s bodies for nine months and decide to make a grand entrance into a world ruled by the question: How much?

Their names will be Siyabonga if parents speak isi-Zulu, or like African names.  Africa, just like any other collection of cultures, has naming traditions and one of them is giving kids names that reflect what was happening when they were born.

If Donald Trump has any grandkids born this Thanksgiving, he would probably call them Siyabonga, for Republicans losing the House but retaining the Senate during the midterm elections on the 6th of November 2018.

After a wedding or any other celebration, it is not unusual for drunk folks to say to the host:  Ave sesibonga (we say a big thanks).

Bo-nga, give thanks. The first part of the verb is pronounced like bobo the clown and the second like vanguard. 

ZULU	ENGLISH
Sibongile.	A girl’s name meaning we are thankful.
Siyabonga.	A boy’s name meaning we are thankful.
Bongani.	A boy’s name meaning, say thank you.  One family had six daughters.  They named the 7th child, a boy Bongani.  The name Siyabonga would also have been appropriate.
Bongiwe.	A girl’s name meaning it has been thanked.
Babongile.	A girl’s name meaning, yes, they said thank you.
Bongumusa.	A boy’s name meaning we thank the kindness.
Bonginkosi	A boy’s name meaning we thank the king or God.

Please Note:  Names are actually long sentences that explain circumstances of the child’s birth. 

By:  Nonqaba waka Msimang.