The Book, Hanta Yo I need some info.

[sheepdog 10]

Does anybody have a copy of this book, Hanta Yo, by Ruth Bee Bee Hill? I can't find mine anywhere. In the very back of the book there is a glossary of indian words and their meanings. (Lakota Sioux) What I need is a good name for a male Wire Haired Fox Terrier. I have 2 females that I used Indian words for from the book and would like to find one for the male. The females are named Yuza and Zola, which means "takes hold of" (a really great name for a wire fox) and wistle. Or if someone knows of a web site that would have a simular listing that would work too.

[iGuest 3]

Replying to sheepdogSo you really gave your dogs Lakota names????That is pretty offensive.-reply by David Brown Eyes

[sheepdog 10]

Huh???? How on earth could that possibly be offensive? I happen to like my dogs. And they are just words. Yuza and Zola, one means "takes hold of" and the other means whistle, and if you know anything at all about wire fox terriers to take hold of is an excellent way to describe one. I can't see anything offensive about it. What if I wanted to name a dog a German word, someone told me Zooker was German for Sugar, would that offend the Germans in the crowd?

[iGuest 3]

Huh????How on earth could that possibly be offensive? I happen to like my dogs. And they are just words. Yuza and Zola, one means "takes hold of" and the other means whistle, and if you know anything at all about wire fox terriers to take hold of is an excellent way to describe one. I can't see anything offensive about it. What if I wanted to name a dog a German word, someone told me Zooker was German for Sugar, would that offend the Germans in the crowd?

That's not even remotely comparable. First of all, the German word for sugar is "zucker" so you didn't even bother to double check your facts before making an analogy. Plenty of people speak German, including those who do not live in Germany, have never been to Germany, and have no German ancestry. I am third generation German American and I would not offended if you used German words correctly in an attempt to prove your point. Repeating second-hand 'knowledge' would irritate me, as would applying sweeping generalizations to ANY ethnic group.

 

Lakotah names are very meaningful. Perhaps you forgot that in the book, characters were given new names as they aged to reflect either their changing personalities or an important event that happened to them (and that getting a new name required a ceremony.) It is cultural appropriate to take a name from an ancient language and randomly apply it to a dog. I am sure your animals are wonderful, but they should NOT be given Lakotah names.

 

There's no stopping you from Googling Lakotah names or buying another copy of "Hanta Yo" and continuing to call your dogs something that you have been politely informed does offend some people. But I would respectfully ask that you consider other options.