Is Teknonymy a Word?
Teknonymy (From Greek: Τέκνον, "Child" and Greek: Ὄνομα, "Name"), Hence the Noun Teknonym or Teknonymic, More Often Known as a Paedonymic, Is the Practice of...
Teknonymy (from Greek: τέκνον, "child" and Greek: ὄνομα, "name"), hence the noun teknonym or teknonymic, more often known as a paedonymic, is the practice of referring to parents by the names of their children. This practice can be found in many different cultures around the world.
Who has coined the term teknonymy?
The term was coined by anthropologist Edward Burnett Tylor in an 1889 paper. Teknonymy can be found in: Various Austronesian peoples: The Cocos Malays of Cocos Islands, where parents are known by the name of their first-born child.
What is the reason behind the usage of teknonymy?
There are many reasons for using teknonymy. In some cultures, it's considered taboo to call certain relations by name (as in the usage example below). Sometimes, it's convenience. You may not know or remember the names of your child's friends' parents, for example, so you resort to teknonymy.
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