Dissecting Bengali Personal Names - Part 7 of 7

We take a deep dive in to the fascinating world of Bengali names. This is the last of 7 posts we've written on the subject. Each post is written in the form of notes and observations on the subject.

There are various other sources from which personal names have been derived:

Omrito, Omiyo, Omiya (fem.), Sudha (fem.), Abhi, Pijush.

Banshi (flute, fem.); Bongshi (flute), Banshori (flute, fem.), Benu (flute), Muroli (flute), Beena (stringed instrument, fem.), Mondira (cymbal, fem.), Geetika (song, fem.), Purobi (raga in Indian classical music, fem.), Chhanda (rhythm, fem.).

Kumkum (red dense liquid used to put dot on the forehead of women, fem.), Kajol (soot put on the edges of the eye), Anjon(a) (same as Kajol), Nupur, Jhumur (metallic anklets, fem.) Mekhola (metallic waist band for women, fem.), Kankona (wristlets, fem.).

Gold (Kanok, Kanchon, Swarno, Kundan, Hiron, Hironmoy, Hironmayee), silver (Rajot, Rupa, Rupali). Probal (coral), Panna (emerald), Chuni (ruby), Nila (blue diamond, fem.), Hirok (diamond), Ratna (of jewels, fem.), Manik (jewel), Photik (crystal).

Even a selective indexing of this kind is capable of revealing the general emotional and mental make-up of the Bengali community. For one, it is extremely conservative. The basic Vedantic temperament remains even though it is open to, and perpetually assimilates Buddhist, Muslim or western values. The sensibility is aesthetic. The community is sensitive to the sights and sounds of nature. It prizes domestic values; expects its women to be loving, tender, self-effacing and its men to be a trifle unworldly and withdrawn.

Bengal was the first seat of British imperialism in India and as such it has taken to the English language with ease. Western forms have influenced its literature and life but not the basic content of either. The more violent inroads that westernization and industrialization have made on the basic conservative, pastoral sensibility, the more deliberately it has turned to its past heritage. The orthodoxy of the names is perhaps a defence mechanism of the Bengali, reminding itself of its true inner self in the face of external onslaughts.