What's in a name? I recently came across this information from WebMD: Dr. Swastika Jha, MD is a specialist in rheumatology at Baylor Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple, Texas. She graduated from the Banaras Hindu University Institute of Medicine and treats patients for rheumatoid arthritis, gout, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). osteoarthritis, and osteoporosis. She speaks English and Spanish.
In my research I have come across a good number of people named "Swastika." To check my perceptions I also did some fresh digging into sites that specialize in the subject of people's names. It turns out that , according to one source: "as of March.04.2015 15:04 there are 458 people named as SWASTIKA in the United States and the number is increasing by 4 people every year." The number of people in India with this name is unknown to me but surely we are talking about possibly hundreds of thousands or even the low millions. The name isn't as common as Lakshmi or Krishna but it definitely is on anyone's list of popular names in India. And, while not as much of a factor, this is also true for Nepal and Indonesia. There now are about 3 million Hindus in the United states and, needless to say, it isn't necessary to be a Hindu to have this name. It is a name sometimes bestowed on Christians, Muslims, Sikhs, and Buddhists and maybe others. A search for frequency of the name turned up these facts also, there are: 8 people named Swastika Singh in the United States. 3 people named Swastika Gaur, 7 people named Swastika Kumar, and 5 people named Swastika Mohapatra A few random "Swastika" names of real people: Swastika Chakraborty Swastika Khare Swastika Kasaju Swastika Devi Swastika De Sajar What does any of this have to do with Radical Centrism? The same thing it has to do with any group you can think of, whether political or professional or anything else: A fraternity, a sales business, an advertising agency, a church, a magazine, a television station, a music group, etc. etc. These are actual people and in their cultures the name carries none of the connotations it does in the West -or did, in the West. There are indications that the taboo on the word that has characterized American culture since the 1940s is fading fast. One can find examples of students with the name and various Web entries along these lines: "My stepmom is a teacher and had a student named Swastika..." Expediting the change in attitudes, at least among people who are favorably disposed to the culture of India, is the popularity of actress Swastika Mukherjee, the star of many Telugu language movies -Tollywood- who has recently begun to act in Bollywood movies -which, BTW, is very big news, given the size of the mass audience for movies in India. In 2007, amidst the furore about Prince Harry and a move in the EU to ban all references to the symbol or even use of the word "swastika," Miss Mukherjee was featured in a Times of India story under the headline : I won't change my name: Swastika. Which is more than a local matter limited to India. After all, we are discussing a major trade partner of not only the USA and Europe, but also Israel. The question for most people, for now, is this: What if someone named "Swastika" asked to join our group? It could happen even if, as things are currently, it is unlikely simply because not much is happening around here in 2015. I don't know of anyone with this name who might be interested in Radical Centrism, but here are a few at least conceivable possibilities: Swastika Ghosh, is a software consultant Swastika Chatterjee is a software engineer Swastika Shiwakoti is a Web game developer Swastika Ram is a teacher at the University of Southern Queensland Swastika Roy is a financial consultant with a private bank To repeat the question : What if someone named "Swastika" asked to join our group? No need to hurry your answer, this isn't going to happen any time soon. But it is something to think about. Billy -- -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
