Cultural Diversity - The Civil Service

Land Registry Cultural DiversityHinduThe basic pattern is:Personal Name – Complementary Name – Subcaste Name(First Name) (Middle Name) (Family Surname)The personal name usually indicates the sex of the owner, e.g. Arima = female,Naresh = male.The complementary name is like a second first name; it is not a surname.Some common middle names are:Lal, Nath, Chand, Kumar, Ram = maleDevi, Kumari, Bai = femaleThe “subcaste” name is not exactly equivalent to a UK surname.This name, to someone who understands the caste system, gives information aboutthe social status and traditional occupation of its owner.It should be borne in mind that attitudes and practices have changed and the Indianconstitution frowns on the caste system. Therefore, because caste is built into theHindu naming system, many Indians have now stopped using the subcaste name.This can cause some confusion because the middle name, used as a surname is notcommon to all members of the same family.MuslimA typical pattern is:Religious Name(s) – Personal Name – Clan/Family/Regional NameThe religious name is not used as a personal name but is in fact a religious title. Themost common one is Mohammed, but any of the 99 names of Allah may be given.Other names include Abdul, Allah, Ullah.The titles Allah and Ullah are usually used together with the personal name, e.g. AllahDittah, Hafeez Ullah.As the personal name may come first or may be followed by another religious name orused with a title, the real personal name (the one by which a person should beaddressed) can normally only be established by asking the individual.Examples (with personal name underlined)Abdul Aziz, Syed Khalid HusseinThere is no equivalent to our surname. Some Muslims have a final name which maybe a clan, regional or family name or a title and may be used as a surname in ourterms. However, as with Hindu family names these are associated with social position.26