Ancestral and Spiritual Naming of Children among the Jopadhola Lwo of Eastern Uganda

This study brings Indigenous understandings to the anti-colonial resistance by the Jopadhola Lwo people of Eastern Uganda. The Jopadhola Lwo people link with ancestors in the naming ceremonies for their children. For the study, I employed Indigenous methodology to understand how a minority people resist assimilation. I interviewed elders in Dhopadhola Lwo. The Indigenous methodology is the Padhola elders’ agency for educating the researcher. The study objectives investigated: the Indigenous naming practices and how these are understood in contemporary contexts; the Indigenous practices and the possibilities for decolonization; the understanding of the interface of society, culture, and Nature, the nexus of body, mind, and soul, and the spirit from naming ceremonies of Padhola; and the implications for transforming schooling in African and Euro-American contexts. The research findings revealed: 1. Name variations of Padhola with ongoing ceremonies for Apipili and Yao Rut. 2. Resistance to foreign names as Njawala or twigs. 3. Sacred monotheist Indigenous religion thrives with Kuunu shrines. 4. Ancestors reveal children’s names in dreams. 5. Indigenous education resists Christianity. 6. The Jopadhola elders are not worth their salt if they do not resist foreign influence and advocate for a return to traditional education.Ph.D