The Shame of My Name | Al Jazeera World

Filmmaker: Sameh Mejri
The Shame of my Name is the story of how some Algerians during the colonial period were forced to change their names by French colonial authorities at the time. Many of the names these Algerians were forced to carry hold demeaning and even vulgar meanings.
The burden of these forced names is still carried by some Algerians to this day.
The names were in the local Algerian Arabic dialect and cover a range of vulgar words, including descriptions of bodily functions and genitalia.
In this film, we meet several of these individuals whose families were forced to carry names which translate as "Arse," "Runny Nose" and even more offensive monikers. One contributor finds her name so offensive that she cannot bring herself to utter it. She has since changed her name.
“I go home and rest my head on the pillow. I pray to God to rid me of that ugly name which had become a curse in my everyday life,” Messaoud Bakhti tells Al Jazeera.
Bakhti’s forefathers were forcibly called "Gahroum" which in the Algerian dialect means "Arse" - a name having nothing to do with the heritage of his ancestors.
In 1882, 50 years after the French colonisation of Algeria, the French introduced the Civil Status Law. This allowed the authorities to impose approved names on Algerians arbitrarily. The decree stated that names would be in the “European style”, with a first name followed by the family name, which was quite different from traditional Muslim names.
But beyond this, the law was frequently interpreted by some officials in ways that demeaned and insulted Algerians. And assigning European-style names to Algerians, whether offensive or not, had another important side effect. It muddied the waters of land ownership, making it difficult for some Algerians to prove their rightful title to their land.
All of which means that now the spotlight is on France, with many Algerians saying that it is the responsibility of the French government and theirs alone, to pick up the pieces of this particular French colonial policy.
Some say a full apology is long overdue and that reparations should be paid.
“Yes, the French colonisers are responsible for this. But I also believe post-independent Algeria is responsible too,” Amel Ali Lhadfi, a former victim of obscene naming, says.
She believes Algerian authorities could make it easy to settle this problem if they wanted to or at least the process should not take such a long time.
"Whoever decides to change their name has to realise it may take 10 years.”
- Subscribe to our channel: aje.io/AJSubscribe
- Follow us on Twitter: / ajenglish
- Find us on Facebook: / aljazeera
- Check our website: www.aljazeera.com/

[@ElisabethArana]

Sad, very sad. Stigmatisation and ignominy are a kind of torture BUT This documentary shows that there is extraordinary and amazing people able to achieve their DIGNITY by their own. Thank you for show us this! Much appreciated! Thank you!

[@garypageone4733]

Elisabeth Arana Well said!

[@ar2042]

It's very fitting that the word "Sadism" originates from France. What kind of cruel people think of such things?

[@pablo12113]

France will never leave us alone. We are lead by proxy. Gaid, then, Harkis and now we have Hirak which is the same thing under a different name. They wanted to degenerate the natives like Britain, Australia, The USA did with the American Indians. While wise men create different ideals for an ideal society, the sane ideals degenerate when smart people learn how to manipulate them.

[@alicie649]

@@pablo12113 You're the cruel ones, and now spouting all the conspiracy arab stuff on social media. You must be young and stupid. Not a good exemple for all the serious Algerians who study and work. You're here provoking hatred and racism. Pretending that it's always someone else's fault like 'colonisers', 'this or that coloured people',. You do know that Arabs in general, Algerians also took far more black African slaves for much longer than did Europeans ? That the Algerians, morocans, tunisians, and others all along the Muslim empires, but with proof during the Ottoman empire, many europeans were taken as slaves, and men and women, tortured, suffered, died, because of your particular country. You don't learn that at school in Algeria eh ? Or even France, unfortunately. Well thanks to today's internet, all is available. The best historians, witnesses, (as some were as recent as the sixties, in photos), Today even some black migrants were auctioned off in Libya, literally SOLD to some farmers or ? It was filmed discretely by an American TV channel. Do ask yourself why American has lots of black skinned people ? And none in Arab countries. When in fact, the Arab slave trade was far more prolific ? Because they castrated the males. So they couldn't have children, and had to keep bringing more. How more cruel can you get ? so maybe shut up about French colonialism, because your ancestors did TONS more. There were no slaves in Algeria under the French. But today there are in all the rich Gulf countries, with their Asian workers, and countries like Mauritania, where there are still people BORN as slaves. Bah, sick of hearing people like you

[@aizasaed170]

We await the justice of our Rabb.

[@koolman3956]

I dont understand why most of the algerian show love for France especialy the youth. I think their parents did not teach them about the harm and the pain that the french causes to their parents. I think when the Algerian format and erases every thing that is related to france, they will see success in near future.

[@mar3857]

The new generations have no interest in France, not even the language. But in the past, people surprisingly liked France. I agree with you, history can never be forgotten.

[@pablo12113]

You are wrong. Not all Algerian share your ideology. Its a small minority so called Harkis or the pro-French that are attached to France.

[@alicie649]

@@pablo12113 Well, why don't they leave ? And you, where do you live buddy ?

[@MeoWooff_01]

Slave mindset based in their powerlessness to fight off the colonists.

[@slowknife2873]

Stockholm syndrome or something

[@jishamusthafa4585]

Y subtitles r blurred?

[@kareninahalim6793]

Please add subtitle 🙏🙏🙏😭😭😭😭

[@pablo12113]

The names where forced on them by force to debase them.

[@otokonokosama682]

Tôt ou tard nous ferons payer vos crimes contre l'humanité ne pensez jamais que nous avons oublié car certains traîtres contrôlaient le pays et travaillaient sous vos ordres, les Algériens n'ont pas dit leur dernier mot concernant vos crimes contre les Algériens .☠🇨🇵

[@Mauri7782]

Algeria is a french invention

[@thepilgrimofinfinity4830]

I am very sad for these people.

[@ameerah363]

Same in morocco

[@ubuntu2551]

Do u have any evidence for that?

[@imanlah4803]

They did not do that in Morocco at all we retained our names

[@ameerah363]

Yes , I know many have a bad surname . But after they changed them I rememberd at secondary school i was shocked by some bad surnames

[@imanlah4803]

@@ameerah363 They may have name they do not like but they French did not makes change are names like Algeria not one bit never. It's never been recorded in Morocco.

[@ameerah363]

@@imanlah4803 that what we gained from colonisation . And if it was not recorded in Morocco it doesn't mean it doesn't exist or people wasn't suffering. Anyway I feel bad for our brothers and sisters who are still suffering.

[@pablo12113]

Thanks to the Gaids and the Harkis that made it possible to the French. The Berbers still carry on with their native names?

[@hourimedj3593]

Le colonisateur français a fair beaucoup de mal au peuple algérien du point de vue physique et moral...

[@leilamenouar8998]

1] This seems to have only affected poor and illiterate villagers in rural areas of Algeria. 2] the show could have represented a more diverse cross-section of Algerians. There wasn’t a single Kabyle (Berber), they all spoke classical Arabic and none of them were Francophone (odd among the educated of the country).

[@averagecamelenjoyer6708]

Algeria is an Arab Country thats why they only show the Arabs, yes there are the Amazigh, but they are heavy been Arabized for centuries. This is only a recent thing were people started to call them self Amazigh 100%. Most Algerians call them self Arabs. Also about the Classical Arabic, of course there going to speak classical Arabic, if you know anything about the Arabic langue you would know that in the media and in the news you always speak Classical Arabic no matter the country your in.

[@pablo12113]

You should elaborate more in the subject. What do you know about Algerian history? A colony is a colony and never change its colors.

[@Igorstadnick]

A very important issue brought forth of how France not content in colonisation had to break down the colonised peoples' spirit and pride. A crime against humanity.

[@alicie649]

Arab propaganda jeez check out what AJ is.

[@GorgorothBergen-ns7il]

Al Jazeera is a TOTAL DISGRACE, faked by arabs, 11200000 a jailed journalist? Never mess 2 feet 1 in 1 slippers. See? You are trapped.

[@MsHackthat]

I don't know, this seems too shady. If it was widely known that the French gave them that horrible name, how's that they are still makes fun of?

[@sitiaishahamir9133]

AL JAZEERA PLEASE OWE YOUR APOLOGY TO MALAYSIA NOW!!!! OTHERWISE WE WILL SHUT YOUR KZbin BROADCAST!!!!!

[@mar3857]

Wut happened?

[@JDPhyx]

Thousands of people in France got obscene names but it's almost impossible to change name in this country and it could take more than 10 years of fighting to get a... NO!

[@Flibbertigibbetish]

I hope you realize that it's not the same context, not the same thing AT ALL!

[@shaboohshoobah714]

The irony of this is that Algerians only have Arabic names now because they were forced to by Arab colonisers during the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb (647 AD - 709 AD).

[@farahnusrat6289]

but they don’t have any complaint by their arab names.They have complaint against their disgraceful french attributed names.It's their right which names they have to choose or which not.

[@kalyaamirouche6009]

arabic names are not shameful!!!! plus in algeria people names were "ben" something or "aït"something it means "son"

[@mar3857]

@@kalyaamirouche6009 EXACTLY

[@noursama_the_old]

There are diffrences between calling someone "abd allah" which means God's creation. And between a name that litterally means peace of poo.

[@alicie649]

"Some say a full apology is long overdue and that reparations should be paid." Ah, typical of Algerians and of course Aljazeera that doesn't waste an opportunity to blame 'colonisers', or the French in particular, in this case. In France, Algerians (or Moroccans) are well known for demanding 'reparations', and 'apologies', forever and forever. This thing about names, is ok to mention, but they could change their names when they wished, or should have been able to after their independance. The fact is that they call themselves with nicknames, so why whine and whine ? It's nearly 60 years since their independance, fought for, with many dead, on both sides. Yet what has Algeria gained ? Nothing. It had a ten year civil war, the regime vs islamists with maybe 100 000 or more killed ! Has Aljazeera done a documentary about that ? During the nineties. No one in the english speaking world even knows about it. It doesn't interest them. In fact when did Algeria ever interest the English speaking world ? Most people have never even heard of it let alone know about its history. (especially americans, except when they were taken as slaves by their pirates in the Mediterranean sea !)

[@noursama_the_old]

It's because during that time the french colonization separated big families into different places, kicking them out of their respective towns and scattering them across the country as a way of making us more weak, you can literally find someone three states away from u with ur family name, and that made it harder to find all the people with that family name and aggreeing into changing the last name. Also who told u we are actively trying to ask for apologies, we are always forgotten, and besides france had done some serious war crimes inside our land from stealing our lands and things to mass genocide, have u ever heard of the genocide of 8 th of may 1945 ? French people are colonisers and u can not deny it, millions of people killed in such horrible ways. U just deny that because we are not jews or christians.

[@alicie649]

@@noursama_the_old Read what i wrote to @nacer atik. Learn a bit about your past, and stop swallowing propaganda, like this and your crazy religion that directs hatred towards all 'dhimmis', as you say, jews and christians, but also Buddhists, hindus, non believers, who have often the worst treatment. And you dare call the French cruel ? Just read what i replied to him because i explain your past. You need to learn it. Arabs invaded Algeria and the Mediterranean coast long before the French. Who in fact did it becauses of the piracy and raids on French, spanish Italian coasts and on ships in the sea. Taking everyone as slaves.