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Deeps, Preets, Binders, Jinders And Pinders


Balkaar
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I was hoping somebody might be able to provide me with some insight on a very odd phenomenon.

Whenever one peruses the accounts of the lives of Puraatan Gursikhs, they are found to possess names like Daya, Dharam, Kharak, Bhag, Bachittar or Himmat. Good old Gurmukhi names, usually one word, one meaning.

These sorts of names persisted in vogue right up until the beginning of the twentieth century.

But in the latter half of the very same century, a magical formula was concocted whereby a seemingly arbitrary prefix was shoved onto the beginning of a Sikh's name, and a suffix was chosen from a selection of deeps, preets, binders, jinders and pinders, et cetera. This system has become very popular now. Old Sikh names have become quite a rarity. I don't know any Avtars or Zorawars, but I'm practically drowning in a sea of Harpreets and Bhupinders. And yet I can't remember ever having come across such a name as Harpreet or Bhupinder in all my study of Sikh Itihas pre-1900s.

Is it laziness? Some parents apparently can't even be bothered to make sure their kids' names actually make sense, hence the lamentably named 'mighty lamps' (Baldeeps). Is it a lack of creativity? Or is it perhaps that the parents responsible for this phenomenon didn't know the stories about Bhai Bachittar or the names of the Panj Piaraay and the heroes of Sikh history?

I ask forgiveness if I have offended anyone who happens to be a _deep or a _pinder or something, though I hope the admission that I'm in the same boat allays any outrage you might be feeling.

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I have also wondered this, coz havin read old stories of shaheeds n sikh personalities, these boring old deep, preet, jeet, inder r NOWHERE to be seen. Old puratan names ive noticed, all had persian/other influence in them. I too would like to know, where/when/why this phase/fad started. Ive stated on this site previously that i would not be callin any of my kids in the future with these boring/repetitive names.

Its time for a shift in culture in that regard.

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Juxtapositionpreet. I'm doing it

LOL

I can see how having the power to name one's offspring anything might fill someone with an exhilarating sadism. Jamespal's parents could have no justification for what they did, but that they derive some sort of twisted pleasure from their son weeping pitifully every day after school.

I for my part am going to sire several children with absolutely no vowels in their names, trsndltns and pfftffgnrs.

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I can see how having the power to name one's offspring anything might fill someone with an exhilarating sadism. Jamespal's parents could have no justification for what they did, but that they derive some sort of twisted pleasure from their son weeping pitifully every day after school.

I think the 'preet', 'pal', etc., suffixes are purely there to appease the older generation within that family, i.e. grandparents and the like. When the child begins education I reckon the desi part of the name will be quietly dropped in favour of the English part, therefore avoiding the situation of the kid being picked on for having a dodgy name.

I for my part am going to sire several children with absolutely no vowels in their names, trsndltns and pfftffgnrs.

Just make sure to add the necessary 'preet', 'pal', or 'inder' at the end, lol.

On a serious note, some of those pre-1900 names are coming into vogue again, which is great to see. They were very classy IMO.

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