RIP, John Hope Franklin (1/2/1915-3/25/2009). This groundbreaking historian wrote many influential books and taught widely. Saw him once when I worked at Duke University's Perkins Library in the Public Documents & Maps Department as a library assistant, in the late 1980s, when he was an emeritus history professor and Law professor. He looked distinguished, and was. Mirror to America: The Autobiography of John Hope Franklin was published in 2005, when he was ninety!
Charles H. Long is another distinguished professor I came across in the 1980s. He taught a seminar at Duke, and also several religion classes at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. If Franklin had a major reputation, so did Long, only I was lucky enough to have actually taken Religion in America with Long in Chapel Hill, and also later sat in on his Duke seminar. His approach to religion was broadly cultural, with a large dose of anthroplogy mixed in. Long had worked with Mircea Eliade and spoke a lot about origins. He devoted a lot of energy on the origins of place names, geographical names. He made us more aware of the spectral presence of various tribes all over North America, etched into our daily lives through names; and not just American Indian names, but all sorts of names. Once you start in on names, it's like decoding original meanings, intentions and even worldview. This is cool stuff.
Examples: Pennsylvania -- Penn's Woods, and ideals of cultural diversity. Tennessee; Mississippi; Arkansas; Connecticut; Powhatan; Utah; Dakota; Florida; Colorado.
Detroit; Hamtramck; Saxapahaw; Chickamauga; Algonquin; Port Huron; Wyandotte; Pontiac; Wayne; Buffalo Creek.
And examples of freedmen taking on new names after the "Founding Fathers," names like Jefferson, Washington and Franklin. Or like Malcolm Little rejecting family name, reverting to "X," and then becoming El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz.
Professor Long possibly thought we as students were dolts, but some of us, at least, were paying attention, and taking him seriously, and beginning to see the light. He was definitely onto something real and vital, and I thank him for it.
Today's Rune: Defense.
9 comments:
Once you start in on names, it's like decoding original meanings, intentions and even worldview. This is cool stuff.
Examples: Pennsylvania -- Penn's Woods, and ideals of cultural diversity. Tennessee; Mississippi; Arkansas; Connecticut; Powhatan; Utah; Dakota; Florida; Colorado.
"Detroit; Hamtramck; Saxapahaw; Chickamauga; Algonquin; Port Huron; Wyandotte; Pontiac; Wayne; Buffalo Creek.
And examples of freedmen taking on new names after the "Founding Fathers," names like Jefferson, Washington and Franklin. Or like Malcolm Little rejecting family name, reverting to "X," and then becoming El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz."
I suppose I am a dolt but you lost me at this point Erik...what are you saying in terms a dumb ass can figure out?
I own my "doltishness." I come from a small Indian village called Ossineke. This translates to "place of the image stone" which is a specific place on the Devil River--with a legend all it's own. We have a little league park named "Pukweegee" which translates to "playground of the little people." Another park is called "Shingwak" which is playground in the pines".
Sorry to hear about Franklin. I met him once. Very intersting fellow. Very much a gentleman. I talked to him quite a bit because I was with Du Bois Williams, who was a great friend of his.
I WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO HAVE DR. LONGS CLASS AS WELL AND HE WAS DYNAMIC. MY FAVORITE PROFESSOR WAS DR. SASSON WHO TAUGHT ME SO MUCH, OPENED MY EYES AND MADE ME THINK. THE TOWN OF SAXAPAHAW IS NAMED AFTER THE SISSIPEE INDIANS. ODD ISN'T IT. PLACE NAMES CAN BE FASCINATING AS WELL AS SUR NAMES, THINGS WE TAKE FOR GRANTED AND DON'T THINK ABOUT UNLESS PROMPTED.
You're very lucky to have taken classes with them. They sounded like very neat teachers.
Thanks, all for the comments!
WM/Mark -- place names are like time capsules, peel back the layers to their origins.
Also, look at the shorthand of what a name means to various different audiences. Code name: Detroit. It's history back to the French and Indians; now, scary race stuff (to many outsiders), or, the American automakers and decline; or, a cool place to some.
Freedmen: taking the idea of life, liberty and th epursit of happiness. Professor Franklin, Ben Franklin. Thomas Jefferson, George Jefferson. George Washington, Dinah Washington.
Or, remaking oneself with a stage name or new names -- Malcolm X.
Jodi and Anon, great examples!
AD, yeah!
Charles, very cool.
Cheers all . . .
There's a lot of evidence of Celtic & Christian influences in place names in the British Isles, of course. When I was learning Welsh, I discovered that places with "Llyn" in the name were once church grounds. "Dinas" indicated past fortresses.
I enjoy looking at what we do with words, as a society.
I was keying in on some other thoughts. Thinking that a cartographer could have the same explanatory example through using the roads of today which have mostly come from the aboriginal pathways.
Peel back the layers of concrete and you get the movement of more ancient peoples. I suppose that it follows in the same vein.
But thanks for the X professor I understand now your point.
i wish i had had such interesting and cool professors --- math professors tend not to be all that dynamic
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