DJ Roots[Reggae] Artists' First Names Origin

[kandi]

Greetings,

I was wondering the origin of first names of our great roots/reggae DJs like 'Jah','Prince','Ranking'....Chief among all these is the name 'Jah' like in 'Jah Thomas','Jah Ruby'...If 'Jah' means 'Jahovah' does it mean the full names are 'Jahovah Thomas?','Jahovah Ruby?','Jahovah Shaka?'???

Now,is this not being blasphemous to the almighty Jah,the creator?for Jah bible tells us "though shall not mention his name in vain for him shall hold you not guilty...."

Any info on the origin of these titles for DJs.

No disrepect to no-one please.

Love.

[kalcidis]

I don't know who the first Jah or Ranking was. But the first Irie was Welton. The first Banton was Buro. The first Bunny was Bugs.

[mark mantado]

Bunny Ruges was before Bunny Lee?






mark mantado

[Ron]

@ Mark: Kalcidis means Bugs Bunny!

[kalcidis]

@ Mark; Sorry ... Sometimes I'm just NOT funny.

[Dave K]

Kandi

They are just nicknames, everyone in Jamaica has one. Even people on the board here have them. But it's not meant to take Jah's name in vain, it's more to honour him.

If you take someone's name in vain, you are basically using it in a derogatory sense, whioh I don't believe the intention of adopting it for a nickname.

My wife's uncle was the doctor for the royal family from 1969-1972....not Selassie's, as he had his own doctor. But his stay at the palace meant that he spent a bit of time with him occassionally. He apparantly had a pretty good sense of humour, and likely would burn any fire over this.

[jordandance]

there's a great couple pages in Sun Ra's biography by Joseph Svwed? (spelling of his last name has escaped me) claiming that since slavery/rules/laws wouldn't allow the 'proper' process of coronation - they people crowned their own royalty and they were more often than not singers. Happened all over North America and the Caribbean King Curtis, King Herbert, Lord Kitchener, Mighty Sparrow....i''ll dig out the book and read it again.