Actress discloses why she refused to change her Nigerian name

omotolani

June 15, 2017 12:28 PM

She recalls that as a child she was teased about her Nigerian name Uzoamaka (meaning “the road is good“).

Actress Uzo Aduba

“Orange Is The New Black” star Uzo Aduba in a recent interview talks about why she refused to change her Nigerian name.

Uzo Aduba moved to America from Nigeria as a young child. She recalls that as a child she was teased about her Nigerian name Uzoamaka (meaning “the road is good“), therefore asked her mother to call her Zoe.

According to her, "I never considered it as an adult. I went through that struggle when I was a kid. When I was in elementary school the constant mispronunciation and they straight up laughing at your name.

I came home one day from school and I said to my mum can you call me 'Zoe'. She stopped cooking and said "Why?" If they can learn to say Tchaikovsky and Dostoyevsky, then they can learn to say Uzoamaka.

And that was the only time I had a conversation about changing my name."

Uzo Aduba also breaks down what it was like to grow up in a traditional Nigerian household, alongside a powerful and selfless mother.

omotolani