Andy Ayissou

Professor Michal Eskayo

ESL 100

September 6, 2023

                                                The Story Behind my Name.

We all like to be called by a name. It is a word used as an identity that has an important meaning for the owner. Sometimes, it happens that people hate their name because of the meaning or the person that gave them or owned the name in the past. My full name is Andy Daniel Ayissou. I got my last name from my great grandfather, my middle name from my lovely mother, and my first name from my resourceful father.

The name Ayissou is my great grandfather whose full name is Kodjo Ayissou. That name has been given from generations to generations. Ayissou means a farmer who especially sows a clump of beans. As my grandfather told my father, Ayissou was given to my great grandfather by his friend because his agriculture was based more on beans than any other cereal farming. He was the third best Sower in the region. He was rich because of his farm and had seven wives.

In addition, my middle name was from my lovely mother. It was her own decision. In other words, she gave me that name without consulting my father because he wasn’t present on the day of my birth. My mother was nineteen and living with her sister when she got pregnant. After being insulted and judged by her sister during her eight months of pregnancy, she fled to her mother in a different city where she gave birth to a little boy who she named Daniel. My father found out later that my mother was pregnant, but since she was in a different city, he could visit her. She gave me the name Daniel because it is a character from the bible that is intelligent and brave.

            Finally, my first name Andy came from my father when he visited my mother and saw me for the first time. The name Andy is derived from Andreas which is a Greek name. It means manly, brave, and warrior. The first time that I asked my father why he gave me that name, he told me that he likes the meaning which is brave and the fact that it is short and easy to pronounce.

            I love my names because of their meanings and because they all from different people that mean a lot in my life.