Avoiding their names - avoiding their eyes: How Kambaata women respect their in‐laws
Résumé
In the Ethiopian language Kambaata, a special type of name taboo (ballishsha) is traditionally practiced by married women as a sign of respect towards their in-laws. According to this tradition, which is now on the verge of extinction, in-laws' names and any word starting with the same syllable as their names have to be avoided. This article investigates the different conventionalized and individual strategies that are employed to replace the tabooed words as well as the cultural and social contexts in which these strategies are embedded.