MovieChat Forums > Mandingo (1975) Discussion > Slave Names

Slave Names

posted 19 years ago by chesterrodney
5 replies | jump to latest

Where did the slave owners come up with the names they gave to their slaves? The mandingo's name is Mede. I've seen in other movies or read accounts about slaves and most have names like, Hucklebuck, Boobie, Bubbachuck, Atwood, Swifty, Slappy, Sketchy, Iggy, Porkchop, Hokey, Hamhocks, Juggy and so on. Alot of black people still use those names, but they use them as nick names now.

They used to call black men bucks back in slavery times. It's funny that even to this day, black people still use that. Black teenagers call each other youngbucks. Not sure if they even know the history surrounding the word buck pertaining to themselves. It's just part of black history in this country and not meant to offend.

[–] 19 years ago

[deleted]

[–] chesterrodney 19 years ago

Mede's seller did say his full name was Ganymede. But in the movie, he didn't explain where and how he came up with that name! You just did that, so obviously YOU weren't paying much attention to my post or the movie.

[–] shaaronie 18 years ago

His name was Mede short for Galamede (spelling?) a historical figure. During the Auction scene when Hammond has just purchased mede, he asks the previous owner his name, and the name says "mede" short for Galamede".

[–] doowop9 18 years ago

Does not say in the film, but in the book, Mede (Ganymede) was named by his previous owner, a Mr. Wilson of Coign Plantation. In the books, Hammond Maxwell's slaves were named out of mythology, world history, and out of the Bible (in the book <i>The Mustee</i>, one slave was called Genghis Khan).

[–] gnolti 18 years ago

By reputation, Southern planters were supposed to have "aristocratic" educations and be familiar with the works of the ancient Greeks and Romans. They would therefore have a plethora of antiquated names like "Ganymede" at their fingertips. (The fact that most of these were the names of gods and kings was presumably intentionally ironic -- i.e., intended to mock their recipients' powerlessness.)

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