Amma Korkor

'I thought I recognised your face', says the check-out assistant in my local supermarket.  I asked if she remembered refusing me a middle name twice in February (1st February, 10th February).  Her hair is now a short, tight afro.  I decide to try again.

'Why do you want to know anyway?' she asks smiling.  I explain.  'What's yours?' she asks.  I tell her.  'Mine's African', she says.  I can feel her weakening.  She tells me the second part first.  'It means the second-born girl', she says and spells it out for me.  'The other one's easier for you', she says.  'It means born on a Saturday'.  I tell her that she has a colleague with the same middle name (Amma).

'A man born on a Saturday is called Kwame', she tells me.  I ask if there is a name for each day of the week.  She says there is.  'Kofi, like Kofi Annan, means born on a Friday', she says.  'I can tell you them all'.  But my transaction has gone through.  'Next time you come in', she says.  I wish her a good afternoon.  'See you soon', she says.

(Wikipedia tells me that most Ghanaians have at least one name that is based on the day of the week that they were born.  The characteristics of Saturday's child are that they 'like to take control of family situations. He/she runs the show and make the rules, but will go out of his/her way for others any time'.  I was born on a Tuesday.  Somewhat unexcitingly my characteristics are as 'the problem solver and planner of the family ... structured in nature, neutral in all matters and never takes sides'.)