It was the first gift I received from my in-laws. I believe my mother-in-law had it all ready weeks before the very first time I arrived on the tarmac of Kotoka International airport and was taken aback by the hot, dusty darkness that is Ghana at night. The following morning, backlit by sunshine she presented the gift to me, my Ghanaian name.
You are Ewurama, she explained. You are a lady, that is Ewura in Fante and you are a Saturday born, Ama. We will call you Ewurama. And it quickly caught on. I use it when I introduce myself here in Ghana, many of my relatives have me stored in their phones as Ewurama, children in the neighborhood calls me Mama Ewurama and even my Swedish parents use it!
A Colombian friend of 10 years recently saw my Ghanaian name on my blog and sent me a message asking what it meant. “Is it a title”, she wrote, “like Mrs.”?
“Almost”, I replied. “I am Lady Saturday, I am Ewurama”.