Nollywood Actress Reveals Why She Changed Her Name

Nollywood actress, Amandla (formerly Amanda) Ebeye, has disclosed that she had no business bearing a white man’s name, adding that that was the reason she opted for a name change.

The newly married movie star also added that she wanted something closer to her African roots.

In a recent interview, she said, “I’ll attribute it (change of name) to knowledge of self. Amanda is a Latin name that means ‘loveable’. Obviously, I am not Latin; my dad is from Agbor in Delta State, while my mum is a Yoruba woman. I truly had no business bearing Amanda, but for colonial reasons. There is no reason for me to bear a white man’s name. How many of them bear our names? I  badly wanted to change to something close to my birth name, so it would be easy for people to adapt. Then, I found Amandla, which is a Xhosa and Zulu (South African tribes) name, meaning ‘power’. It was a popular chant used during Nelson Mandela’s fight against apartheid.”

The actress also stated that the name change would not affect her past productions.

Speaking on how married life is treating her, Amandla Ebeye said, “Marriage is good. We have been sailing the boat for close to two years, and I am loving it completely.”