ABOUT Hirut

Hirut Melaku, architect of #BirthingWhileBlack.ca, is a geographically fluid queer birth companion, IBCLC (lactation consultant), researcher, health equity advocate, and transformative justice practitioner whose work spans clinical care, academic scholarship, and community knowledge production.

What’s in a Name? Call me ሂሩት Hirut Melaku.

In Ethiopia, we don’t have a family name structure. We take on our father’s first name as our last name. And our father takes his father’s first name as his last, and so on.  When women get married, we keep our name; we don’t take on our husband’s last name. One of my fondest childhood memory was playing the memory game with my father, trying to see how far back I could trace our ancestors: I used to easily remember seven generations back… It went as such: Hirut Melaku, Melaku Eyob, Eyob Aytegeb, Aytegeb Tamino, etc. 

When my family emigrated from Ethiopia, we had to change our last names to fit with western society’s  understanding of family structure. My older sisters were the first to move abroad. When they arrived in Israel, they had to change their first names and take on my father’s grandfather’s name, Aytegeb. When I arrived in Canada with my mother and younger sister we were able to maintain our original last name of Melaku.

However, when my father joined us, his last name was Eyob. And when my older sisters immigrated to Canada with the name Aytegeb, we now had a household with four last names! One can only imagine the confusion to westerners … At some point, the family decided to take Eyob as the family name (except for my mother). I’m not sure how the decision was made, but I refused. As a child, I couldn’t articulate the reasons why the change never felt right. I resisted it for many years, but in grade 9 I finally compromised: I kept Melaku as my middle name and took Eyob as my last name.  

Eyob can be translated as Job- the story of a man from the Old testament who is continuously tested. Last month, my father was going in for major surgery and he explained to us how his grandfather, Aytegeb, named his son Eyob. Apparently, my great-grandfather was overwhelmed by the ongoing hardship that he was experiencing and he reached out to G-d and inquired if his life was meant to be like that of Job. Consequently, he named his newborn Eyob as a way of understanding and of coming to terms with the afflictions in his life.

A generation later, when my grandmother, Fetegay, was pregnant with my father she chose to name him Melaku, i.e. an angel who was sent her way.

My father named me after Princess Hirut Desta of Ethiopia. He knew her personally and respected her highly for her dedication to elevating her people. Interestingly enough, Hebrew speakers often call me Herut. In Hebrew, herut means freedom.

Those who know me know that I’ve endured in this lifetime an extraordinary amount of hardship and that I continue to be challenged. I’ve been able to persevere, overcome and succeed because I am grounded. I am grateful for the resilience that has been passed to me through my ancestors. I’m also listening to the knowings of my younger self who spoke up and resisted being represented as someone other than her true self.

Through the practice of oral tradition, in asking what’s in the name, I’ve learned about the character of my great-grandfather, and the major influence he’s had on my father. It’s given me a valuable insight into the remarkable bond that my father has with my son. The love that my father received from his grandfather is the template that he uses in loving his grandson.

As I continue on the path of speaking my truths, it is important that I continue to take refuge in my lineage. I can feel the lightness in my breath because I no longer carry the burden of the past. By reclaiming Melaku as my last name, I’ve recalibrated my place in my lineage. The story behind the naming of Eyob is not where our family’s story ends. I have a deep appreciation for the beauty in the Ethiopian way of naming because it leaves space for future generations to write their history.

My name is Hirut.

I am the daughter of Malefiya Zeleke Demoze, and of Melaku Eyob Aytegeb.

I am the mother of Méshama Rose, and of Alama Zeleke.