Re: The name Saddam

["Yusuf B Gursey" <ybg@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dr. Jamshid Ibrahim wrote:
> Richard Fangnail schrieb:
>
> > Why did people usually say "Saddam" instead of "Hussein"- was it just
> > so people wouldn't confuse him with King Hussein - and yet it seems
> > funny.
>
> In Iraq all presidents including Saddam are known by their first names

IIRC Saddam himself encouraged it, doing away with his surname
al-takri:ti: which he found clanish.


> and not surnames. It has nothing to do with any confusion with King
> Hussein whose name btw is also a first name. In addition Saddam as a
> name is not that frequent in use. The basic meaning based on the three
> consonants SDM implies collision, shock^, bump, strike, knock,
> bang..This makes it sound awesome.

I heard that his mother gave it because of his frequent kicking in the
womb.