The Taboo Surrounding Women’s Names in Afghanistan Has Real-Life Implications

A campaign to fight stigma around using women’s names in public in Afghanistan has taken the country by the storm and made headlines around the world. Much of the conversation has, rightly, been about how we should not hide women’s names, call them by derogatory terms, or refer to them as “so-and-so’s mother”. However, beyond the fact that this taboo leads to women being known by the names of their sons, husbands, or fathers- instead of as individual humans- it also has other real-life implications.