Mongolia: What's in a name?

The following list of names, which recently appeared in Harper's, caught my eye because I've come across similar names in my own travels in Mongolia. "Khunbish", for example, which means "not human", was once a popular given name, since it was thought the evil spirits would ignore a baby if they didn't know it was human. Mongolians are so superstitious about making babies seem unattractive the spirit world that it's actually polite to say "yamar muuhai huuhedrel" when you see an infant. Translated, this literally means: "What an ugly baby!"

From a list of historical clans compiled by the head of the Mongolian State Library to assist Mongo­lians in choosing dan names. In the 1920s the Communist government eliminated clan names in a campaign to destroy the country's hereditary aris­tocracy and class structure. As the population grew and became more urban, however, the one-name system led to confusion and inadvertent intermar­rying, and currently all Mongolians are required to register clan names. Translated from the Khalkha Mongolian by Andrew Shimunek.

Argalchin -- collectors of dried dung
Ayagachin -- those who make cups and bowls
Baast -- poopy, fecal
Baga dogshin -- the lesser ruthless ones
Bagtaamal -- the included ones
Bayajikh -- those who are getting rich
Boosniikhon -- the descendants of lice
Chiwchin -- those who neuter bulls
Dairtan -- those with saddle sores
Duutan -- the vociferous ones
Emgentuud -- the old ladies
Galzuud -- the insane ones
Gujir -- the stubborn ones
Gunger -- those who mumble
Khachid -- the weird ones
Kholidog -- those who always mix
Khorkhoi nudten -- those with bug eyes
Khunbish -- the not humans
Khurlagad -- those whose animals grow fat later than others
Lalaryn guchid -- the great-great-grandchildren of the one-eyed ogre
Mogoi nudten -- those with snake eyes
Nutsged -- the naked ones
Ondogunkhon -- those of the egg
Sawsag doloon -- the wanton seven
Shaawai -- the well-dressed ones
Showkhnar -- the coneheads
Shudgui -- the toothless ones
Solgoi -- the left-handed ones
Takhiankhan -- those of the chicken
Tongoruud -- the upside-down ones
Tursaga -- the skins of animals that have starved to death
Ukhaanuud -- the intelligent ones
Ulaan yamaat -- those having red goats
Uu -- drink!
Zalkhuus -- the lazy ones
Zazgar -- those with small, hairy bodies