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Show i9oo] INDIAN SOCIETY 203 name, the one by which he would afterwards be known, until puberty, or until . he had gained the right to bear it by some act of distinguished prowess orservice. N^ In certain regions, as in the northwest, ceremonial privileges go with . the name, and the right of bestowal is vested in the hereditary owner or custodian^ Under such conditions the name becomes true property and the regard for it is much more than a mere matter of sentiment. Among the Kwakiutl a man who is in financial difficulties and unable to meet his potlatch obligations may even pawn his name for a longer or shorter period, and an excessive rate of interest is charged for the accommodation.* During such time as his name is thus in pawn he must not use it in any way, and his social position is thereby lowered. It is, further, during that period the property of the money- lender, and his position is heightened by whatever the value or rank of the pledged name may be. . Among nearly all tribes the acquisi*-*"" pr rhanpw of names waQ a rnsM- f^ nf piih1io. frpremonialr and WAR rpgflrrted ag ^ ? vent of primp impnrtnnnn m t. hft life qf + t ™ > inHivtrlnftl Occasionally a name would be discarded after a severe illness or other misfortune, but among the eastern tribes at least such action required the consent of the clan. Names might also be lent as a mark of particular favor or friendship, the beneficiary having the privilege of 1 Boas, Social Organisation of the Kwakiutl Indians, 341. j |