American Actress Zendaya Reveals How Her Name Is Linked To Zimbabwe Shona Language
Did you know Multi-award winning American actress Zendaya Coleman’s name is linked to the Zimbabwe Shona language?
The actress who is popularly known for her role as MJ in the Marvel movie Spiderman once revealed the meaning behind her unique name and how it is linked to the Zimbabwe Shona language.
In a clip shared by eyesof263, the actress/singer stated that her name Zendaya is Shona. She revealed that her name is derived from the Shona name Tendai (which means “to give thanks”). She said it was her parents’ creative idea to name her Zendaya.
She said;
“Hey am Zendaya from Shake it Up and my name means to give thanks in Shona. It is actually kind of half made up and half real…”
Watch the video;
Zendaya’s father, Kazembe Ajau Coleman, is African-American. He has roots in Nigeria, Arkansas, and Zimbabwe; and her mother Claire Stoermer has German and Scottish ancestry.
Zendaya is one actress who is proud of her mixed heritage which has links to Africa and Germany.
“My mother’s proud of where she’s from, and her history, and her past, and same with my dad,”.
“I have roots in Africa. Like, I am from Africa as well as from Germany, and I am very proud of that,” Zendaya said during Immigrant Heritage Month.
The Euphoria actress embraces both her African and German roots and this is very much evident in her full name, Zendaya Maree Stoermer Coleman, which incorporates both components from her heritage.
For me, I get a mixture of all the worlds…”
“I have my African first name, I have a middle name that is [my mom’s] middle name, which is French, but we did it African spelling, so it’s literally me in a name. And then you have Stoermer, and then you have Coleman. I literally have, like, a timeline in history in my name,” she said.