Self-Naming Across Multiple Identities

Sor Juana moved through multiple identities—Juana Ramírez, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, and the self-determined intellectual—each marking her negotiation between imposed and chosen selfhood. Self-naming is not merely linguistic but an exercise of agency and resistance. Across cultures, individuals inherit names freighted with colonial histories, patriarchal structures, and erasure. In post-colonial contexts, reclaiming indigenous names becomes an act of decolonization. LGBTQ+ communities engage in self-naming to assert authentic identity beyond assigned categories. This concept recognizes that naming oneself is simultaneously personal and political. It requires examining which identities were inherited, which were imposed, and which you actively choose. The practice involves understanding how different cultural contexts shape what names are available and what they mean. By consciously engaging with self-naming, individuals and communities assert sovereignty over identity while respecting the complex layering of cultural belonging.