I would like to humbly disagree with the following though. I quote:

“Capoeira is not a death-fight, and its only mortal blow was created by Waldemar, who says: “The Dentinho de Angola (little tooth of angola) can kill, yes ma’am. The movement involves curving the body and lifting the heel of your shoe to the opponent’s Adam’s apple.”

In my opinion there is no such thing as a mortal blow.
There are however spots on the human body which can be hit and possibly cause death. If you would hit that same adam’s apple with any other kick that can reach, the consequence would be the same.

Thought provoking article.

I very much understand Mestre Moraes point, that having apelidos can create a certain artificial divide between the life of being a capoeirista and being a responsible, world citizen. Before this article I hadn’t thought about these nicknames in this way.

My apelido is Tatuí (Strand Crab), and I’m quite content with it. I guess it reflects my style, staying low to the ground and I “pinch” (fight back) if I’m bothered a lot. But then again what does something like your zodiac sign say about you?

I’ve always tried to see the humor inherent in the nicknames, and often it is good humor, but nicknaming someone “Lazy” isn’t constructive. At worst it’s self-fulfilling. How to grow with such a name?

To conclude, I guess it boils down to asking whether or not we need to create “capoeira identities” for ourselves through nicknames. Or if we should have Capoeira meld with our real name, our larger identity.

You have your real name and your Capoeira name. You have your real clothes and your Capoeira clothes.You have your real life and your Capoeira life. All of this turns Capoeira into a world that is separate from your real world.

How can you ever truly learn the lessons of Capoeira if you always leave those lessons behind when you leave the academy and go back to your real life?

This is especially true for non-Brazilians who seek to fit into “the world of Capoeira” by putting on an ‘exotic’ Brazilian sounding name. This is a fetishization of Capoeira, not an embracing of it.

I believe that as Capoeiristas we should seek to live Capoeira every day and carry its teachings with us in whatever we do in the real world.

I would like to add that according to Mestre Nenel, a son of Mestre Bimba, Mestre Bimba used the term Banguela, not Benguela. (I've heard him say this myself during an event in Napoli last year)

Banguela is (again according to Mestre Nenel) a term to signify people that are toothless with age. Meaning we play slow and without edge.

The term Benguela is supposedly introduced by Mestre Camisa the founder of ABADA.

1. Mestre Bimba’s name wasn’t flattering either, although he received it from birth. He embraced it and gave it a new meaning. Thus he managed to rise beyond the simple meaning of a name.
Is it your name that defines you, or you’re character?
and…
Isn’t your Mestre your father (or mother) in capoeira?

2. I like the fact of being able to have a clean slate to begin with. Because that’s what a new name can mean for someone. I’d like to point out that people get discriminated on because of their name on a daily basis… Imagine being called ‘Hitler’…

3. If it can happen with respect, I think the giving of names can be an asset. Since Mestre Bimba decided on the tradition for Regional, I am planning to honor it.

4. The giving of nicknames is organised in capoeira, yes… but I knew allot of people who had ‘nasty’ nicknames they got outside capoeira…

Conclusion, as with everything, there is a chance of abuse. A knife can be used to cut a sandwich, but can also be used to kill. This isn’t in my opinion reason enough to stop using knives. It is reason to educate people on the use of knives however…

That’s isn’t to say that I don’t think the Mestre has valid points.

I also like it best when capoeira nicknames arise “naturally” like nicknames in regular life – rather than the mestre/instructor trying to think up a nickname and force it to stick.

Various people have tried to nickname me over the years (I can think of at least 4 apelidos they’ve tried to give) but none of them have stuck, and that’s OK with me

Even though there is no further need to have apelidos since Capoeira is no longer prohibited I think as an European of it as a good tradition as long as it is executed properly. Capoeira is for us non Brazilians and may be also for Brazilians a mystical world with other rules and a lot of secrets. For me my apelido is like training gear, like my Abada with it I show that I am doing Capoeira that I have been introduced into the world of Capoeira. Of course you may say it is not necessary to demonstrate this with an apelido , but this is the way with a lot of symbols like for example marriage which is after all also only a symbol for living together and caring for each other. You could do it without but with it is much more beautiful.

I think that nobody deserves to have an offensive nickname as described by Mestre Moraes and I think poorly of any Mestre how needs to humiliate his students in this way even more if this done in a racist way as indicated by Mestre Moraes.
But as long as the nickname is not offensive I agree with this tradition.

Axe Bigodinho