Why Desis rock nameplate jewelry

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Souvenir stores were always a sore subject for Sania Shaukat as a kid. 

She remembers bursting through the doors of Disney World’s endless variety of trinket shops and browsing through Hudson News’ rotating tchotchke displays full of anticipation – desperately trying to find her name on a mug or a bracelet. “Sabrina” was the closest she ever got. 

Now, as online retail and customizable nameplate jewelry take off, South Asian Americans like Shaukat, 25, are able to rock their names in a way many of them weren’t able to as kids. Online jewelers in the U.S. sell nameplate necklaces and bracelets in many South Asian languages, allowing Desis to not only wear their names, but represent their cultures too. 

Shaukat immigrated to Orlando, Fla., from Pakistan with her family at the age of six. Coming from a place where her name was commonplace to a place where teachers read her name like a question during attendance, she grew to hate her name and the mispronunciations it came with (the most common being “Sonya”). 

When her parents gifted her with a nameplate necklace in middle school, that started to change. It was a simple 18-karat gold chain that spelled “Sania” in Urdu, her first language. She started wearing it everyday, and it became a wardrobe staple. 

“I actually loved that it was written in Urdu,” Shaukat said. “It made it more special than something I could’ve picked up ready-made at any store.” 

The necklace often prompted questions – about her roots, her family and her name. 

“It’s a great conversation starter۬,” Shaukat said. “People always wanted to know what it said and the meaning behind it۬. And I found that I loved talking about it with people.” 

Iffat Nawsheen, a 25-year-old Bangladeshi American, has a similar relationship with her nameplate necklace. It’s a custom silver chain from Fossil spelling “Iffat” in English script – representing a “conscious decision” to stop letting people butcher her name, she explained. 

“It was my way of taking ownership and pride in the name that I had no trouble pronouncing but often heard being mispronounced, with my permission,” Nawsheen said. “I don’t see it as a name tag, I see it as a silent homage to my personal growth.”

Carrie Bradshaw didn’t invent nameplate jewelry

While nameplate jewelry has become more accessible to Desis in recent years – with Etsy sellers and popular retailers like Nominal carrying necklaces in Hindi, Bangla, Punjabi and more – this fashion trend isn’t new, or exclusive to South Asians. 

Black and Latino communities in New York City and elsewhere are credited with popularizing the style in the U.S. in the ‘80s and ‘90s. The oral history project #DocumentingTheNameplate explores the nameplate’s origins there, as well as its history across cultures. 

While many credit Carrie Bradshaw’s  “Carrie” necklace in Sex and the City for bringing nameplates to new audiences, her style staple was inspired by neighborhood kids in New York City. 

For many South Asians, wearing and gifting gold holds significance. Often passed down from mothers to daughters during weddings or major life milestones, it can represent a coming of age or a means of financial security. 

Dimple Gajjar, a 25-year-old Indian American, received her nameplate necklace from her parents on her 21st birthday – a dainty gold necklace spelling “Dimple” in Hindi. It’s a right of passage in the Gajjar family to receive a gold gift on your 21st birthday, and it marks a shift in responsibility. 

“My parents believe 21 is the age of maturity for wearing such an expensive piece,” Gajjar said. “It’s also the first piece of real gold my parents bought for me, so it’s very special.” 

For Gajjar, her necklace also helps her connect with other South Asians. As she often gets mistaken for other ethnicities, she says she struggles with feeling a sense of belonging within the Desi community. Her necklace works to bridge that gap, helping other South Asians identify her as part of the community.

“I love this piece of jewelry because, when someone first looks at me and they can’t quite tell where I may be from, they will often look at my necklace and see that I am Indian,” she said. “I feel like my necklace is an unspoken identifier.” 

While nameplate necklaces have surged in popularity over the years, they hold a deeper significance for the communities that embrace them. For many South Asians, it’s about more than silver and gold: It’s about how they want to represent themselves to the world.

Zoya Wazir is a 2024-25 reporting fellow at Central Desi. She also works as a production assistant at NBC News NOW, NBC News' streaming platform.

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