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Help[Opinions] Adirondax?
I'm naming a character & would like some opinions on Adirondax as a first name.
First and foremost, if anyone knows whether it would be appropriation or otherwise offensive to use, or use in a certain way, I really want to know. I ask because I can't find the info on my own. The most I could find when I tried to look into the name at all was essentially, "the word 'Adirondack' may or may not be rooted in the Mohawk language." Hence my caution
Besides that, any opinions would help! I'm taking them with salt until if/when I find the answer I need, but it'd still help to hear some general impressions as well in case they end up useful to the decision.
I know I didn't come up with it myself, but I can't remember where I stumbled across it. It's been stuck in my head as this character's working name, but beyond the initial sighting I haven't been able to find any sign that it even does exist as a name.
It's a geographical name. As in the Adirondack Mountains, sometimes just called the Adirondacks.
This name is for a genderfluid character who uses it as a unisex full name but goes by different nicknames — Addie (for their fem moments), Ron & Ronny (masc), & Dax (neut).
Whether or not I go with Adirondax specifically, their name is one they chose themself, and they're the type who would like & identify with an uncommon name. If not Adirondax, I still see them using some longer unisex name which they break into three comparatively common-sounding nicknames; other suggestions are totally welcome if you happen to have any!
First and foremost, if anyone knows whether it would be appropriation or otherwise offensive to use, or use in a certain way, I really want to know. I ask because I can't find the info on my own. The most I could find when I tried to look into the name at all was essentially, "the word 'Adirondack' may or may not be rooted in the Mohawk language." Hence my caution
Besides that, any opinions would help! I'm taking them with salt until if/when I find the answer I need, but it'd still help to hear some general impressions as well in case they end up useful to the decision.
I know I didn't come up with it myself, but I can't remember where I stumbled across it. It's been stuck in my head as this character's working name, but beyond the initial sighting I haven't been able to find any sign that it even does exist as a name.
It's a geographical name. As in the Adirondack Mountains, sometimes just called the Adirondacks.
This name is for a genderfluid character who uses it as a unisex full name but goes by different nicknames — Addie (for their fem moments), Ron & Ronny (masc), & Dax (neut).
Whether or not I go with Adirondax specifically, their name is one they chose themself, and they're the type who would like & identify with an uncommon name. If not Adirondax, I still see them using some longer unisex name which they break into three comparatively common-sounding nicknames; other suggestions are totally welcome if you happen to have any!
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I think of the mountain range and nothing else...except that it's misspelled (in modern English, at least)...oh, and the chairs.
There are elements in it that seem namey (like, Adi and Ron and Dax).
It's not hard to find info on the origin. From wikipedia:
The word Adirondack is thought to come from a Mohawk word meaning 'eaters of trees.' The earliest written use of the name, spelled Rontaks, was in 1729 by the French missionary Joseph-François Lafitau. He explained that the word was used by the Iroquoians as a derogatory term for groups of Algonquians who did not practice agriculture and therefore sometimes had to eat tree bark to survive harsh winters.
I'd be more worried that it was originally a derogatory term at all than about it being a Mohawk one, when considering if it is usable.
The character would have to have an intense and obvious connect to the Adirondacks for it not to seem very shallow. It's most plausible to me as a trail name (names assumed by thru-hikers on a long distance trail, such as the Appalachian Trail, which passes through the Adirondacks) that someone just decided to keep.
There are elements in it that seem namey (like, Adi and Ron and Dax).
It's not hard to find info on the origin. From wikipedia:
The word Adirondack is thought to come from a Mohawk word meaning 'eaters of trees.' The earliest written use of the name, spelled Rontaks, was in 1729 by the French missionary Joseph-François Lafitau. He explained that the word was used by the Iroquoians as a derogatory term for groups of Algonquians who did not practice agriculture and therefore sometimes had to eat tree bark to survive harsh winters.
I'd be more worried that it was originally a derogatory term at all than about it being a Mohawk one, when considering if it is usable.
The character would have to have an intense and obvious connect to the Adirondacks for it not to seem very shallow. It's most plausible to me as a trail name (names assumed by thru-hikers on a long distance trail, such as the Appalachian Trail, which passes through the Adirondacks) that someone just decided to keep.
This message was edited 1/5/2020, 11:05 PM
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My Mohawk cousin-in-law is sitting beside me right now. All she said was, “It’s Algonquin, yeah. It’s NOT a name.”
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You'd have to have a really good reason, a better one than being able to get several different nns out of it, to ever give yourself the name Adirondacks. It's a place name, sure, but not all place names make good people names, or are ever even chosen for or by people.
I don't think Adirondacks is a people name any more than Catskills or Ozarks is. Even if a character was very attached to the reason, I still wouldn't buy into them choosing it as a name. Heck, it's too much of a mouthful to even be a nn like Minnesota Fats or Texas Pete.
I don't think Adirondacks is a people name any more than Catskills or Ozarks is. Even if a character was very attached to the reason, I still wouldn't buy into them choosing it as a name. Heck, it's too much of a mouthful to even be a nn like Minnesota Fats or Texas Pete.
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It's interesting...my first thought is of the Iditarod dog sled race.
It is a bit of a mouthful though, especially because the 'dax' part doesn't sound connected, like it's actually 'Adiron-Dax'.
I think it would be easier if they just go by a nickname, my favorite out of those being Dax.
It is a bit of a mouthful though, especially because the 'dax' part doesn't sound connected, like it's actually 'Adiron-Dax'.
I think it would be easier if they just go by a nickname, my favorite out of those being Dax.
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