New Post
Search
HelpRe: Posh British names
in reply to a message by Martha
Are they chocolates with caramel centres? I used to love Rolos. :)
I think the use of more unusual names in the upper classes here is down to:
a) a lot of their ancestors had excellent classical educations when that wasn't common amongst the general populace, and therefore just came across more of these kinds of names in pre-internet days. And class here is all about ancestry, so those names get repeated: little Antigone may be named after great-great-aunt Antigone the explorer, or whatever
b) what I call 'non-state-school' naming: if you're going to a select school where lots of people have unusual names and there's nothing very startling about being called Hero or Saethryth or Hephzibah, parents don't have the concerns about teasing that might come up in a state school. And they also care less about fitting in - because wealth = security = not GAF. Hence the high proportion of 'eccentric' aristos.
I think the use of more unusual names in the upper classes here is down to:
a) a lot of their ancestors had excellent classical educations when that wasn't common amongst the general populace, and therefore just came across more of these kinds of names in pre-internet days. And class here is all about ancestry, so those names get repeated: little Antigone may be named after great-great-aunt Antigone the explorer, or whatever
b) what I call 'non-state-school' naming: if you're going to a select school where lots of people have unusual names and there's nothing very startling about being called Hero or Saethryth or Hephzibah, parents don't have the concerns about teasing that might come up in a state school. And they also care less about fitting in - because wealth = security = not GAF. Hence the high proportion of 'eccentric' aristos.
This message was edited 4/19/2018, 7:57 AM
Archived Thread - replies disabled
1