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ArchivesRe: Poll: Civil Names and Personal Names
in reply to a message by Nanaea
In a way we already have "civil" names, in the digital form of a Social Security number. Like it or not, it's the way virtually all government entities document us. In this regard, I doubt whether the government gives a dayum whether we have a "name" or not.
It's repressive and intrusive for the government or anyone else to dictate what names or spellings should be used for babies, altho one could reasonably argue that some parents merit sterilization (spontaneously conducted by a community posse)for the abuse of this naming privilege.
Many cultures have had a "coming of age" name change, and perhaps we should provide for youths at 12-13 and later as young adults at 19-21 to get a freebie name change if they so desire. (Few 22 year olds would want to live with a name they thought desirable at age 12, but the option for a junior high name change would spare them some adolescent cruelty.)
I guess what really surprises me is how many people have really shitty names, think so themselves, and STILL persist in suffering and using them their whole lives.
- Da.
It's repressive and intrusive for the government or anyone else to dictate what names or spellings should be used for babies, altho one could reasonably argue that some parents merit sterilization (spontaneously conducted by a community posse)for the abuse of this naming privilege.
Many cultures have had a "coming of age" name change, and perhaps we should provide for youths at 12-13 and later as young adults at 19-21 to get a freebie name change if they so desire. (Few 22 year olds would want to live with a name they thought desirable at age 12, but the option for a junior high name change would spare them some adolescent cruelty.)
I guess what really surprises me is how many people have really shitty names, think so themselves, and STILL persist in suffering and using them their whole lives.
- Da.
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Replies
"Many cultures have had a "coming of age" name change, and perhaps we should provide for youths at 12-13 and later as young adults at 19-21 to get a freebie name change if they so desire. (Few 22 year olds would want to live with a name they thought desirable at age 12, but the option for a junior high name change would spare them some adolescent cruelty.)"
**** That sounds to me like the most practical solution I've yet heard, for children who may have been given unmanageable names by their parents.
Speaking from personal experience, I changed my own name from "Nanaea" to "Nan" when I entered college. Nowadays, though, I find myself going back to using "Nanaea" again, and I appreciate it more now than I did when I was a teen.
I wonder how many other people there are, who go full circle with their given names -- changing them to something they find more manageable for their business or social dealings, only to come back to the original form of their given name later in life.
What's your story, Daivid? I remember you once posted that your mom had registered you for school as "David". Are you finding now that you appreciate your original given name of "Daividh" more?
-- Nanaea
**** That sounds to me like the most practical solution I've yet heard, for children who may have been given unmanageable names by their parents.
Speaking from personal experience, I changed my own name from "Nanaea" to "Nan" when I entered college. Nowadays, though, I find myself going back to using "Nanaea" again, and I appreciate it more now than I did when I was a teen.
I wonder how many other people there are, who go full circle with their given names -- changing them to something they find more manageable for their business or social dealings, only to come back to the original form of their given name later in life.
What's your story, Daivid? I remember you once posted that your mom had registered you for school as "David". Are you finding now that you appreciate your original given name of "Daividh" more?
-- Nanaea
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Yeah, one of the benefits of putting on a few decades is you don't pay as much attention to what other people think. "Fitting in" becomes less of a big deal. So today I'm grateful to have a name which means something in the context of my family and our traditional culture, rather than just bein snarfed out of a baby book or off the telly.
I was sheltered from a lot of the nasty stuff because my dad (the childhood victim of a highly tauntible name)insisted they "normalize" my name in school. It took some years after high school to use the right spelling in ANY context. As I once mentioned, today I still use the "David" spelling under some circumstances where it's too much of a hassle to keep correctin people.
Maturity (what little I have) also brought an appreciation of the ethnicity that led to the name. When you're young, you don't want to hear the Auld Country tales, and you just wish your family spoke with a nondescript accent like everyone else.
But would I willingly have struggled thru 12 years of school with the "Daividh" moniker hung out front for all those a-holes to see? It's very doubtful.
I was sheltered from a lot of the nasty stuff because my dad (the childhood victim of a highly tauntible name)insisted they "normalize" my name in school. It took some years after high school to use the right spelling in ANY context. As I once mentioned, today I still use the "David" spelling under some circumstances where it's too much of a hassle to keep correctin people.
Maturity (what little I have) also brought an appreciation of the ethnicity that led to the name. When you're young, you don't want to hear the Auld Country tales, and you just wish your family spoke with a nondescript accent like everyone else.
But would I willingly have struggled thru 12 years of school with the "Daividh" moniker hung out front for all those a-holes to see? It's very doubtful.
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I have a name that I've heard prounounced in two different ways. My mother pronounces it Care-ah. Now that I'm older I choose to pronounce it Car-ah (as in the automobile)usually when meeting new people. I started doing this my junior year of High school. I just prefer the sound because it's less like Carrie and more exotic in my opinion. I like the fact that my name has some flexibility.
I don't know if I'll ever go back to the old way completely. There might be a chance that I'll "come full circle" eventually. I don't hate the way my mother pronounces it now although I use to because it seemed so boring.
All through high school, I went by the name FiFi to my friends. Those I still keep in contact with continue to use it. I always thought it was a cute name. It's one that I'd never choose as a given name but I like it for a nickname. I've sort of backed away from it though. I don't mind it being used but I don't introduce myself with it anymore.
So, in that sense I suppose you could say that I did come full circle. I choose a new name to go by (FiFi) and eventually went back to my given one although I vary how I pronounce it from time to time.
I don't know if I'll ever go back to the old way completely. There might be a chance that I'll "come full circle" eventually. I don't hate the way my mother pronounces it now although I use to because it seemed so boring.
All through high school, I went by the name FiFi to my friends. Those I still keep in contact with continue to use it. I always thought it was a cute name. It's one that I'd never choose as a given name but I like it for a nickname. I've sort of backed away from it though. I don't mind it being used but I don't introduce myself with it anymore.
So, in that sense I suppose you could say that I did come full circle. I choose a new name to go by (FiFi) and eventually went back to my given one although I vary how I pronounce it from time to time.
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Different dialects Cara...
pronouncing a name Car-ah, would be the scottish celtic form of the name
Care-ah would be the old english form
~Silver
pronouncing a name Car-ah, would be the scottish celtic form of the name
Care-ah would be the old english form
~Silver
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This is the reason I named my daughter Amanda. It can be shortened for her youth and then as she matures she can choose to go by Amands which is very feminine and strong sounding or not. But I do feel so sorry for kids like her playmate named Bertha. I think she should shoot her mother in her sleep. Does anyone have any stats on mass murderers who did not ike their names?
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...and guess what: I bet Bertha would definitely make it in a government-sanctioned "official list" :P
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