Two articles about immigrants' name change in UK and in Ireland.
I'm an immigrant: call me Kevin, from
The Sunday Times (01/20/2008)
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article3216741.ece
And
Foreign names get Irish slantBy Ross McDonagh
Metro (Ireland edition), Monday, January 21, 2008, page 8
A rose by any other name would smell as sweet, even if it insisted on being called a shamrock.
Immigrants have been taking the mick by Irish-ifying their names, figures have revealed.
According to the Central Office of the High Court's official deed poll, the number of people changing their names here increased by more than 50 per cent last year.
Some 504 people opted for a new handle in 2007, compared with just 327 in 2006.
Officials claim that the majority of these are now foreign nationals altering their monikers to sound more Irish, or dumping their name completely in favour of something more indigenous-sounding.
Examples include a Najeeb becoming Patrick and Karim to Kevin. Surnames were also given Oirish makeovers, with a Hossain becoming Lawlor and Petrova becoming O'Leary. Others were a little more attached to their birthnames, opting instead for a mere drop of Irishness in the middle, such as Abdullah Elfayoumi becoming Abdullah O'Fayoumi.
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com