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Hi,
In my etymological outbursts, I have also used www.com, and I have a question about some of their name meanings as apposed to BTN's.
Chanel: "Canal" rather than Pipe."
Chelsea: "Port of Ships" or something rather than "Landing Place for Chalk or Limestone" (hey, what does that mean)?
I can't think of all of them, but there were a lot of names that had somewhat similar meanings and even some with totally different meanings than those on BTN. Is it possible that they are inaccurate, or are there more than one meanings for some of these names that I didn't know about? LOL.
Thanks,
Mel
In my etymological outbursts, I have also used www.com, and I have a question about some of their name meanings as apposed to BTN's.
Chanel: "Canal" rather than Pipe."
Chelsea: "Port of Ships" or something rather than "Landing Place for Chalk or Limestone" (hey, what does that mean)?
I can't think of all of them, but there were a lot of names that had somewhat similar meanings and even some with totally different meanings than those on BTN. Is it possible that they are inaccurate, or are there more than one meanings for some of these names that I didn't know about? LOL.
Thanks,
Mel
1
Replies
95% of the time
Other name websites are wrong. (The meaning of Orion has been holy debated) However, some names do have many different meanings. Mira and Nina are two that come to mind. My best advice to you is to trust this site, and if you have any questons, post them here.
This is a excellent place for reserch.
Other name websites are wrong. (The meaning of Orion has been holy debated) However, some names do have many different meanings. Mira and Nina are two that come to mind. My best advice to you is to trust this site, and if you have any questons, post them here.
This is a excellent place for reserch.
1
I'm not sure what you mean by www.com?
Some names have multiple meanings, however if they do the alternatives are usually included in the BtN database (see Mary for example). In most cases, where the meaning on another site is different to the BtN meaning, the BtN meaning is correct.
The vast majority of "Baby Name" websites are interested in "selling" a "product" - whether it's simply the website itself they're promoting, or products that are available to purchase through the site. Because of this factor, most of these sites are more interested in pleasing their readers than they are in the accuracy of their information. So, if a name has a boring, unpleasant or complicated meaning, they will change, enhance or simplify it so that it is more appealing to their "customers".
In some cases incorrect meanings are not intentional, however; they are just the result of bad research (like copying from other sites), misunderstandings or guesswork gone wrong.
Chanel as "canal" is probably an example of poor research. The visual link (channel/chanel/canal) is easy to see, and a names website creator who could not find an actual etymology for Chanel might well think that "canal" was probably close enough to correct to keep people happy.
Chelsea as "port of ships" is an oversimplification of the real meaning. A "Landing place for chalk or limestone" is a wharf, jetty, port or other place that ships bearing chalk or limestone could or did offload their cargoes. If you chip away at that meaning you can reduce it to "port of ships", which is much easier to understand but is not actually a correct etymology.
Behind the Name is the only truly etymological names website that I know of, and name meanings and origins are not included in the database unless they have been thoroughly researched and verified. You can generally trust that the meanings in this site's database will be more accurate than those on a commercial "baby name" website. If you're looking at a site and are unsure if it's meanings are accurate, try to find out whether they have a list of references that they have consulted while gathering their name meanings. If they have no references, the chances are that they are a commercial site not an accuracy-based site.
Some names have multiple meanings, however if they do the alternatives are usually included in the BtN database (see Mary for example). In most cases, where the meaning on another site is different to the BtN meaning, the BtN meaning is correct.
The vast majority of "Baby Name" websites are interested in "selling" a "product" - whether it's simply the website itself they're promoting, or products that are available to purchase through the site. Because of this factor, most of these sites are more interested in pleasing their readers than they are in the accuracy of their information. So, if a name has a boring, unpleasant or complicated meaning, they will change, enhance or simplify it so that it is more appealing to their "customers".
In some cases incorrect meanings are not intentional, however; they are just the result of bad research (like copying from other sites), misunderstandings or guesswork gone wrong.
Chanel as "canal" is probably an example of poor research. The visual link (channel/chanel/canal) is easy to see, and a names website creator who could not find an actual etymology for Chanel might well think that "canal" was probably close enough to correct to keep people happy.
Chelsea as "port of ships" is an oversimplification of the real meaning. A "Landing place for chalk or limestone" is a wharf, jetty, port or other place that ships bearing chalk or limestone could or did offload their cargoes. If you chip away at that meaning you can reduce it to "port of ships", which is much easier to understand but is not actually a correct etymology.
Behind the Name is the only truly etymological names website that I know of, and name meanings and origins are not included in the database unless they have been thoroughly researched and verified. You can generally trust that the meanings in this site's database will be more accurate than those on a commercial "baby name" website. If you're looking at a site and are unsure if it's meanings are accurate, try to find out whether they have a list of references that they have consulted while gathering their name meanings. If they have no references, the chances are that they are a commercial site not an accuracy-based site.
This message was edited 5/23/2006, 7:31 PM
1
Yes, that does indeed help. I made a mistake while inserting the URL; it was http://www.lowchensaustralia.com/.
Thanks,
Mel
Thanks,
Mel
1