Can a name make or mar a person

R

Rose65

Well-known Member
Location
United Kingdom
I was chatting with friends about the most unfortunate surnames in the world as we looked them up on Google after the subject cropped up. Some really are startling.

Yet it got me thinking how hard life must be for those who must live with a first name or surname that others may find hilarious.
Can your name influence your life to a significant extent - in negative or positive ways?

Names are so important. By the way I have always wondered - why do Americans have triple names especially for notorious famous characters? Like Lee Harvey Oswald.

Mine is just an ordinary boring name and I am grateful!
 

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I think the name you are given may influence your life. Like you @Rose65, I have a common name. But, I can understand why some people change the name they were given at birth.

I remember when my one nephew was born & I was cutting the announcement out of the newspaper that another little boy in the listing had the last name of Winkle. The parents named him Rip Van. I have wondered through the years what ever happened to him.

IMO, if you didn't want the child, then let someone else adopt him & give him a good name. Why give him a name that could cause him untold teasing growing up. I really hope that little boy didn't go through h#ll for what his parent did.
 
I hate my middle name. I have never used it and the only places it's on is my birth certificate and Soc. Secur. I had a good friend in the Navy, his last name was "Dillinger". The poor guy had to go around saying " No. No relation". So, I agree that names can have consequences. Just ask Dweezil, Moon Unit and Diva Zappa. BTW, those are the names that were allowed by authorities, they refused birth certificates with his previous choices.
 

Look at Madonna ! Fashion designer Ralph Lauren had the surname Lipschitz which he changed for professional reasons and became successful with a more Anglicized name. Yes I do think names make a difference, or they can influence an individual's self concept which makes more of a difference. It's easier to have a name you like, I think.
 
chic said:
Lipschitz
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:ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO:

My father liked the story of Judge Schmuck (Justice of NY Supreme Court) who refused to change a petitioner's name, saying "If I can live with mine, you can live with yours"
" There also was a famous New York Supreme Court justice named Peter Schmuck in the 1930s and 40s, who -- legend has it -- used to declined name change petitions from the bench by telling applicants that (I'm paraphrasing) "if I can live with my name, you can live with yours."
https://www.theatlantic.com/nationa...muck-tries-to-interview-a-famous-putz/237814/
 
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Lilac said:
I think the name you are given may influence your life. Like you @Rose65, I have a common name. But, I can understand why some people change the name they were given at birth.

I remember when my one nephew was born & I was cutting the announcement out of the newspaper that another little boy in the listing had the last name of Winkle. The parents named him Rip Van. I have wondered through the years what ever happened to him.

IMO, if you didn't want the child, then let someone else adopt him & give him a good name. Why give him a name that could cause him untold teasing growing up. I really hope that little boy didn't go through h#ll for what his parent did.
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How unforgivable to name a child like that. I hope he changed it as soon as he could. I really wonder at some people!
 
I think some think of names as a joke but would not really do it ....... example a couple last name Moss joked if it was a boy it would be Pete never did it their son is Zachary....
but i did attend high school with a boy named Milo ........ his unfortunate last name was Ball
 
I once knew a lady in San Diego who named her twin daughters "Bliss" and "Joy".

Numerology may play a part in name changes. Samuel Longhorn Clemens was the same writer
before and after he changed his name , but as soon as he changed it to "Mark Twain", (22)
Interestingly, he became famous!
 
fuzzybuddy said:
I hate my middle name. I have never used it and the only places it's on is my birth certificate and Soc. Secur. I had a good friend in the Navy, his last name was "Dillinger". The poor guy had to go around saying " No. No relation". So, I agree that names can have consequences. Just ask Dweezil, Moon Unit and Diva Zappa. BTW, those are the names that were allowed by authorities, they refused birth certificates with his previous choices.
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I hate my first name and love my middle name. Oh well I'm stuck with the first one anyway.
 
I'm a "Junior" and I go by my middle name, Douglas. My first name is a butchered version of an old Jewish man's name that my father went by. (For privacy's sake I won't say it.) When I was kid, I dreaded each new school year when the role was called and I was called by my first name. Other kids laughed.

There are adults to this day that see my name and call it out because it doesn't fit me. I'm still sensitive about it to this day when I'm called by my first name, so yes it affected me in a negative way. Maybe it makes me my father in a certain way. I deeply respected him, but I don't want to think that I am him. I hope that makes sense.

Even so, I saw a recent panel with a journalist from the Washington Post named Daniel Balz and it made me happy I had my last name!
 
seadoug said:
I'm a "Junior" and I go by my middle name, Douglas. My first name is a butchered version of an old Jewish man's name that my father went by. (For privacy's sake I won't say it.) When I was kid, I dreaded each new school year when the role was called and I was called by my first name. Other kids laughed.

There are adults to this day that see my name and call it out because it doesn't fit me. I'm still sensitive about it to this day when I'm called by my first name, so yes it affected me in a negative way. Maybe it makes me my father in a certain way. I deeply respected him, but I don't want to think that I am him. I hope that makes sense.

Even so, I saw a recent panel with a journalist from the Washington Post named Daniel Balz and it made me happy I had my last name!
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You have had much to challenge you, it must have been hard.
 
Gaer said:
I once knew a lady in San Diego who named her twin daughters "Bliss" and "Joy".

Numerology may play a part in name changes. Samuel Longhorn Clemens was the same writer
before and after he changed his name , but as soon as he changed it to "Mark Twain", (22)
Interestingly, he became famous!
Click to expand...
Yes, that supports the theory that a name can be vital or certainly instrumental in the success of a famous person. Major Hollywood stars changed their names from unprounceable to memorable.
 
I saw a study once where they showed photos of people to the participants of the study and said "This is Debra. This is Josh. This is Susie. Describe what you think they are like. Rate them on 1-10 on beauty, personality, business success........." And then they'd show the SAME photos to another group and say, "This is Ethel. This is Herbert. This is Gertrude." and ask the same questions.

They'd get quite different answers.
 
My daughter was officially "Infant Girl _________" for over three months after her birth. The consulate kept losing her documents. We were thinking of changing her name to that for purposes of simplification.....NOT.

I was taking her back to the U.S. for a visit and she had a passport that said " Infant Girl _________". The consulate assured me that she'd be OK with that as it matched her documents but thank goodness we were able to get her proper passport two days before we flew out.
 
I worked with a young guy named Hayden Cox, and when his wife was pregnant with their first kid he swore that, if it was a boy, he'd give him the first and second names Seymour Harry.

Fortunately, his wife named the baby. A boy. James Hayden Cox.
 
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Frank Zappa talks about his kids’ names

"Frank Zappa’s four children are named:
  • Moon Unit (female, born on September 28, 1967)
  • Dweezil (male, b. September 5, 1969)
  • Ahmet Emuukha Rodan (male, b. May 15, 1974, and named for Ahmet Ertegun
  • Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen (female, b. July 30, 1979)
In this interview from 1975 — years before Diva arrived — Frank Zappa talked a bit about his kids’ unorthodox names:

Scott Cohen: Is one of your children named Moon Unit?

Frank Zappa: Yep.

Cohen: Son or daughter?

Zappa: Daughter.

Cohen: What are your other children’s names?

Zappa: Dweezil and Ahmet.

Cohen: Is Moon Unit the oldest?

Zappa: Yep.

Cohen: What do you call her around the house?

Zappa: I call her Moon and I call Dweezil ‘Dweezil’ and I call Ahmet ‘Ahmet.’

Cohen: I’m wondering what psychological effects a name can have.

Zappa: Well, first of all, I knew that they were going to be unique anyway because of certain other attributes, so why not have a name that goes with it. They all like their names and the kids at school do too. They don’t make fun of them; in fact, most of them are jealous of their names. You know, it always amazes me when someone who is in my age group, or even younger, asks me a question like why did you name your children that. It’s a reactionary kind of question. Why the f*ck not name your kids something like that? They’re having a good time. Besides that, if they ever wanted to change their names they can do it. It only costs about $15.

Cohen: You can’t tell from the name Moon Unit whether it’s a boy or a girl. Had Moon Unit been a boy, would you have named him the same thing?

Zappa: No, I would have named him Motor Head."

Who knows how they would've felt about their names if they were just average kids who didn't have a very famous father. 🤔

https://www.nancy.cc/2012/07/27/zappa-quote/

Bella ✌️
 
I've known a number of people who've legally changed their first names - including one of my siblings. Not difficult or expensive, at least in the US. I changed my last name when I got married. Nothing to it as long as you're not doing it to defraud someone.

I heard Frank and Moon interviewed during the "Valley Girl" heyday. Johnny asked Moon how she and her siblings felt about their unusual names. She said most liked their names, but but told a story about her brother, Ahmet. Apparently he was being called "Ahmet Vomit" by some kids so he decided to change his name to Rick. Pretty soon the kids started up with "Rick the Pr!ck." He went back to Ahmet.

Too funny.
 

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