BS: Were you named after anyone?

Subject: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Wesley S
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 10:42 AM

Are you named after anyone? I was named after my father's brother. At the time they figured he'd be a lifelong bachelor. They were wrong and he eventually married. He was just a late starter like myself - I didn't get married until I was 45. My wife Bretta however was named after Bret Maverick – James Garner's character on the old TV western "Maverick". They were expecting a boy – they were going to call him Bret - and when they ended up with a girl they improvised.

How about yourself ? Were you named after anyone ? Is there a story behind your name ? Those of you who are in the witness protection program need not respond.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Scoville
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 10:46 AM

I was named after Sojourner Truth (my first name means "truth" and my middle name is "Sojourner".

My brother was named after Grove Karl Gilbert, the father of modern geomorphology.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: artbrooks
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 10:49 AM

My full name ends with "III." My father is "Jr." and my grandfather was the original. We are all clones.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Scoville
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 10:50 AM

I should add that my parents are pacifist feminist geologists. Obviously.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 10:58 AM

I am named after my great aunt. My brother next in age has my great grandfather's first name and my grandfather's name as his middle name. My sister has a good Irish name, but not a family name. My youngest brother has my father's first name and a different, again non-family, middle name.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: John on the Sunset Coast
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:04 AM

I was named as a JR after my father who abandoned the family when I was seven. I no longer use his name, nor do I think of him as my father; I haven't for most of 60 years.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:05 AM

I was named after my father's mother. Could have been worse. I could have been called after my mother's mother - then I'd've been Ethel or Winifred!

Limpit is named after her great great grandmother Phoebe. There's a story behind this. You need to know that grandmothers in our family were always known by their surnames.

My mother, having just had her first child, a boy, was visited by the family. Her grandmother, known as Granny Christopher, helped change his nappy (diaper). During this operation my infant brother sprinkled his great grandmother in the way that little boys do.

"Aha" says mother, "he's christened you, so that's what we'll christen him." And so he became Christopher.

Christopher was killed by a drunken driver when he was 17 and the family connection to Christopher went with him. My sister had 3 girls, none of whom are called Christopher. When Limpit was expected we had difficulty choosing a name we both liked. Manitas said he'd had a grandmother Phoebe(mistakenly as it turned out, she was Phyllis)
and so it was one of the final two (the other was Brighid). The choice between those two was made by the toss of a coin in a pub the day before I went into hospital to have her!

Her middle name also has a story. For a few years it looked as if I couldn't have children - leastways, I wasn't getting pregnant. At the Hastings Jack in the Green/May Day festival in 1995, I complained to the chief bogie who suggested a traditional remedy. I got taken up to the Jack, my problem was explained, I got under the Jack and my bottom was painted green. 6 weeks later I was pregnant.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: GUEST,Pattern-keeper
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:06 AM

I was given my Mother's family name as a first name, and my Father's Mother's family name as a middle name. I think in Irish families, at least of two generations ago, there was a pattern/formula employed in the giving of Christian names;

First son, named after father's father
First daughter, named after father's mother
Second son, named after father
Second daughter, (perhaps named after mother)?
Third son, named after father's brothers

And I don't know how it continued (I'm basing this on observation of several families, you see.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Marion
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:16 AM

Conveniently, both of my grandmothers were named Marion.

My friend gave her little girl the middle name "Trinity". At first, I thought this was a mildly surprising religious gesture. Then I watched The Matrix.

Marion

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:24 AM

Pattern-keeper - that's a shrewd observation.

My own family follows the tradition that it's unlucky to name the third generation first-born son after the previous 2 so we don't get John, John Jnr and John III.

I have a family tree stretching back nearly 250 years and for the first 200 years the names go William, William, John, John, Richard, Richard. The first William had 3 sons William, John and Thomas. the second William named his sons in order, John, William, Thomas, Richard.

The last Richard broke the tradition by naming his son Harold, who named his son after his wife's brother, Alfred. We seem to like kingly names in our family!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:27 AM

I'm not really named after anyone, but my mother happened across my name in a book she read shortly before I was born. Coincidentally, it happened to be the same as the "real" name of the comic book character "Batman". Mom was totally unaware of that coincidence, not being a comic book reader. But I sometimes tell people I was named after Batman because it's more interesting than the truth.

Even more coincidentally, my father had brothers named "George Bruce" and "David Wayne", both of whom sent "Thanks for naming the kid after me." notes after I was born. I don't think Mom and Dad ever bothered to straighten them out.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: mack/misophist
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:30 AM

When I was born, California birth certificates had to be filed within 24 hours. My mother was a military dependent, traveling alone, and was unconcious for 3 days. So the doctor named me after his father. I was supposed to be Steven Vincent, which doesn't fit me at all.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Rapparee
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:43 AM

Well, no. Just St. Michael the Archangel (whose name translates into "Who is like God," and I mention my godlikeness whenever it's appropriate).

But aha!

My first and middle names are Michael Anthony Ralph. (My father was Ralph George.)
My brother is Anthony Thomas Ralph.
My other brother is Theodore Ralph Anthony.
My sister is Martha Antoinette Esther. (My mother was Esther.)
My oldest nephew is Ralph Paul Caspar. (Grandfathers and the ghost, I guess -- he picked it.)
There's nephew Anthony James.
There's nephew Daniel Michael.
There's nephew Theodore Edward.

So we have Big Tony and Little Tony (who's taller than Big Tony). We have Big Ted and Little Ted. And I forgot nephew Joseph Anthony....

My parents a big thing about St. Anthony of Padua, patron saint of lost things....

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:48 AM

Ah Rap, what a heavenly pair we'd make... my names mean 'Beloved by God' and 'Chosen by God'.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Rapparee
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:57 AM

What's more, my surname means "Altar Keeper" in old dutch or old german or one of them. I'm told that in modern language it means "Goalie."

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Lox
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 11:59 AM

I was named before everyone (just by the altar)

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Bill D
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 12:17 PM

My grandfather's name was William, so I guess that's it....then my middle name is Martin- my mother's maiden name.

I may be lucky I wasn't named after my GREAT-grandfather Tarsus...or my father, who was Audley..(You can meander thru several generations of my family there...my surname is pretty well known anyway. I guess I ought to contact the guy who researched it, as he is missing a couple of names.)


Anyone else ever find this kind of info online?

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: fat B****rd
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 12:22 PM

I come from a long line of Charlies. My mother flatly refused to have me inherit the family middle names of Victor Eugene.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Bill D
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 12:23 PM

Wow...I guess he is still researching! He has added names I hadn't seen...the Lopers and Lowbers....back to The Netherlands in 1677 or so.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: *Laura*
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 12:23 PM

I was named after Laura from Lark Rise to Candleford... cos my mum played Laura in it at the Minnack theatre and there she met my dad - who was doing the music for it...

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Ebbie
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 12:26 PM

I was given my middle name in honor of my great aunt, my grandfather's sister. However, they spelt it differently: my great aunt's name was 'Civilla'- Never saw that name before or since. Good thing mine is not spelt that way, I ain't hardly never been civil.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Alec
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 12:27 PM

I was named after both my Grandfathers. My Maternal Grandfather gave me my first name.The scots diminutive Of Alexander is Alec rather than Alex,My Scots born mother was always very insistent on this as am I.
I was,originally,going to be called after my Father but "Dad" is such a stupid name for a child that I'm very pleased I wasn't.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Jean(eanjay)
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 12:35 PM

I wasn't named after anyone; in the end my parents had 2 names in mind and I'm just grateful they chose this one. It has exactly the same letters as my father's mother's middle name, just in a different order. My parents had considered naming me after my mother's mother who died before I was born. She was called Leah and at one time that was quite an unusual name so for ages I was disappointed that I hadn't been called that. However, it is becoming more popular so I'm not bothered any more.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 12:39 PM

How I got my name is a real embarassment. But hey, I'm among friends. My Mother wanted to name me Peter after my Grandfather Rasmussen. I could be a Pete without a problem. Actually, my Grandfather's first name was Lars. That wopuld have been even better. Nobody messes with a kid named Lars.

At the time when my parents were making their final decision on my name, my oldest sister Marilyn, who was all of 5 at the time, was madly in love. You know how that is. When you let the man you love use the blue crayon.. Turns out, the love of her 5 year life was named Jerry, and she kept hounding my parents to call me Jerry until they finally relented.

Shortly after I was born, Jerry was given a new box of crayons and dumped my sister. It was too late to change my name to Lars.

Rats.

Lars Peter Gerald Elmer Henry Hornsbuckle Rasmussen

How I got the other names is another story..

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: kendall
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 01:35 PM

Ebbie, when I was a boy we had a neighbor named Civilla.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: gnu
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 01:40 PM

My father was to be named William Kermit. Kermit was my gramma's father. At the Christening, Father MacDonald, a barrel of a man, boomed out, "Kermit? What kind of a name is that? I Christen thee William Kenneth Owens." The story is that Kenneth was Father MacDonald's father's name. Which would be kinda cool, as Dad was named William after Father MacDonald.

My older brother was named William Burton. Burton was his mother's father.

My middle name is John, after my father's father. My first name is Gary because my old man liked the pipes (Garryowen). Only one "r", though. Practical lad... who needs to write out a second "r" all life long? Of course, when giving my name, even though I always say, "One 'r', one 's'.", and spell it out, people still get it wrong half the time.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 01:41 PM

Kevin Barry for my first name, and William, for my father, as the second

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Mooh
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 02:10 PM

Michael for Saint Michael, Bruce for Robert The Bruce (a very distant relation) and the county, Knucklehead for a strong and proud tradition...

Named myself Mooh, but that's an older thread.

Peace, Mooh.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: GUEST,Partridge
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 02:14 PM

Patricia cos my Dad liked Patsy Anne Noble. Elizabeth because of my fathers aunt who was called aunt skins, Frances after my mothers aunt who was known as auntie gertie..............I don't understand it at all.

Pat x

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: North/South Annie
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 02:15 PM

I was named after some opera singer 'Anna Maria Albergerti'but it was slightly changed to Anne Marie. I now get called various things, amongst them Anne, Annie, and AnneMarie.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: ClaireBear
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 02:32 PM

Anna Maria Alberghetti! There's a name I haven't heard in awhile. She was quite a gal, as I recall.

Well, I was named after Santa Clara University, where my father was head of the history department for many years. Lucky for me, my parents decided that the French form "Claire" went better with my French second and German last names than the Spanish "Clara," which sounds, umm, less-than-euphonic in American English.

Of course, when I went to the university myself later on, it proved somewhat awkward to have been named after the institution, but again the different form of the name saved me, so only the history professors knew for sure.

Claire

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Ebbie
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 02:39 PM

Kendall, that's amazing. Unless your neiaghbor was my great aunt? Not likely, though, Aunt Civilla and Uncle Sam were both born in Indiana and grew up in Oregon.

Uncle Sam, by the way, was brother to my mother's mother. It is a tangled web.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: MBSLynne
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 03:02 PM

I'm not named after anyone, but when I was born, my father was away at sea as he was in the Navy. The whole of the crew of the HMS Cheviot seriously discussed what I should be called and came up with Lynne Christine.

Ted's middle name is Ansley. His Watson family came from the village of Ansley in Warwickshire and his Great grandfather named his son, Ted's grandfather, Ernest Ansley. Ernest gave all four of his children, boys and girls, the middle name Ansley, and all Ted's generation have it too. In our kids' generation, there are only two who don't have it at all. Both Shady and Richard have it as their third names.

Richard's second name is David since both his godfathers are called David. Shady, is her second name and that is after her great great great grandmother. I've liked the name since I discovered that ancestress, and wanted to call a daughter that. The reason she got Sarah as a first name and Shady as second is because my Dad, who had only grandsons, wanted a grandaughter named Sarah.

Love Lynne

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Raedwulf
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 03:09 PM

During this operation my infant brother sprinkled his great grandmother in the way that little boys do.

Objection! I never did this!! OK, my great-gran never actually met me. But she knew about me, even if she did die just 2 months after I was born. I never widdled over her (it wasn't my fault, I tell you...). So there!

And, Liz, as another Michael, can I just say I'm glad Rap got there first :p ("like unto god" is the standard translation that I know, & Robert Graves asserts that that's merely a masculine version of Michal, a pre-hebraic name for one incarnation of the Triple Goddess).

I'm Michael because it was one of my mother's favourite boys names (she had a doll she named Michael, her sister named her's John, so there but for the Grace of...). My middle name (whence my nom de plume/guerre here) is from my maternal grandfather.

The full translation of my name is the "godlike cunning son of the mighty army". Work that one out if you can!

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 03:17 PM

I was called Alan.

This was a compromise. My father wanted to called me Alec - after Alec Bedser - the cricketer.

my mother said no - people will always call him 'smart alec'.

given my general level of academic incompetence - I think her fears were groundless.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Mrs.Duck
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 03:25 PM

My middle name is Mary after my Grandmother and I have followed that idea through my own kids so that they are also all named after a grandparent as their middle name. The one exception is my eldest son who is named Alexander Robert Thomas after my father, his paternal grandfather and my maternal grandfatherin that order. We can't have any more children now as we've run out of names.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: frogprince
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 03:53 PM

I was named after "anyone", but I'm not sure just who. My father was named after his uncle, and was always uncomfortable with the fact; it's far too late to ask him why. He insisted on a name for me that was distinct from anything in the family. My parents looked through a newspaper listing of recent draftees, and he found and liked the name "Delton". If you google that, you'll find a number of places and a very few people.
By about the halfway point in my life (so far), I was getting really tired of telling people my name, and having at least 80% of them mis-remember it, so I shifted to use of my middle name when I went into a new setting. I've found it a marked relief to have most people get my name right.
A couple of years ago, the local paper reported the death of an unrelated "Delton" in the next village down the road. He was a veteran, of about the right age. The odds may be a little long, but nowhere near as long as if he had been named Jim.

                      Signed, Dean

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: catspaw49
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 04:27 PM

I was born after several billion other people since the beginning and so I would say yes, I was named after a lot of other people had been named.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: skipy
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 04:37 PM

My Indian name is :-
prances with gloves, I think I was named after Kevin Costner!
Skipy

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Becca72
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 05:07 PM

My middle name, Ellen, is shared with my mother's favorite cousin (in law). I'm not sure where they came up with Rebecca, but mum always told me that my father named me after his old girlfriend....she lied a lot, though...

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Gulliver
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 05:16 PM

I was named after a horse called Little Don. My father put a bet on this horse and won enough money to pay for my parents' wedding, and I was to be called Don.

However, when the official came to my mother to register me, she was out cold, and when he returned my mother had left the hospital, so I don't have any "official" first name, just a "--".

To confuse matters, when my aunt brought me to the church to be baptized, the priest (like in Gnu's case above) cried: "There's no Saint Don, I'll christen him John Francis". My parents never recognized "John" on the baptismal cert, and I've always gone by the name of Don.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: katlaughing
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 05:40 PM

frogprince, my brother's name is "Delton!" He was named after our maternal grandmother's brother. Do you have any info on the origins of it? His middle name, Lorenzo, is a family one passed down in my dad's family, so he went by Delton and is mostly known as "Del." I've never *met* another Delton. Have seen one or two on google, but no one we know.

I wasn't named after anyone. My mom told me they were thinking of "Deborah Sue." I'm really glad I didn't get that one!

katwhoisKathleen

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: RangerSteve
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 05:42 PM

My great-grandfather was Stephen Scott, and my grandmother's last request to my Mom was to name me after him. Since my father's family came from Mexico, people always ask how I got "Scott" as a middle name. The idea of a woman with Scottish background and a man with Mexican backgound marrying is totally inconceivable to some people, although it's been done thousands of times before. And the people who are puzzled by this are usually of mixed heritage themselves. Some people are just stupid, I guess. The other annoying and stupid question I get is "How does someone named Garcia end up playing banjo"? I bet no one ever asked Jerry that question.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Wesley S
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 05:58 PM

I would have asked Jerry Garcia "how does someone missing a finger end up being such a good banjo player". I never have figured that one out.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Amergin
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 06:10 PM

I was so named as I am a gift from god....however little did my mother know that I was to become god's gift to womankind...

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Helen
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 06:14 PM

My older sister Anne was given our maternal grandmother's second name, and my mother's name, Gwyneth, as her second name, and then my sister named her daughter with a first name which is a combination of our maternal grandmother's first two names (i.e Sarah & Ann - with no 'e' on the end) and then Mum's name as her second name.

So when I was born my father's side of the family was the inspiration. The given names of my father's father were Albert Henry Victor but he was known as Harry. My grandmother's name was Henrietta and my father's second name is Henry - which he hates - so I escaped the fate of being called Henrietta and became Helen instead, to keep up the 'H' tradition. My father's maternal grandmother was Frances and her father was Francis, and the name was used a lot in her family so my second name is Frances. Helen means light and Frances means free, so a nice legacy.

I just found out at a family party that my great grandmother Frances was a midwife and was the first woman in our region to get a driver's licence.

Helen

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Kaleea
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 06:49 PM

About 15 years back, my mother quite seriously told me that I should have my name legally changed to "Sharon Rose," (Biblical reference) to which I replied, "huh?!" It seems that my mother had my name all picked out, but my dominating paternal grandparents insisted that I be named after a long deceased great aunt, as their generation of Choctaw (& most any other tribes) were not allowed to name children "indian" names. Daddy said he & Grandad loved this aunt very much, so when the nurse handed him the papers to take to my mother to name me, he just wrote what he wanted without telling my mother.
I was shocked at this story, but probably not as shocked as my mother when she found out what Daddy had done. I told my mother that I thought it was a bit too late to change my name, and that everyone would continue to call me by my birth name even if I tried, which I did not want to do.

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: Deckman
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 07:10 PM

I come from a very strong Finnish heritage, on my Father's side. This is a culture that is NOT to be messed with. At a very early age, my Father decided to stay within the culture. And yes, he had a choice.

I am named for his Father, "Roope", which translates to "Robert" in American. I grew up with several knicknames: Robby, Bobby, Bob, Little Shit, Asshole, SOB, ... any of these sound familiar?

My Grandfather died as I was born. I sense his presence today.

My older brother, who is equal with me in keeping the family heritage and strength, teaches me every day the meaning of "sisu". Mina Raakistaan Sinua! Bob(deckman)Nelson

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: bassen
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 07:35 PM

I was named after my father and both my grandfathers. My maternal grandfather was named Olav Johan and my paternal grandfather was named Peter Benjamin Johan, so giving me Johan as a middle name was a way to satisfy both sides of the family. My paternal grandfather was named for three older brothers who died in a fever before he was born.

My father's name Sverre is the name of a medieval king of Norway, a common enough name in Norway, NOT what you wanted to be called in LA in the 1950s...I decided that being called Swear or JOE-han was not cool, so I went by the name John. My family still calls me that even though we now all live in Norway.

Bassen
which was my first nickname

Subject: RE: BS: Were you named after anyone?
From: JennieG
Date: 16 Feb 07 - 07:50 PM

My first name, Jennifer, is because my parents liked it; my middle name, Grace, is after a cousin of my mother's who died young. Her full name was Dorothy Grace Kidd - I should be thankful that they didn't go for Jennifer Dorothy, it's a bit of a mouthful.

A few years when doing a geneaology course, we were told about the naming of children in Scottish tradition; it seems they used the same system as pattern-maker mentions.

Cheers
JennieG