It seem like such a simple, innocuous thing, doesn't it? Why do I have such difficulty slapping an identifier on a character, city, or people? Perhaps it is true, as many before have suggested, that there is power in the naming. T.S. Elliot tells us that cats have three names: one for everyday, one for pride, and one known only to itself. It is thought that knowledge of a demon's true name can give you power over it, much like knowledge of your name can put you in the power of wielders of dark magics. Even if you don't believe in magic, there is power in a name; there is meaning. Names can serve as windows into history and culture.
Given names are the ones bestowed upon us by our parents, the everyday name. Where these names came from is difficult to say. Most (in English) seem to have some original deeper meaning steeped in history, language mangling, and tradition. Many popular given names derive from the Bible and have been translated across cultures, with each altering the spelling or pronunciation as appropriate to their language. Other famous figures are likewise honored by having children named after them as well. In Brazil today, that can lead to some lengthy multi-part monikers (*see after). Some children are named for their parents, though Jewish tradition forbids naming after a living family member. Some names run in families with multiple children, or cousins bearing the same name. My mother tells me of a family she worked with who had six different Roccos and eight Maries. One night over dinner we listed at least nine families in my hometown who had sons (brothers) named Matthew and Michael.
Family names seem to have originated largely to differentiate one "Rocco" from another (though it probably didn't help much in that family). I guess too many people got into fights over which one would be "The Greater" and which "The Lesser." This lead to many patronymics referring to professions (Smith, Potter, Mason) or kinship (Peterson, Anderson, Johnson). Place names or descriptors were also used as familial names (Corleone, anyone? as well as any name that has a "von" prefix, or the "-burg" finish). An interesting note is that in Chinese and Japanese culture, the family name is used before the given name, emphasizing the importance of the family over the individual. For many people, the family name is a source of pride, a connection to their ancestors. As property traditions evolved, the right to carry a certain name might have a significant financial aspect as well. Impressive ancestors carried a lot of weight long before we knew anything about DNA (just check out that latest episode of "Vikings").
I can't say much about secret names (obviously), so I'll talk about nicknames. These are the names designated to us by friends or enemies. These are the names that we earn by our words or deeds. In a sense, it was one of the earliest forms of advertizing. Most often today we assign them to athletes and serial killers, but history has a plethora: Phillip the Bold, The Iron Chancellor, The Sun King, Old Hickory, Randy "Macho Man" Savage (sorry). Some of these are earned and some bestowed. A good nickname has a life of its own (I was nicknamed "Damage" in college, which is a complete farce, though I admit to helping cement it) and can travel ahead of its bearer like a standard. How many of these names grew wild and how many cultivated would be an interesting question.
The names that our characters carry aren't just place holders. Names give hints to history, family and tradition without the author offering a whiff of exposition. Without even meeting, the name "Benjamin" marked me as an outsider in Brazil. Many names have been mangled by parents and immigration officers the world over, whether by creativity or neglect, giving clues to the socioeconomic origin of the bearer. Some given names seem to represent hopes of parents for their wearers (Prince, Champ, Rex). Many people spend their whole lives trying to live up to their name (yes, that bit from "Gladiator" springs to mind). Alternatively, the reason someone would cast off the name of their birth is also a worthwhile exploration. Naming should never be taken lightly. A name stands for us when we are gone and its essence colors our image to those who we have never met.
This all may not exactly be why I have trouble naming characters and places, but it's a beginning. Do you have any thoughts or knowledge on the subject? I'd love to hear.
Brazilian names today - http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/02/world/americas/his-friends-know-him-as-petroswickonicovick.html?action=click&module=Search®ion=searchResults%230&version=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fquery.nytimes.com%2Fsearch%2Fsitesearch%2F%3Faction%3Dclick%26region%3DMasthead%26pgtype%3DHomepage%26module%3DSearchSubmit%26contentCollection%3DHomepage%26t%3Dqry136%23%2Fbrazilian%2520names&_r=0
Hey, Benjamin. I know it's not exactly what you are asking but I need to say that your name in Brasil only make us sure that you were not from here. I say that because when we first look at your skin and eyes, even being a very mixed country we can say you’re not from here. You couldn’t have that clear skin with our sun exposure.
ReplyDeleteNow, about naming, I’m not sure if you considerate that, but in different countries, like you’ve mentioned some, the first name and the last name are organized in different orders. Here at Brasil we use the father’s family name as last name but I heard somewhere else (Idon’t know where) the mother’s family name should be the last one.
And a curiosity at Brasil (sometimes ugly): some people add the father’s name with the mother’s name to construct the child’s name or even put together a lot of things to make a name. I have a very beloved friend that is called ‘Lizmelry’: Liz- is the name of the flower (Fleur de Lis), -mel- means honey in Portuguese and should mean that she is sweet and -ry is a variation from ‘ri’ (conjugated verb ’rir’) that means ‘to laugh’. Her mom says that she was born smiling. I hope that helps you ;)
Thank you so much for the info. I know I don't look Brasilian. My point was, if you hadn't met me, the name would still give me away.
ReplyDeleteIn the US it's unusual to use multiple family names. Married women traditionally take the last name of their husband and drop their "maiden name." More recently (especially in the professional world) ladies are keeping their maiden names or hyphenating them with the husband's.
If anyone has additional input on this, I'd appreciate it.
In Brasil married women take the last name of their husbands only if they want although it is common. Also these ladies should keep their family name in the middle.
ReplyDeleteWhen a child is born it should get at least the last name (family name) of the father and also the family name of the mother. If the parents want to put all names they carry from their father and mother family names, they can. In that case the child will have a big name like the royalty of Portugal had.
Look this name (it’s one name to one person): Pedro de Alcântara Francisco António João Carlos Xavier de Paula Miguel Rafael Joaquim José Gonzaga Pascoal Cipriano Serafim de Bragança e Bourbon – Prince of Portugal, founder and first ruler of the Empire of Brasil