What's in a Name?

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."
Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)

Parents go through a lot of trouble and research to pick a name for their offspring. Sometimes it’s a family name, but often it’s an unusual name–a new creation. Bestowing upon children atypical names became more prevalent over the last 30 years or so. As a former teacher, I’ve seen my share of uncommon names and common ones with uncommon spellings. Pronouncing them correctly could often be a challenge. Like the boy named Dave who insisted on spelling it "Daev," we choose a plethora of means to stand out.

In contrast to Shakespeare's dialogue, the book of Proverbs (22:1) says, "A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches; and loving favor rather than silver or gold."

And Ecclesiastes 7:1 echoes the sentiment: "A good name is better than precious ointment."

The Kabalarians have an entire philosophy devoted to the meaning of names.

But whatever the source or reason, aside from naming a boy "Sue," parents choose a good name for their child. And most names have meaning in some language. My own name, Patricia, is of English origin and means "noble."

It’s difficult to determine when the practice of creating nicknames began, but they can represent both terms of endearment and those of ridicule, and probably resulted from the desire for convenience–not so much for the namee as for the namer. We usually pick up our nicknames as children, when we have little choice in the matter. For instance, my friend Rodd (given name William) acquired the name because of his mother’s fascination with Roddy McDowall, whose full name was Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall. And you can see why they nicknamed him.

My mother nicknamed me Chicky when I was a baby–kinda cute, but not a name with which I desired to enter high school. Once there, I picked up the diminutive "Patty," which I am still happy with. But along the way, that was shortened further to "Pat." Until recently, most of the people I met on the west coast called me "Pat."

It occurs to me that one can possess a given name, a nickname, a pen name, a stage name, a maiden name, a married name. . . .

So what IS in a name? Does it matter if you are called "Rose" or "Twit"? (I think so!) And why should someone want to change their name?

Celebrities do it all the time for obvious reasons. Who wouldn't have a hard time going through life as Alphonzo d'Abruzzo? Did you know that you can change your name at any time simply by using the new name? No legal formalities are required. Whoopi Goldberg was born Caryn Elaine Johnson. Her stage name, Whoopi, was taken from an amusing story regarding a whoopee cushion, but there are conflicting stories as to why she chose Goldberg. I wonder what her family said about it? Do you suppose there are some uncles or cousins that still call her Caryn?

According to a Catholic forum site, in some religious communities, nuns are assigned new names. I remember Sister Killian at Our Holy Redeemer. I always wondered how she got that name. In some cases, a nun chooses a new name because she has a devotion to that particular saint. Apparently, if there is a community-wide devotion to a particular saint, variations of that saint's name is given to all of the members. (Entire communities of nuns may have double names that start or end with either "Mary" or "Joseph.")

At CatholicForum.org I learned that the name change represents a total leaving behind of the world. I wonder if the song, " I Told Jesus be all right if He Changed my Name," originated from that practice?

In the Bible, Abram’s named was changed by God to Abraham, to signify a covenant relationship, a change from his old life. God also changed his wife’s name from Sarai to Sarah. He changed Saul’s name (Hebrew Shaul, meaning "asked") to Paul, meaning "little." Paul had had a life changing experience on the road to Damascus and truly did leave his whole world behind to follow Jesus, so I can see the origin of the Catholic practice.

Along the same lines of reasoning, I know two women who were called Debbie for years before they asked folks to call them by their given name "Deborah," the name of a prophetess in the book of Judges. Both of these women had life-changing experiences before desiring to be called by their given names.

When I lost my husband, I went through a life-changing experience of my own. I would no longer be the same person. Not just because I became a widow, but because I have to find my way in life on my own. I embark on a road of discovery and rediscovery of who I am and what I can be. Without George, the world is different. My relationship with the Lord is different, too. So, like Paul, Abraham and Sarah, I have a new identity, a new name. But God didn’t ask me to change my name to Mehitabel or Gertrude (thank God). He just showed me that I am Patricia. I am noble. There is a beauty in the name that encourages me to hold my head high.

As I've often said to people, "Pat is what you do to the dog . . . on the head." I no longer see it as my name any more than Ali wants you to call him Cassius.

Whether it is convenient for people or not, this is me. It’s who I am, and it’s the name my mother gave me on the day I was born. You honor us both when you use.