Name Meaning: Do We Become Our Monikers?

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

That's how Shakespeare put it in "Romeo and Juliet." Do you agree?

I'd say that there's real power in names. Think of how parents agonize over what to call their children. Organizations do the same thing; would "Huffington News" have been as sweet?

Here's the real question: Do we become our names, or do they capture our essence?

I remember pouring over the family dictionary (yes, pre-Google), looking up names. What did "Julia" mean? What did it say about the life I was going to lead?

And why do people often despise their "other" name -- most often their middle one? Two of my three stepsons cringed at the mere mention of theirs. (I won't list them here out of kindness to them!) It took me a lot of years to grow into mine -- Helen -- but now I quite like it.

There's lots of talk about what Kate Middleton will be called when she marries Prince William in April. Some dreadful options are being considered, but the worst surely has to be "Her Royal Highness Princess William of Wales." Oy!

Speaking of names that give us pause, years ago Michael Caine wondered aloud what would happen if fellow actor Tuesday Weld (yes, this dates me!) had married Fredric March II. In typical form, Caine supplied the answer: "She'd become Tuesday, March the second."

But I digress.

What's your name? What does it mean? And what has it come to mean to you? Do you think it defined you, or the other way around? What did you name your children? Or your pets? And what should Kate Middleton be called?

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Julia Moulden is an author, speaker and columnist. Read her HuffPost archive, which includes more about the New Radicals and the first columns about her upcoming book "RIPE."

 

Follow Julia Moulden on Twitter: www.twitter.com/juliamoulden

Comments

[hald]

03:54 AM on 01/27/2011

Hal. "HAL was ranked No. 13 on a list of greatest film villains of all time on the AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains." I like my name but the reference comes up often. Earlier tonight I loved the Uncle Hal reference on the Fake Jeopardy Intro's site when Watson ( the supercomputer) is introduced. My mother said they just liked the name. Over the years I've met a few other Hal's, all of us very different, and the reference came up. It was brutal at times after the movie, especially when I was in college.

[KIMBER]

11:18 PM on 01/26/2011

My name is Kimberley. I went by Kim until age 30, when I decided that I wanted to be called by my rightful name. Now I really hate being called Kim. Sometimes when I introduce myself as Kimberley, someone will immediately say "Hi Kim." To me, that's just rude and disrespectful, and I correct them. When somebody tells you their name, call them what they say, don't immediately shorten it to a diminutive. And don't say "mind if I call you Kim?" Yes, I mind, or I wouldn't have made a point of introducing myself as Kimberley.

[LifeChangeStartsNow]

06:08 PM on 01/26/2011

Catherine epitomises greatness, aristocracy, nobility but also tragedy. So does my family name Hidalgo. Aie... I hated my first name as a kid. It did not fit me so my "home" name, one of my two middle names, Marie, was used. The second is just as old fashioned as the first and I do not use it.

Hidalgo wasn't even my birth surname. It was another old name that my mother decided to change when I was eight. I was furious because I thought I should have been consulted!

Catherine became me in my thirties and I grew into Hidalgo. I introduce myself as Hidalgo and answer the phone that way too.

Even my mother and friends call me Hidalgo on occasion. It is what I embody now. When the few call me Marie, I tell them she died over 2 decades ago.

My dogs were all pedigree, solid and brawny, no hairy retriever types for me, yuck! I want to see muscle. They all had aristocratic names & demeanor (okay, they mirrored their owner). I mean, I am not a friendly person. Let me see who you are first then I will decide & they mirrored that.

That young lassie who's about to put her head in the royal maw needs a name that will fit snugly and protectively to shield her from the wee beasties (the servants) while she grows a spine of steel. Tis a Shame Diana isn't around for her. No suggestions though :)

Fun post

[HeverCastleFan]

03:52 PM on 01/26/2011

My mother always hated her name, so she took great care in choosing my first and middle name- Adrienne Colette. I have loved these names all my life, and I enjoyed having a first name that set me apart from all of the other girls in school. Speaking of school, funny how hearing a certain name can take you back to a childhood memory, for better or for worse (thinking of the name Kevin, which will forever remind me of a bully in the neighborhood where I grew up- I still shudder when I hear that name!)

[Danielb48]

05:14 AM on 01/26/2011

My name is Daniel James, my twin brother is David Jonathan; all plucked from the Bible. It's my last name (Beerthuis) that I hated for a long time, it is virtually unpronounceable. But I have grown to like it for its rarity in the U.S. If you share my name, we're related!

[bdot73]

12:03 AM on 01/26/2011

My name is Bethany Cail. I have always liked my name and am happy that my parents decided on a good one.

Funny story- my mom thought that I was going to be a boy, so they had already picked out a boy's name (David Hayes). Then out pops a girl- they had to start over with the baby names, took them a few days to settle on Bethany.

My mom told me that she knew a Bethany when she was younger and had always liked the name. Cail is my great-grandparents last name. I often get mistaken for Brittany Gail hahaha.

[Amber Michelle Marshall]

11:56 PM on 01/25/2011

Seeing as how my name is in the dictionary, anyone can look it up (Amber), but according to my mother, she named me after the main character in Forever Amber because she thought the name was great...if you've never seen the Linda Darnell film or read the book it was based on, here is a synopsis: Amber is lowly born & basically sleeps her way to the top, eventually becoming the King's mistress, scorning her true love on her rise, who eventually also gains wealth and peerage and then takes their love child (his male heir) away from her, leaving her alone & bitter...not so great

At least my father had the brilliant plan to give me Michelle as a middle name, after the Beatles song "My Michelle" which I happen to adore :)

[guitarguy22]

04:12 PM on 01/25/2011

My name is Cody, which means helpful. I've been told often it fits me perfectly...

[knicole]

02:10 PM on 01/25/2011

My name is Kara, meaning "Purity". Though, my parents didn't consider the meaning of my name when they chose it. They picked the name Kara because Supergirl is named Kara. My dad is a bit of a comic book geek.
My middle name is Nicole, and I love it. I have always liked my middle name. I guess I'm one of those lucky people blessed with a name they actually like. The name Nicole is french, meaning "Victory of the People."
I feel like my name suits me very well. Kara Nicole. Outwardly pretty and sweet, with sophistication, purity, victory, but also quirky and geeky. My name has a sense of humor, and also class.

I don't believe that people grow into their names. There's something about naming a naming a child that seems magical to me. it is hard to believe that a someone could pick a name for a baby that they have never held, that hasn't had a chance to show them his/her personality.

[Sofia Rauschert]

01:10 PM on 01/25/2011

My name's Sofía. It means wisdom. I'm not sure if I'm wise, but I like it. My parents chose it because I have long and difficult surnames (we use both parents' last names where I live). So my given name had to be short and easy.
The only problem is that it's a very common name for people my age, so people ended up calling me by my last name anyway, never pronouncing it correctly...

[Katie Young]

08:13 AM on 01/25/2011

My name is Katie, and it suits me perfectly.

[Julia Moulden]

12:22 PM on 01/25/2011

Love it, Katie. Love that you love it, too! (wondering what you mean when you write 'suits me perfectly'...)

[RockyBlue3]

12:08 AM on 01/25/2011

FRANK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Julia Moulden]

12:22 PM on 01/25/2011

Is that like Stella!!!!!??

[french queen13]

07:22 PM on 01/25/2011

LOL!

[FarmerBee]

11:58 PM on 01/24/2011

No offense to others who share my name, but "Ruth" is just such an old-fashioned, matronly name. People often question it when I introduce myself because it's so at odds with my persona.

[Julia Moulden]

12:23 PM on 01/25/2011

I canNOT tell you how many women named Ruth who've confided to me that they don't like it. Not sure why that is (though you clearly say it's at odds with your persona). It's such a classic name, and quite beautiful. Interesting.

[lefty2026]

03:54 PM on 01/25/2011

I suppose, but after seeing Fried Green Tomatoes, I kind of like it. She's a great character.

[dekadente81]

07:06 PM on 01/24/2011

My given name is Gregory but I go by Paco. The ladies can't get enough of Pa-co.

[Julia Moulden]

12:24 PM on 01/25/2011

LOL Pa-co! Love it, love it!

[homer winslow]

06:24 PM on 01/24/2011

My name is Larry. It has always been Larry, but some people insist that it must be short for Lawrence. I tell them that my birth certificate says Larry and still they think that they know better. I refuse to answer to the ones who insist on calling me Lawrence.

[RockyBlue3]

12:08 AM on 01/25/2011

That's showing 'em.

[Julia Moulden]

12:24 PM on 01/25/2011

Aren't people strange sometimes? They shorten some names and lengthen others. I say, MYOB! Thanks, Larry!