# How did you come by your name?



## hollydolly (Feb 28, 2015)

This discussion came up on another thread and I was asked to start a thread on it...so here we are..


Not talking about your forum name..we're talking about your Christian name, the one you've been known by all your life.

Do you know why you were given your name, were you named after someone...do you like your name, would you have preferred to have been called something else, did you pass your Christian name on to your children..... is their a story to be told about the way you got your name..?

Anyone?


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## AZ Jim (Feb 28, 2015)

My given name is James.  My Dad's middle name was James.  EOM


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## Kadee (Feb 28, 2015)

I passed my name, Kay on to daughter Who is named Leonie Kay, and she named her first daughter Amanda Kay  
as mentioned in another thread my name came about being the first born, fathers name was Ray.
My middle name has been passed down the generations for as long back as the early 1800 s
i have a brother born a year after me and his name is Ray


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## hollydolly (Feb 28, 2015)

James ( aka Jamie)...and the shortened version Jim or jimmy , is an extremely common name in Scotland too ...I think just about everyone has an uncle, brother, father cousin or friend called Jimmy..


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## Falcon (Feb 28, 2015)

They named me after the bathroom.....John

My sister's name is Jane.

  My parents had no imagination.


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## hollydolly (Feb 28, 2015)

LOL Falcon we used to have neighbours who were universally disliked by everyone, and their children ( now adults) were called Janet and john...and people used to say they were only called that because that's the only book their  parents had ever read..


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## Falcon (Feb 28, 2015)

LOL  Holly.


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## jwk246 (Feb 28, 2015)

I'm John.  named after my great ---great grandfather named John; came from Germany in 1865.


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## GeorgiaXplant (Feb 28, 2015)

I'm named for my mother's high school French class pen pal. As it happened, it made a good combination with my French surname. She lost touch with her pen pal just after the Germans invaded France in 1940, the year I was born.

Until I was grown, I hated my name because Americans either couldn't or wouldn't pronounce or spell it correctly. As a child, I was too timid to correct anyone; as an adult, it didn't bother me a bit. There are many who persisted in mispronouncing it so I persisted in correcting them!


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## AprilT (Feb 28, 2015)

My birthday is in April and I'm a Taurus = April + T.


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## QuickSilver (Feb 28, 2015)

I have no clue.... My mother liked it I guess


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## AprilT (Feb 28, 2015)

See what I get for not reading the whole thread all the way through.  My real name, I haven't any idea, never asked my mom, I know sort of how I got my middle name, my mom was aiming for a boy to name after my dad, her second hubby, so there are three girls with the same middle initial till the youngest boy came along and frankly, I don't recall him having a middle name, but he has my dad's first name with the us three girls have the same first three letters of.

I know that was a mouth full.  Actually we three girls all have the same three initials for first second and last name well till we each married.  nthego:


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## Josiah (Feb 28, 2015)

I was named after my great great great great great grandfather Josiah Bartlett who signed the Declaration of Independence.


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## chic (Mar 1, 2015)

Falcon said:


> They named me after the bathroom.....John
> 
> My sister's name is Jane.
> 
> My parents had no imagination.



Hahahahahahaha!!!!!!

All you need is the surname, Smith and a dog named Spot. I like Falcon much better. It implies freedom and power.


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## Ameriscot (Mar 1, 2015)

I was named Linda because my dad liked the name, middle name Anne after my aunt. Never liked my name because it was a common name and my last name was a very common name. So I thought my entire name was boring.

In the early 90s I decided to use my middle name and liked Annie. Felt right. After I came to the UK in 2000 I legally changed it to Annie Linda. Even my family calls me Annie.


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## Laurie (Mar 1, 2015)

I am Morddwyd, pronounced more- thoo.widd, after  a character in a 13th century Welsh epic, the Mabinogion, a loose collection which was not even collected  and punished in full until the 19th century!

Pretty romantic eh?


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## Ameriscot (Mar 1, 2015)

Laurie said:


> I am Morddwyd, pronounced more- thoo.widd, after  a character in a 13th century Welsh epic, the Mabinogion, a loose collection which was not even collected  and punished in full until the 19th century!
> 
> Pretty romantic eh?



How cool!  I have a copy of the Mabinogion but haven't read all of it.


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## Ken N Tx (Mar 1, 2015)

Falcon said:


> They named me after the bathroom.....John
> 
> My sister's name is Jane.
> 
> My parents had no imagination.



My bathroom was called John..I changed it to Jim so now I tell everyone that the first thing I do in the morning is I go to the Jim!!


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## hollydolly (Mar 1, 2015)

LOL ..Ken.. :lol1:


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## hollydolly (Mar 1, 2015)

Laurie said:


> I am Morddwyd, pronounced more- thoo.widd, after  a character in a 13th century Welsh epic, the Mabinogion, a loose collection which was not even collected  and punished in full until the 19th century!
> 
> Pretty romantic eh?



Wow that is a super unusual name... 


Annie, it's funny you'll probably think I'm mad but in your photos aged 40..you look like a Linda but in your recent photos you look like an Annie...I hope I'm not inferring that Annie is an older persons' name..but sometimes you can look at a person and know what name suits them..


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## Ameriscot (Mar 1, 2015)

hollydolly said:


> Wow that is a super unusual name...
> 
> 
> Annie, it's funny you'll probably think I'm mad but in your photos aged 40..you look like a Linda but in your recent photos you look like an Annie...I hope I'm not inferring that Annie is an older persons' name..but sometimes you can look at a person and know what name suits them..



Interesting!  Someone (Scottish) asked me at work years ago if I was given the name Annie at birth.  She knew I wasn't as Americans don't generally do that - but Scots will.  My husband's grandmother was named Annie.


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## hollydolly (Mar 1, 2015)

I hate my name...always have ..when I was a child if a stranger asked my name I would say the first thing that came into my head rather than say my own name..in retrospect some of those names were horrible but I preferred anything other than my own. It's not a particularly ugly name in the great scheme of things..it's just horrible to me...I wanted to change it years ago but no-one would take me seriously when I asked them to call me something else so I'm stuck with it...except on chat forums where I get to call myself Holly..LOL


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## Ken N Tx (Mar 1, 2015)

hollydolly said:


> I hate my name...always have ..when I was a child if a stranger asked my name I would say the first thing that came into my head rather than say my own name..in retrospect some of those names were horrible but I preferred anything other than my own. It's not a particularly ugly name in the great scheme of things..it's just horrible to me...I wanted to change it years ago but no-one would take me seriously when I asked them to call me something else so I'm stuck with it...except on chat forums where I get to call myself Holly..LOL



  Ok is it Holly or Dolly ?? My sister was Delores and called Dolly for short.


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## hollydolly (Mar 1, 2015)

It's neither Ken...my name on this board was plucked from the clear blue sky.. 


My real name is Diana ( but most people call me Dee)


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## Ameriscot (Mar 1, 2015)

Ken N Tx said:


> View attachment 15163  Ok is it Holly or Dolly ?? My sister was Delores and called Dolly for short.



Yes, do tell.  

My mother wanted to name me Rebecca but since she got to pick my older sister's name, dad won.


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## Ameriscot (Mar 1, 2015)

hollydolly said:


> It's neither Ken...my name on this board was plucked from the clear blue sky..
> 
> 
> My real name is Diana ( but most people call me Dee)



I like the name Diana!  And Dee.


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## Ken N Tx (Mar 1, 2015)

hollydolly said:


> It's neither Ken...my name on this board was plucked from the clear blue sky..
> 
> 
> My real name is Diana ( but most people call me Dee)





Ameriscot said:


> I like the name Diana!  And Dee.


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## hollydolly (Mar 1, 2015)

LOL  everyone says they like it....except me...I've hated it since I was a tiny tot..

On the paternal side of my family the first boy was named after the father/grandfather..and the first girl named after the paternal grandmother..

My eldest brother was named after my father and grandfather..great grandfather etc. as is his son ( my nephew). but my mother didn't like my paternal  grandmothers' name, it was also the same as her mothers' too.. so she decided to break with tradition and call me something that wasn't already in the family..hence Diana..she did the same with my 2 sisters  but she lost the battle with the second boy and had to call him after one of my paternal uncles.

We were all given some of the traditional family names as middle names tho'..


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## Ameriscot (Mar 1, 2015)

hollydolly said:


> LOL  everyone says they like it....except me...I've hated it since I was a tiny tot..
> 
> On the paternal side of my family the first boy was named after the father/grandfather..and the first girl named after the paternal grandmother..
> 
> ...



My sister was named after my maternal grandmother who was named after her great-grandmother.  Our paternal great-grandmother had the same name.  

What I didn't like about Linda, besides it being a common name then, was that I couldn't have a nickname other than just Lin.


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## Bullie76 (Mar 1, 2015)

My mom's dad died 10 days before I was born so I was given his name.


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## Lon (Mar 1, 2015)

My given name is Alonzo and I am a Junior. Not too many white guys with that first name.


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## Pappy (Mar 1, 2015)

Why I was named David, I have no idea, however my middle name, Walter, is my fathers name. Moms name was Olive. A name that was, is quite rare. Grandmas, Estella. Another rare name.


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## avrp (Mar 1, 2015)

I have always disliked my first name. Now when I meet new people I introduce myself as Marty. (yes, take a guess at my real name lol)
My middle name Rose, was my mom's name. Now we have several of her grandchildren with different variations of the name Rose. 
My daughter's middle name is Rose. I am still saddened that Rose wasn't chosen for either of her daughters' names.


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## SifuPhil (Mar 1, 2015)

hollydolly said:


> It's neither Ken...my name on this board was plucked from the clear blue sky..
> 
> 
> My real name is Diana ( but most people call me Dee)



Diana was the Roman goddess of the hunt ... 

Could be worse - you could be called Philip - "lover of horses". Everyone quotes lines from _Equus_ at me ...


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## Raven (Mar 1, 2015)

I never liked my real first name or my second name but I'm stuck with them.
I was not named after any family member, my mother found my name in a book and liked it.
It was a popular name back then but faded out and has never come back to being a name 
widely used.
When I was at business school there were four other students with my name and one teacher
also had it.  It was very confusing and we all had to use our last names in class.

James and Alexander are the male names that are common in my family but I didn't name my sons
either of those names.


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## Cookie (Mar 1, 2015)

I wasn't named after anyone that I know of, but my first name was one of the popular ones in my family's community and there were several other girls we knew with the same first name, in particular my first cousin, which was quite entertaining, I became #1 because I was older and she was #2.


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## AprilT (Mar 1, 2015)

Here are my and my sisters middle names

Isadora
Isabeth
Isabella

Can you guess what my dad's name was?    Mom didn't give up till she got that boy with my dad.


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## Mrs. Robinson (Mar 1, 2015)

Named Virginia after my mom`s mom. She told my mom that if she didn`t name me after her that she wouldn`t love me as much as she loved the other kids-nice,huh? But the minute they brought me home,my sister,who was a year and a half older than me and couldn`t pronounce Virginia,started calling me Gi-ginna and it stuck. I have been Ginna all my life. Even my grandmother called me that-and I think she loved me anyway.


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## Cookie (Mar 1, 2015)

AprilT said:


> Here are my and my sisters middle names
> Isadora
> Isabeth
> Isabella
> Can you guess what my dad's name was?    Mom didn't give up till she got that boy with my dad.



April, I think those names are beautiful. Can't guess tho


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## Ken N Tx (Mar 1, 2015)

marty said:


> I have always disliked my first name. Now when I meet new people I introduce myself as Marty. (yes, take a guess at my real name lol)
> My middle name Rose, was my mom's name. Now we have several of her grandchildren with different variations of the name Rose.
> My daughter's middle name is Rose. I am still saddened that Rose wasn't chosen for either of her daughters' names.


My mother's name was Martha Rose..


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## Warrigal (Mar 1, 2015)

First name after a Hollywood actress who played Jane in early Tarzan movies.
Middle name after maternal grandmother who died less than a year before I was born.
Maiden name from my father
Current surname from my husband.

Warrigal is the name I chose for myself when I was a youth leader.
Dame is an honorific I awarded to myself to poke fun at our current prime minister.
When he is deposed I will abandon it.



> Wot's in a name? -- she sez . . . An' then she sighs,
> An' clasps 'er little 'ands, an' rolls 'er eyes.
> "A rose," she sez, "be any other name
> Would smell the same.
> ...


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## jujube (Mar 1, 2015)

My mother saw my first and middle name (which is spelled weirdly) in the obituaries.  She liked them together and voila! there I was.


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## Ina (Mar 1, 2015)

I come from a family with weird female names. My grandmother was Zella Beullah, my mother was Leola Ann, and I'm Ina Irene.  

My mother named my half brother after an old boyfriend, so my father named me after his exwife. My name coming out of my mother's mouth was always a very harsh sound.  :crying:


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## Linda (Mar 1, 2015)

My mom wanted to name me Patricia but my aunt named my cousin that before I was born.  My mom wasn't too happy about that.  I guess she named me Linda as it was a popular name in the 40s.  My middle name is Ann because it was my mom's middle name.  I named my daughter Candie because I knew she would be sweet and she is.


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## avrp (Mar 2, 2015)

Ken N Tx said:


> My mother's name was Martha Rose..



Really Ken! That's interesting. It's a pretty name for someone else


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## Ameriscot (Mar 2, 2015)

Linda said:


> My mom wanted to name me Patricia but my aunt named my cousin that before I was born.  My mom wasn't too happy about that.  I guess she named me Linda as it was a popular name in the 40s.  My middle name is Ann because it was my mom's middle name.  I named my daughter Candie because I knew she would be sweet and she is.



I was named Linda Anne.  But I'm now legally Annie Linda.


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## Capt Lightning (Mar 2, 2015)

I'm George Alexander.  I'm not named after anyone,  but  when I was born, George 6th was king and the name was probably quite popular then.   I don't really like it, but since the latest royal prince is George Alexander Louis,  it has a sort of royal approval


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## Mrs. Robinson (Mar 2, 2015)

Linda said:


> My mom wanted to name me Patricia but my aunt named my cousin that before I was born.  My mom wasn't too happy about that.  I guess she named me Linda as it was a popular name in the 40s.  My middle name is Ann because it was my mom's middle name.  I named my daughter Candie because I knew she would be sweet and she is.



My husband and I both have sisters named Linda. When our second daughter was born,we had the name Marina picked out for her (Marina was an exchange student from Argentina who lived with my family for a year and graduated high school with my husband and sister.) But when she was born,she just didn`t look like a Marina to us so we had to think of another name. Hubby would ask all the nurses "What is your first name?" There was Dorothy and Ida and Evelyn-no name to suit us. Then we said "Well,she has two aunties named Linda-we will name her Linda Marina." She is 42 now but never had any friends or classmates named Linda-where 20 years earlier my sister and hubby`s sister both had many other Lindas in their classes at school.


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## Mrs. Robinson (Mar 2, 2015)

marty said:


> Really Ken! That's interesting. It's a pretty name for someone else



Here in our small town every child goes to Miss Martha`s Preschool. Her name is Martha Rose (Rose is her surname)


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## Linda (Mar 2, 2015)

Mrs. Robinson said:


> My husband and I both have sisters named Linda. When our second daughter was born,we had the name Marina picked out for her (Marina was an exchange student from Argentina who lived with my family for a year and graduated high school with my husband and sister.) But when she was born,she just didn`t look like a Marina to us so we had to think of another name. Hubby would ask all the nurses "What is your first name?" There was Dorothy and Ida and Evelyn-no name to suit us. Then we said "Well,she has two aunties named Linda-we will name her Linda Marina." She is 42 now but never had any friends or classmates named Linda-where 20 years earlier my sister and hubby`s sister both had many other Lindas in their classes at school.



I like the name Marina.  I've only known one person with that name, a lady my husband built cabinets for many years ago.  It makes me think of the ocean, which I love.


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## Linda (Mar 2, 2015)

Ameriscot said:


> I was named Linda Anne.  But I'm now legally Annie Linda.



So you legally changed your name?  My daughter did that too.  She dropped her middle name (Lynn) and just uses her maiden last name as a middle name.  That was fine with us.  I told her while she was at it she should change her first name as she's complained I gave her a "stripper's" name.  She wouldn't do it though, she said she wants to keep it.   I grew up with an unusual English last name, Binning, which everyone mispronounces so I'm glad I have an easy but not common last name now and I never plan to change it.  I think even if I were ever to remarry I'd keep my name now because I like it so well.


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## Kadee (Mar 2, 2015)

Linda said:


> I like the name Marina.  I've only known one person with that name, a lady my husband built cabinets for many years ago.  It makes me think of the ocean, which I love.



I know a lady called Marina, through dancing ,she is from the Philippines. I had not ever heard the name before meeting her


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## Ameriscot (Mar 2, 2015)

Linda said:


> So you legally changed your name?  My daughter did that too.  She dropped her middle name (Lynn) and just uses her maiden last name as a middle name.  That was fine with us.  I told her while she was at it she should change her first name as she's complained I gave her a "stripper's" name.  She wouldn't do it though, she said she wants to keep it.   I grew up with an unusual English last name, Binning, which everyone mispronounces so I'm glad I have an easy but not common last name now and I never plan to change it.  I think even if I were ever to remarry I'd keep my name now because I like it so well.



It was actually fairly easy. I went to the US embassy in London to change my passport to my married name and after a bit of discussion a supervisor allowed the name change since it was obvious there weren't any dodgy reasons. And I was only switching first for middle.  Then I changed it at SS.


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## hollydolly (Mar 2, 2015)

In my class at school there were 3 girls totally unrelated to each other whose Christian names were Arlene...yet regardless of where I've lived in the world, since leaving school I have never met another woman with that name..odd isn't it?


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## tnthomas (Mar 2, 2015)

hollydolly said:


> *             How did you come by your name?         *
> 
> This discussion came up on another thread and I was asked to start a thread on it...so here we are..
> 
> ...



My first name is a biblical name, my middle name is my G. Grandfather's first name.  My last name(Thomas) is just my surname(either German or Welsh), the exact origin being the issue that initiated a three year genealogy search.  After 18 years still a work-in-progress, I'm going to do a genealogy thread soon.       I gave my son my middle name (Nathan) as his middle name); I gave my daughter my mother's middle name(Lavinia); she hated it until she understood that it had some _family history._


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