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This is a perennial issue with me, so if you're bored of this kind of thing by now, just skip it.
I have been thinking about why I reject so many names other than just "that doesn't feel right", trying to get more specific about what would be the qualities of a name I would accept, besides "it sounds cool / I like it". I've come up with three major points:
1. Its sounds must not provide an easy route for mockery. It must not sound silly in and of itself, nor be easily alterable to an unfavourable nickname. No name can be completely foolproof in this regard, because anyone who is determined enough will find a way (I would have thought my legal surname would be hard to work with, yet a bunch of third-graders managed it), but some names seem to be "asking for it".
2. It should be appropriate for the venues in which it will be used. That is, it should match contexts, or be neutral (since it's hard to cook up one name that matches several disparate contexts). It's hard to get taken seriously in traditional witchcraft with a Pagan Three-Piece Suit like "Silver RavenWolf", for example. It also should not appear to be pretentious.
3. Perhaps most importantly, because if I could fulfill this, it would extend to the first two: It must be defensible. I must be able to justify why the name applies to me if anyone should challenge me. Ideally it should seem so appropriate that no one would even need to ask, but since a lot of detail of one's life is often obscured online or by contact only in certain contexts, it's possible that people wouldn't see why I would have a right to a name, so I should have one that I can solidly explain. (Thus, if I ran into either points 1 or 2, I would have a "maybe so, but it's still OK because..." argument handy.) On no account should I pick a name that leaves me hanging in this regard, no matter how well it fits 1 & 2, because when someone says "what? foul! you're not a ________ at all" I won't have anything to say back.
So, in summary, it has to be noncommital. It needs to "sound cool", be a name a personality can be attached to or built behind, but not say or claim anything I'm not absolutely sure I can justify and provide evidence of. Y'all might notice my current LJ name, "Madigan Foxbourne". It's a little along the lines of "Fernilee Grinlow" (with the sounds-silly turned down a little), "Vine Alphane", or "Madyn Weaver-Underhill" (actually the same forename, just Welsh instead of Irish), all of which which I used at various points, but it still sounds too pretentious and grand to me, like I'm trying to fake being an erudite high-born Brit or something, and in general I would fear that people would think "false advertising" if they a built up some picture of what went with the name and then happened to meet me in person. I want a cool name but don't think I can live up to one. There isn't enough of me here TO name. I'm basically "Third Girl at Club". *sigh*
(note that this post is referring to trying to select a public/general net use name, not a private magical name.)
I have been thinking about why I reject so many names other than just "that doesn't feel right", trying to get more specific about what would be the qualities of a name I would accept, besides "it sounds cool / I like it". I've come up with three major points:
1. Its sounds must not provide an easy route for mockery. It must not sound silly in and of itself, nor be easily alterable to an unfavourable nickname. No name can be completely foolproof in this regard, because anyone who is determined enough will find a way (I would have thought my legal surname would be hard to work with, yet a bunch of third-graders managed it), but some names seem to be "asking for it".
2. It should be appropriate for the venues in which it will be used. That is, it should match contexts, or be neutral (since it's hard to cook up one name that matches several disparate contexts). It's hard to get taken seriously in traditional witchcraft with a Pagan Three-Piece Suit like "Silver RavenWolf", for example. It also should not appear to be pretentious.
3. Perhaps most importantly, because if I could fulfill this, it would extend to the first two: It must be defensible. I must be able to justify why the name applies to me if anyone should challenge me. Ideally it should seem so appropriate that no one would even need to ask, but since a lot of detail of one's life is often obscured online or by contact only in certain contexts, it's possible that people wouldn't see why I would have a right to a name, so I should have one that I can solidly explain. (Thus, if I ran into either points 1 or 2, I would have a "maybe so, but it's still OK because..." argument handy.) On no account should I pick a name that leaves me hanging in this regard, no matter how well it fits 1 & 2, because when someone says "what? foul! you're not a ________ at all" I won't have anything to say back.
So, in summary, it has to be noncommital. It needs to "sound cool", be a name a personality can be attached to or built behind, but not say or claim anything I'm not absolutely sure I can justify and provide evidence of. Y'all might notice my current LJ name, "Madigan Foxbourne". It's a little along the lines of "Fernilee Grinlow" (with the sounds-silly turned down a little), "Vine Alphane", or "Madyn Weaver-Underhill" (actually the same forename, just Welsh instead of Irish), all of which which I used at various points, but it still sounds too pretentious and grand to me, like I'm trying to fake being an erudite high-born Brit or something, and in general I would fear that people would think "false advertising" if they a built up some picture of what went with the name and then happened to meet me in person. I want a cool name but don't think I can live up to one. There isn't enough of me here TO name. I'm basically "Third Girl at Club". *sigh*
(note that this post is referring to trying to select a public/general net use name, not a private magical name.)
Re: heh, catching up on lj finally!
Date: Nov. 27th, 2006 06:40 pm (UTC)From:Or, do like I did and pick a name you know is a bit beyond you and hope to fill it someday. Era isn't exactly a commoner's name, and the last name combined with it makes it seem like I'm a priestess when we all know I'm just a little girl playing with fire and likely to burn down half my life at it... :) but maybe someday I'll grow into the name. Its a good way to choose a name, and it leaves room to grow and if picked carefully, gives a direction to grow to.
I meant to tell you, I think I'll send you an email though, a little less public than posting my legal name here :)