Do names matter?
They do so to a great degree. Even though we don’t choose them, our names convey information about our class, education level, and ethnicity – or at least our parents’. The world makes different assumptions about a reborn baby names Tyrone than it does about a boy named Philip, and although these assumptions are frequently incorrect, they can have a significant impact on the trajectory of a person’s life. A person’s choices can even be subconsciously names influence by their own name. Some scientists assert that there are a disproportionately high number of dentists name Dennis and lawyers named Lauren, and that it is not merely a coincidence that Dr. Douglas Hart of Scarsdale, New York, chose cardiology or that the Greathouse family of West Virginia is in the real estate business. The Romans had the term nomen est omen, which translates to “name is fate.”
Has the way we name kids changed?
In this nation, it has. In the past, the vast majority of households gave sons names selected from a repertory built inside the family over generations. While this was less true for girls, there was still a restricted range of acceptable names, usually limited to saints’ names. In recent decades,
However, the number of names in use has soared. In 1912, when John and Mary were the most popular names in America, eighty percent of American parents chose from the top 200 names. Less than half of girls and approximate sixty percent of males are currently given a top-200 name.
According to one study, thirty percent of African-American girls born in California during the 1990s were given names that no one else born in the same year share.
What factors affect these decisions?
The obvious response is taste, but taste is a complex phenomenon. Similar to clothing styles, musical genres, and hairstyles, names enter and exit fashion cycles. In 2010, the top five girls’ names were Emma, Olivia, Sophia, Isabella, and Ava, while the top five from 1912 were Mary, Helen, Dorothy, Margaret, and Ruth.
The name Wendy rose in popularity following the debut of the film and musical Peter Pan in the early 1950s, and Brittany rose in popularity throughout the 1990s due to the success of pop singer Britney Spears. In recent years, the popularity of the names Isabella, Jacob, and Cullen has been link to the Twilight series of vampire novels by Stephenie Meyer.
Is it advantageous to have a common name?
In circumstances where only the name is known, individuals with common first names infulence is perform better than those with unique names. According to studies, potential employers pay less attention to a resume presented under a name considered as African-American, such as Lakesia Washington, than to an identical resume having a more “Caucasian” name, such as Mary Ann Roberts.
A recent Australian study discovered that people had a more favourable opinion of coworkers and political candidates whose names are easy to pronounce. In this age of unique expression, however, many parents consider common names such as Thomas and Jane to be dull and uncreative.
Nina Shen Rastogi wrote on Slate.com, “For some parents, choosing a baby’s name is comparable to curating the ideal bookcase or wardrobe.” “It should convey sophistication without snobbery, exclusivity without ostentation, and individuality without apparent zaniness.” Aiden, one of the most common boy’s names in the United States over the past seven years, has lost the exclusivity that made it so appealing to many parents.
What is our response to our own names?
According to research, people are subconsciously drawn to things, people, and places whose names sound similar to their own. Psychologists refer to this as “implicit egotism.” Carl Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist, observed that his colleague Sigmund Freud (“joy” in German) championed the pleasure principle, Alfred Adler (“eagle”) the desire to power, and himself (“young”) the “concept of rebirth.
” In a contentious 2007 study, implicit egotism was state as the reason why students with names beginning with C or D had worse grade point averages than those with names beginning with A or B. According to the study, students gravitate toward grades that mirror their own cherished initials.
So are our names influence is our destiny?
They have unquestionable sway, but “destiny” is too strong a term. According to George Mason University psychologist Dr. Martin Ford, names only have a big impact when they are the only thing you know about a person.
“When an image is include, the significance of the name diminishes. When personality, motivation, and talent are consider, the relevance of a person’s name diminishes to almost nothing.” Condoleezza Rice’s name influence may have held her back, but her intelligence, talent, and determination enabled her to become secretary of state.
On the other hand, Sue Yoo of Los Angeles grew up hearing, “Oh my god, that’s your name; you should definitely become a lawyer.” She is now an attorney. “From a psychological standpoint,” she explains, “my name undoubtedly influenced my decision to pursue that path.”
Place-names of the West
Where you reside has a substantial effect on the names influence you choose for your children. Michael Varnum of the University of Michigan discovered that parents in the American West are more inclined to give their children unusual names than those in the East.
According to him, this demonstrates the pioneers’ continued desire for “individualistic values such as distinctiveness and independence.” You might expect biblical names to be more popular in conservative areas, yet the opposite is true.
According to naming expert Laura Wattenberg, “traditional, Christian, masculine” names such as Peter and Thomas are more prevalent in blue states, whereas “an androgynous pagan newcomer like Dakota” is more likely to appear in red states.
Sarah Palin, the Western icon of conventional values from Alaska, exemplifies this paradox perfectly by naming her children Track, Bristol, Willow, Piper, and Trig.