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People rarely think of it, but names are one of the primary symbols by which we define ourselves. When parents choose names for their children, it is often based not just on the way the name sounds, but what the name means. From that perspective, a name can bestow upon its owner not just numerological qualities, but aspects of personality based on the original root of the word. A first name, coupled with a middle name, and sometimes the surname (when it can be traced to its original meaning) can reveal interesting facets of a person's character. Such a grouping of names also becomes a picture, a kind of art, that belongs only to the owner of the paired names.
For instance, my name is Candace Sue McBride. Candace comes from the same root as the Latin word for incandescent or shining. Candace was also the title of the queens or Kush. Sue comes from Hebrew for rose or lily. McBride is Irish meaning (the son of) the servant of Brigit (the Irish goddess of fire, healing, and crafts).
Altogether, my name might be interpreted as the fiery rose princess of Brigit or Brigit's princess of roses. By interpreting the connotations, you get some idea of my character.
What images do your names evoke and do they match your character?
For instance, my name is Candace Sue McBride. Candace comes from the same root as the Latin word for incandescent or shining. Candace was also the title of the queens or Kush. Sue comes from Hebrew for rose or lily. McBride is Irish meaning (the son of) the servant of Brigit (the Irish goddess of fire, healing, and crafts).
Altogether, my name might be interpreted as the fiery rose princess of Brigit or Brigit's princess of roses. By interpreting the connotations, you get some idea of my character.
What images do your names evoke and do they match your character?
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Pennsylvania
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Unsu...
Re: The Name Game
Wed, January 5, 2005 - 2:20 PMMy name is James Michael. I'd say my last name, but it is Ukranian and I know it's been changed (damn illiterate Ellis Island pukes!), so it'd be pointless.
I've no idea what they mean. Any ideas, Candace? -
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Re: The Name Game
Wed, January 5, 2005 - 8:51 PMlol Your name is actually pretty ironic from what I know of you Endless. James comes from the Hebrew for "supplanter," while Michael is from Hebrew, meaning "who is like god."
So a good interpretation would be something like the "usurper of god" or the "god-like supplanter."
Soooo, Endless, what's it like being a god? hehe -
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Unsu...
Re: The Name Game
Wed, January 5, 2005 - 8:54 PMI'm George Griffith.
George means farmer, and I do enjoy teaching, which is planting knowledge.
Griffith though? I dunno.
Middle name Galbreath. It was my father's name. It came from some conqueror. -
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Re: The Name Game
Wed, January 5, 2005 - 9:15 PMGriffith is a variation of Griffin. Galbreath is a variation of Galbraith. It's Scottish for stranger or foreigner.
So... George, how do you feel about being that "strange griffin farmer?" heh You must be a pretty fierce fellow. Bet you keep your students in their places. :) -
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Unsu...
Re: The Name Game
Wed, January 5, 2005 - 9:19 PMHehe =)
I try to drop the fierceness these days.
Strange? Yes =)
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Unsu...
Re: The Name Game
Thu, January 6, 2005 - 9:35 AMI already know the connotations that Darwin comes with, but I don't know the origin or the meaning. Charles seems British but I don't know the meaning. Green, of course, is the color. I would love to know the meaning and origin of my name. It would give me something else to say besides the things people come up with e.g. "the monkey guy?", "the scientist?", "like, evolution?". Sometimes I hate my parents for doing this to me.
Darwin Charles Green. -
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Re: The Name Game
Thu, January 6, 2005 - 3:23 PMDarwin is from the Anglo-Saxon meaning "lover of the sea." It mutated in later English to "beloved friend." Charles is from Latin roots meaning "strong" or "manly." Green however may come from the Irish Griana or Grianain meaning "the sun" or English refering to the "village green" or common area.
So your name might be interpreted as the 'strong man who sails by the sun' or 'my good friend from the village by the sea." Nice steady picture that paints of your character, eh? I like the way all your names come together to tell a story rather than just create an image. -
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Re: The Name Game
Fri, January 7, 2005 - 9:24 AMHmmm, I'm beginning to think I should have lied about your name... lol Although you know, if we knew the definition of your surname, it might change the whole interpretation. -
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Re: The Name Game
Fri, January 7, 2005 - 10:15 PMWell... I must admit your name lead me a merry chase. It took me an hour to break it down and find the translation of the root. I'm reasonable sure this is accurate...
Penk/ov/sky
ov meaning 'the place of'
sky meaning 'of'
Penk from a Ukrainian root meaning "chirp, squeak, or small sound"
So your surname would mean "of the place of the small sound" or dropping the suffixes "chirp or squeak."
Which still makes for a pretty funny translation. You would be something like "he who supplants god with a sigh." Still a pretty ironic translation. heh -
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Unsu...
Re: The Name Game
Sat, January 8, 2005 - 2:48 PMSee Candace? It is inevitable, stop fighting it, JOIN ME! -
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This is the maximum depth. Additional responses will not be threaded.
Re: The Name Game
Sat, January 8, 2005 - 9:25 PMlala, can't hear you
dissidents never stop fighting :P
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Re: The Name Game
Fri, January 7, 2005 - 9:20 AMThanks :) I've been collecting names for a long time, just like my collections of symbols and alphabets. Surnames are harder. I probably wouldn't have had anything on Endless' surname, so it's just as well he didn't include it. lol
I think it's interesting that all names, no matter what culture they came from, are similar to Native American names in painting a picture of the character of the "owner." Some names are just beautiful when you put all the interpretations together. -
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Re: The Name Game
Sat, January 8, 2005 - 7:53 PMhey candace,
my full name is Jason Allan Job. i know that Jason is Greek and means healer, no idea about Allan. i don't know the meaning of my last name but i know that it is biblical in origin(obviously!) and that it first started being used as a surname in the area that is now Germany around the 1500's. my anscestors were from a part of the Ukraine that is now Germany, but that was three or four generations ago. -
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Re: The Name Game
Sat, January 8, 2005 - 9:54 PMHeya Jason,
Alan comes from Gaelic for "harmony or peace." In Ireland, it is interpreted as "handsome or cheerful." Job is a tricky one. It is usually interpreted as "hated or oppressed" or "sorrowful and patient," but in reality a literal translation would be "where is my father?" In Arabic, Job means "repent or penitent."
The interpreted that makes the most sense to me would be peaceful healer of the oppressed. Any way you interpret your name though, it sounds like you have your work cut out for you. :) -
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Unsu...
Re: The Name Game
Sun, January 9, 2005 - 12:25 AMI'll be over here, usurping god with a sigh. Y'all have fun with the other crap!
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Unsu...
Re: The Name Game
Mon, January 10, 2005 - 7:37 PMmy name is brigit and i was born on february first, the day that the goddess brigit was revered in before she was was morphed into st. brigit...the part that gives me the willies is that my folks had no idea that this was the case, i discovered it while doing time as a second grader in a catholic school...wasn't till later when i became a theology student in college that i discovered the truth... -
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Re: The Name Game
Mon, January 10, 2005 - 9:44 PMThat's as ironic as my mother's name. Her name is Donna. She was born on March 25th which is "Lady Day" in honor of the Goddess. Donna means Lady. Her mother had no idea either. -
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Unsu...
Re: The Name Game
Tue, January 1, 2008 - 1:48 PMWell this is interesting.
You're the only other person I have known of to explore the symbolism of a person's full name this way other than myself.
My sister's daughter was born between Christmas and New Year, and she was named Natasha. I later discovered that Natasha is a Russian name, and it means, 'born at Christmas-time.'. They had no idea that the name would be so appropriate, they just felt inclined to give this name.
The strange thing is, her younger was sister was born in the Spring-time, and she was named Natalia. I came to discover, to my surprise, that Natalia, is Italian, and means 'born at Christmas-time.', so basically, Natalia is the same name in Italian as Natasha is in Russian.
The coincidence is very strange, but I do wonder about the symbolism of why Natasha really was born at Christmas time, whereas it seemed to be more important that Natalia had a name meaning the same as Natasha's, than actually being born in the festive season.
What's the message in that? The thing about synchronicity, is that you know it means something, you just never get to find out quite what it means.
My sister's oldest son is called Liam, his younger brother is called William. Now, personally, I'm aware that William and Liam are the same name, the latter deriving from the former, but my sister, didn't realise this. What I find significant is the repeating coincidence of the brother's names having the same meaning: 'defender, or protector.'. This repeats the pattern of their sister's.
My own name is Peter Gary Windle.
Peter is Greek, a variant of Petros, and means, 'the rock, or stone'.
Gary comes from the Old English/Teutonic, and this means 'spear-carrier'.
Windle is a place. I believe that the name originates from a place called Windle Hill, not many miles from where I live. The name simply came from the people who owned and those who worked the land on Windle Hill and it's surroundings back in the dark ages. Windle (Lancashire) was known as Windhull in 1201, meaning 'windy hill', a rise of land buffeted by the winds blowing from the west off the North Irish Sea. I am quite impressed that I was born so close to the place of the origin of the name, after so many centuries. The majority of my ancestors seem to have emigrated to America, as the name is very rare in England, and has always been considered unusual, but there are thousands in the US.
So my name means : 'the rock, spear-carrier of the wind-blown hill'. -
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Re: The Name Game
Tue, January 1, 2008 - 2:22 PMYou know, your sister's choice in names really is interesting. If you consider that Christmas was fixed to its winter date by the early Church in order to get more converts and that Jesus, if he really existed, is supposed to have been born in Spring, both names would technically be correct. Of course, it may just be that your sister was partial to the way the name sounded and so was attracted to the second name for the same reason, and the reason they mean the same thing is that they come from a similar root word. The same goes for your older sister. She may have just liked the way the names sounded. ;-)
Your name is very picturesque BTW. I picture a lone standing stone on a hill with a spear leaning against it. Or maybe a "fairy stone" (a stone with a hole in it) and the spear stuck through the hole.
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