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Help Me Pick My Last Name


Lilllabettt

Which Last Name Should I Pick?  

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I get wanting to be distinctive, but sometimes a little anonymity is a good thing. People you've not yet met would be able to find your Phatmass stuff just by Googling your new name, for example. Would you mind that? I like Ponswinnecke but in your position I'd choose something that wouldn't make me so easy to find. (I had a cyber-stalker a few years ago who really worried me, so this may just be my nerves talking.)

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I get wanting to be distinctive, but sometimes a little anonymity is a good thing. People you've not yet met would be able to find your Phatmass stuff just by Googling your new name, for example. Would you mind that? 

 

 

dangnabit!

 

im not sure ive done anything particularly embarrassing on here ... 

that said, would i want my students, employers, etc. to be able to look me up hmmm

its true there is power in anonymity too. hmmm interesting ... 

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Who are your favorite Saints? Maybe one of their last names? Benincasa? Sánchez de Cepeda y Ahumada? Maybe an obscure Saint that not many know about?

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ikeyazhang:

 

ikzh1_zpsb371cef2.jpg

 

wont come back for 300 years or so. there's something romantic about a comet silently spinning through space.  

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I guess I'm the sole person in favour of Ponsgambart - much easier to pronounce than Ponswinnecke and not as common as Barringer. It's also rather sophisticated sounding - although the idea of a saint's surname is also a good one.

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MarysLittleFlower

I have a very rare last name from a different language and most people really struggle with pronouncing it. I don't dislike my name at all but - honestly after it gets misprounced the 50th time it will be really annoying. Maybe not at first but with time, it got really annoying to me. For that reason I think Barringer is better than the others.

This thread got me thinking on the topic... I'm one of those people that likes to be named rather than choosing a name myself.. It establishes a personal connection to that person - parents, husband or how names are chosen for religious. I think it says in Revelation that God will eventually give us names. I always thought that was really cool. Maybe its also because my name has a Christian meaning and was chosen in a specific way so I see it as a way to honour my parents - exceptions being things like entering a convent in which case its like God chooses a new name through the Superior. I understand some people want to change their names because of abuse or other personal reasons. If I was changing my name I'd probably pray about it a lot - if its God's will, and that He would help me find the right name? Since it describes the person :) names are really personal and I'd try to picture myself having this name in 50 years.. Would I still like it? If I was changing my name I'd want God to choose it for me somehow, so He names me. I like the name that my parents gave me though and if I was a religious I'd like to keep it there somewhere.

Just some of my own observations about names..

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MarysLittleFlower

By the way about names in general, I think Montfort is really nice.. And has a connection to a Saint

Edited by MarysLittleFlower
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I have a very rare last name from a different language and most people really struggle with pronouncing it. I don't dislike my name at all but - honestly after it gets misprounced the 50th time it will be really annoying. Maybe not at first but with time, it got really annoying to me. For that reason I think Barringer is better than the others.

This thread got me thinking on the topic... I'm one of those people that likes to be named rather than choosing a name myself.. It establishes a personal connection to that person - parents, husband or how names are chosen for religious. I think it says in Revelation that God will eventually give us names. I always thought that was really cool. Maybe its also because my name has a Christian meaning and was chosen in a specific way so I see it as a way to honour my parents - exceptions being things like entering a convent in which case its like God chooses a new name through the Superior. I understand some people want to change their names because of abuse or other personal reasons. If I was changing my name I'd probably pray about it a lot - if its God's will, and that He would help me find the right name? Since it describes the person :) names are really personal and I'd try to picture myself having this name in 50 years.. Would I still like it? If I was changing my name I'd want God to choose it for me somehow, so He names me. I like the name that my parents gave me though and if I was a religious I'd like to keep it there somewhere.

Just some of my own observations about names..

 

 

maryslittleflower, just so you know, your way of expressing yourself above is somewhat off-putting to moi, the OP. 

It reminds me of the passive aggressive people I meet in my travels through life.

 

I say I'm going to change my name and ask for input on what I should change my it to.

They respond by telling me why THEY wouldn't change THEIR name ( and of course they have holy Christian reasons).

Then they give me some wet noodle advice: "Make sure you pray a lot about whether its Gods will!" "Think about whether you'll like it in 50 years!"

 

Thanks! That never occurred to me before! I wish I'd done that before I got this big fat dolphin tattoo on my face!*

 

Lots of people "understand" if people want to change their names because of abuse or other personal reasons.

Isn't that special. I'm sure people who change their names for that reason appreciate your understanding.

My reason is: I feel like it. Do we understand that? 

 

I don't actually think you mean to come across passive aggressive, but I live for the day passive aggression is wiped from the face of the earth, so I wanted to point it out to you. It's also possible I'm overreacting because my pump is primed to react to people giving me the business about my choice. if thats the case please accept my apologies. 

 

*I do not in fact have a big fat dolphin tattoo on my face.

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thanks for your advice re: Barringer. I don't mind my name being misspelled/pronounced as much as I dislike having trouble spelling it over the phone. My current last name has lots of letters which sound similar, some of which are silent. People never hear it right the first time I spell it. I say "t" and they hear "e" or "d" or vice versa.  I could see that continuing to be a problem with the "e" and "c"  in Ponswinnecke

 

I like Montfort too. 

 

p.s. i like the idea of God picking my name. that's cool.  i know the foundress of the Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist had 2 names in mind for her community, and she wrote them down on slips of paper and put them both on the altar and asked God to reveal His preference. Maybe I could do something like that.

Edited by Lilllabettt
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I have read a few times that potential employers are more somewhat likely to contact applicants with easy names. Kind of a semi-conscious preference. They have a slight preference towards just simply not dealing with the potential embarrassment/awkwardness of mispronouncing an unfamiliar name. (And possible unconscious racial stuff for foreign names, who knows.)
I have a very French last name which is simple to pronounce, but not exactly obvious for English speakers based on the spelling. For that reason occasionally I use my middle name on resumes - Gordon - which is very easy and very English. Good strong resonance too, I think. Joseph Gordon. Good stuff. A strong name if I ever heard one.

Depends on the situation, anyway. I have used both names at times.

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