What’s in a name?

What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

Sound familiar? I’d argue that well, yes, it should because it’s one of the most famous lines from one of the most famous works of fiction of all time - William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. I’ll settle for you having recognised it from the 90s Baz Luhrmann adaptation - one of the few good theatrical adaptations that transplanted the story into modern day (whilst keeping the script). I’ll also take Hamlet with Ethan Hawke - don’t come for me. 

The passage in question, spoken by the eponymous Juliet during the famous balcony scene, ponders whether Romeo, being a Montague, is inherently ‘bad’ because of his family name. Spoiler: he’s not, he’s just a dumb teenage boy. 

At any rate the question is more philosophical than that and weighs how much what something (or someone) is called impacts on how we recognise and interpret it. In the 16th century that might have been more of a ‘no’, despite strong importance of familial ties, but these days it’s kind of more of a ‘possibly, but not always’. 

The modern view of ‘what’s in a name’ examines the idea that sometimes a name, its meaning and connotations can influence how that person, animal or thing might be perceived. For example, I was consider getting a cat to replace my friends cat, who’d lived with me up until November of last year when he moved to New Zealand (the cat). I have always liked black cats, I used to have a Salem for over a decade, and I’ve got names picked already including Nyx, Bagheera, Lucifer and Binx (one day when I don’t have to deal with cat litter I’ll get all of them). Anyway, when I mentioned that I was considering Lucifer a friend of mines reaction was I shouldn’t - not for any religious reason, of course - but just in case the name became a self-fulfilling prophecy and the cat was virtually demonic. All cats are to an extent, but fair point.

How much does your name, or your pets name, influence who you become? 

My dog is named D’Artagnan. It’s short for Charles de Batz de Castlemore D’Artagnan who was a famous general of the musketeers in France during the 17th century. If you’ve heard of him, outside the Uber history nerds like myself, it’s probably from the 19th century novel series that fictionalised his life - The Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas (the first book anyway).

Fun fact for you: D’Artagnan was not actually one of the Three Musketeers the title refers to. They were Athos, Porthos and Aramis who became mentors to the young D’Artagnan after he tried to duel all three of them simultaneously on his first day in Paris. Young D’Artagnan, at least in the novel, was kind of a little shit. And guess what my dog is? That’s right, he’s a little shit. 

But, like his namesake, he’s also brave, adventurous, sweet, sticks up for his friends and for the little guy (though he is only a little guy). 

I settled on the name D’Artagnan before I even saw him and originally I’d been looking at a different dog. But as soon as I did seen him the name immediately suited him and he’s only grown into it more over time. So really, was naming him after a swashbuckler a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy when it comes to my dog? 

Have you ever heard anyone say that someone would grow into their name? I definitely have though for the life of me I couldn’t tell you where I heard it. It’s like bestowing a ‘great’ or ‘honourable’ name on a baby. 

In the film Where the Heart is with Natalie Portman from way back in the late 90s, Portman’s character names her daughter ‘Americus’ (no, really) because she wants her to be a great woman and have the opportunity in life that she never did. 

In The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea (we’re not going to debate whether it’s a good sequel or not today) Ariel names her daughter Melody because song is so important to her. But does Melody really embody musical traits? Does anything about her character, besides Ariel’s own personality, really reflect her name? 

My name, though I encourage people to call me to call me Sam at every opportunity (outside of work anyway), is actually Samara. My mum named me after the romantic heroine of the 1989 obscure bodice ripper romance novel by Patricia Potter. 

That’s it there. You can even see the romantic hero, Rhys, on the back cover. 

I asked my mum before why was that the name she chose to call me and she’s said variations of the same thing over time: she liked the name, the character was physically and personally the kind of daughter she hoped she would have, etc. 

I mean, I don’t look like my namesake. She’s got long dark hair and eyes - but so do both of my parents. I am the white sheep of my family, the Marilyn to the Munsters. It’s been a joke for years since everyone else (except my dad and nana who married in) has much darker skin, eyes, and hair. Someone told me I was technically ‘white passing’ which is a whole discussion I don’t think I’m equipped for today. 

Am I like the literary Samara in personality? We’ll, I re-read the book this year and I have to say no, but also kind of. 

My literary counterpart is quite a bit younger and living at a time and place in history that’s very different to my own. But she is brave, adventurous, fiery, passionate, loving and loyal - all things I like to think that I am. 

But here’s the thing that kind of seals it for me. I discovered this year that actually Samara is the second book in a trilogy. I didn’t know that, my mum didn’t know that, and I’m reading the other books a lot of things make more sense.

The first book is called Swamp Fire and is about Samara’s parents. Her mum’s name is Samantha and her family is the enemy of her later husband’s family. Sound familiar? After a tragedy which resulted in the death of her fiancé, her later husband’s younger brother, Samantha runs away and joins the American rebels during the War of Independence. But being a romance and during a time period that was much less favorable to women than now, she goes disguised as a boy named Sam. 

Connor, Sam’s later husband, is a rebel and takes Sam under his wing as a mentor though he absolutely loved her long before he knew she was actually female (a true Bi icon like Li Shang in Mulan). However, when he does find out she’s a woman, she lies and tells him that her name is Samara in order to prevent him from discovering her true identity as his enemy. He finds that out later anyway, but the name Samara becomes important to them and thus it’s what they call their only daughter.

So Samara was Sam. 

Kind of similar to Ariel who I mentioned earlier as both the fictional Samantha and my own mum called their daughter ‘Samara’ because it was something meaningful to them and the name reflected the person they hoped their daughter would be.

I think that extra layer gives my name, and that I call myself Sam, so much more meaning than I even intended. I don’t think I’m as much like the fictional Samara as I am her mother and thus the imprint of herself she wanted to bestow on her daughter. Are you still with me? 

Some people mull over the names of their children for a long time, while some choose names that ‘fit’ or they pass on familial names. I think that names can be a self-fulfilling prophecy or guide people in a certain way through life, and sometimes it’s just their name and that’s it. I have met people before who don’t suit their name - it happens. 

That doesn’t even account for the cultural divide amongst names. Some names are cross-cultural, others are not. Some names can even become a disadvantage to people later in life depending on their circumstances and sometimes circumstances can ruin peoples names. The most classic example of the latter would be how the once traditional name, Adolf, rapidly died out, and the former lends itself to an entire discussion on race and racism particularly in the western world. 

Have you ever heard the concept of true names as well? Or that names mean power? That’s one reason why identity theft is such a problem and why you should never summon a demon if you don’t know it’s name. 

That was a joke; stay the fuck away from ouija boards and any kind of summoning altogether, I am deadly serious. 

So I’m the end, what truly is in a name? Is it a personality? A look? A culture? A history? A tradition? You can be the judge of that - but your name is rarely just that. 

Still call me Sam though. 

Xox

P.s Not Sammy - I’m not a child.