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October 29th, 2001, 09:45 AM
One of the great pleasures of my job is that fact that I get to spend so much time observing and writing about the human animal and its condition. So much goes on around us and on occasion you will observe and then find strangely amusing some unique action that people will take. Such was the case the other day when I read a short article about Cat Stevens, though that is not his name anymore.
For reasons best known to him, and as is his right, he chose to change his name to one sounding more Muslin. Now I'm not sure that adopting a name more Arab in sound than the name he was given at birth will make him any more Muslim. I have seen this frequently, though it seems more prevalent among those adopting the Muslin faith. Cassius Clay being probably the first celebrity to do such a thing may have set a precedent. I have not noted any of those who have converted to Judaism changing their names. I also am unaware of any Protestants or Catholics doing this either.
A recent trend among some Blacks in America is to get rid of their slave(sic) names, though I can say that none of them were ever actually slaves, for what are generally Arab or Muslim names. Several facts seem to escape these folks. The names suited their parents and grandparents just fine. It was Arabs that bought them from other blacks to sell to slaves ships. Why not take a Sub-Saharan African name which would represent the area of your ancestors?
Now among Pagans there is a sort of duality of names. The majority of Pagans use the everyday names that they were born with yet most, though not all I have met have a sort of mystical name. Now I will admit that the use generally is limited to the Net and other types of correspondence. The number of variations of wolf, dragon, moon, mist (and its various spellings), is amazing. Most use these names to avoid the ever present discrimination we face from Fundies. If they don't know your real name the Fundies can't track you down. Pagans don't generally legally change their name from say, Jane Smith to say Burning MoonMyst, though I have to say it might be interesting.
So how do I feel about all this name changing, have a ball, call yourself what you will. The names we choose say much about our personality as well as proclaim to others who we are. If calling yourself something other than the name you were born with makes you happy then do it. No matter if you are picking a name that describes you best or one that makes a statement, enjoy it. Have fun with it.
So I would like to know what others think about all this name calling, so to speak. Tell us about your name.
Michael St. Germaine (Jag)
p.s. Though Michael is my legal first name, St. Germaine is an older, though legal, family name, I use it both as my pen name as a writer and because it comes with title. The title ( though unusable here in America by law ) really gets to the Ren Faire Nazis. The standard response is, "You can't use that name and title." But I do.
For reasons best known to him, and as is his right, he chose to change his name to one sounding more Muslin. Now I'm not sure that adopting a name more Arab in sound than the name he was given at birth will make him any more Muslim. I have seen this frequently, though it seems more prevalent among those adopting the Muslin faith. Cassius Clay being probably the first celebrity to do such a thing may have set a precedent. I have not noted any of those who have converted to Judaism changing their names. I also am unaware of any Protestants or Catholics doing this either.
A recent trend among some Blacks in America is to get rid of their slave(sic) names, though I can say that none of them were ever actually slaves, for what are generally Arab or Muslim names. Several facts seem to escape these folks. The names suited their parents and grandparents just fine. It was Arabs that bought them from other blacks to sell to slaves ships. Why not take a Sub-Saharan African name which would represent the area of your ancestors?
Now among Pagans there is a sort of duality of names. The majority of Pagans use the everyday names that they were born with yet most, though not all I have met have a sort of mystical name. Now I will admit that the use generally is limited to the Net and other types of correspondence. The number of variations of wolf, dragon, moon, mist (and its various spellings), is amazing. Most use these names to avoid the ever present discrimination we face from Fundies. If they don't know your real name the Fundies can't track you down. Pagans don't generally legally change their name from say, Jane Smith to say Burning MoonMyst, though I have to say it might be interesting.
So how do I feel about all this name changing, have a ball, call yourself what you will. The names we choose say much about our personality as well as proclaim to others who we are. If calling yourself something other than the name you were born with makes you happy then do it. No matter if you are picking a name that describes you best or one that makes a statement, enjoy it. Have fun with it.
So I would like to know what others think about all this name calling, so to speak. Tell us about your name.
Michael St. Germaine (Jag)
p.s. Though Michael is my legal first name, St. Germaine is an older, though legal, family name, I use it both as my pen name as a writer and because it comes with title. The title ( though unusable here in America by law ) really gets to the Ren Faire Nazis. The standard response is, "You can't use that name and title." But I do.