Names

by Arti Jain in-depth staff

by Rory Lustberg web editor in chief

The moment a child is born, they have an identity. Regardless of whether they can babble, giggle or speak, all are known by a singular word: their name. Often, names are simply thought of as a means of identification; but in reality, their meaning goes much deeper than that.

“A lot of times, we'll get names that are handed down through the family, or a name that means something to the parents,” junior Ovya Diwakaran said. “So your name is something that you're proud of — your identity.”

Names with meaning are common among students. Especially for students that are a part of multiple cultures, their names provide a basis of their identity that is unique to them and encapsulates their history. Junior Sarah Liao provides an example of this.

“My first and last name represents the joining of two cultures that I'm part of: American and Chinese,” Liao said.

With unfamiliar names, mispronunciations and misspellings often occur, regardless of race or culture. However, Diwakaran observes more mispronunciations of her name than what she dubs "common names."

“You can't really use the excuse that, ‘Oh, it's hard,’ or ‘It's different,’ because there are common names out there that are [not pronounced how they look], that peo- ple have accepted as the norm,” Diwakaran said.

This false representation of names goes beyond a simple mispronunciation. Often, students are negatively impacted by the ways that others mispronounce their name. Senior Artur Breternitz recounts a time he experienced this, taking the joy out of an otherwise ecstatic moment.

“In seventh grade, I got a 36 on the English part of the ACT, and they had a ceremony to celebrate people who did well, like a talent identification program,” Breternitz said. “They only called out six kids who got 36 on [the English section], and I was one of them. But, they pronounced my name so wrong that I didn't even recognize it was me that they were saying, so I didn't stand up. In the stairwell when people were leaving, I was crying with my mom because I thought they never called me.”

Students experience these situations on a regular basis, not just at certain events. At school, teachers often pronounce their students’ names wrong. While some correct their teachers, others let it slide, due to an acceptance of the consistent mispronunciation.

“It’s very important that we make an effort to [say a name] right,” teacher Stephanie Bellville said. "And I always tell students to correct me, and students will often say, ‘Oh, it’s okay,’ and I [say], ‘No, it’s not, it really is not.’ And I’ve made mistakes before. Sadly, I’ve made the same mistake again at times, but I make an effort to own it and be responsible for it and to do everything that I possibly can to get it right.”

To avoid almost constant mispronunciations, many students will give a different name when they go out to restaurants or order food for pickup. Though this saves them time in the moment, Diwakaran observed the reactions of her family immediately. of workers struggled with name pronunciation didn't introduce someone because they didn't know how to say their name didn't talk to a coworker because they didn't know how to say their name didn't call on someone in a meeting because they didn't know how to say their name

Source: PR Newswire

Scan to see a poem by Ovya Diwakaran about her experience with name mispronunciations

“I noticed that when I [changed my name at a restaurant] once with my mom, she was a little sad because she [said], ‘I gave you this name, and I love this name. And I want you to feel comfortable in this name. And the fact that you change it to make it easier for someone else makes me sad,’” Diwakaran said.

"Ovya" means "God's painting" in Tamil, allowing Diwakaran to connect with her sister Diya, who's name means "God's light."

“This is my name, right?" Diwakaran said. "I was given this name by someone who loves me and it's a beautiful name. And I shouldn't have to change it. But a lot of times, it's just more convenient. But I think it's kind of sad that I change it to be convenient. But I think unfortunately, it's the reality."

Students often view their name as a fundamental aspect of their life and regard the pronunciation of it as essential.

“Your name can be something that's very personal to you,” Breternitz said. “It essentially encapsulates who you are. People should respect others' names because that's basic human decency. If someone has a name, you should say it the right way. You should say it the way they want you to say it. There's nothing gained from disrespecting someone else's name and there’s nothing that can ever be productive.”

Diwakaran feels similarly. She appreciates when others reach out about the pronunciation of her name, rather than assuming and saying it incorrectly.

“You should make an effort to pronounce [my name] right because it might not be something you see all the time but it's part of my identity,” Diwakaran said.

"My full name is Emma June Bangert, and it's the same name as my great-grand- mother. Her husband would call her June Bug, [my nick- name]."

"In Latin, [my name means] 'the road of flowers,' and then in Russian it means 'motherland' and then in Czech it means 'family.'"

"My middle name is Tyrone. I was named after my grandfather. He died before I was born."

What does your name mean to you?

Student perspectives on the meanings of their names

"In Italian and German, [my name] means that you're serious and a money maker, so that means I'm really hardworking, because I do work a lot for all the stuff that I want."

"The word 'Sylvia' means 'woman of the forest,' and I really like that because my mom loves nature, and I've been raised with that value."

"My parents named me Alex because of Alexander the Great, since he did important things. My Chinese name came from [a] Chinese emperor."

illustration by | TAREK AL HUSSEINI