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A rose by any other name would not be a rose.

Sure, it would smell as sweet, but would it still retain it’s significance? 

Could the rose have blossomed into the token of love that it is, had it been named something less attractive?  What if the lovely rose had been called a kelminet?  Would the same flower with a different name have been as celebrated?  Of course it’s hard to say, but I wonder.

In some cases, a name helps build the brand.  Sometimes the name almost is the brand: Lincoln, Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., Steve Jobs, Mother Teresa.  In other cases, the name is completely arbitrary.  Apollo 13 conjures up immediate images, even thought the name itself is just one of a series.  The same can be said of 9/11.  There had been and will continue to be September 11’s, but refer to that date in context and no further explanation is necessary to clarify which 9/11 you mean.

What about your name?  Does it say anything about who you are, or is it not important to you at all?

(I was able to ask Jon Acuff this Query, and his answer is included on the next page.  How cool am I is that?  And yes, I’m totally name dropping right now.)

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2 Comments Post a comment
  1. I always liked my name, Angela, because no one else had that name when I was a kid. I could never find key chains or bike plates with my name back then, it was that uncommon. My mom named me after a girl on American Bandstand. All my close friends called me “Angie” in grade school, and that was kind of cool, too, to have a nickname. Now I know quite a few other Angelas (all younger) and it bothers me to have to share my name after so many years of having it to myself.

    September 27, 2012
    • I know one other Angela, and we called her Angie, too. I like both of those names, but I have a special fondness for “Angie”. I can’t imagine why, but I just do. I also can’t imagine not finding it on key chains and such. I totally remember looking for my name on all of that stuff when I was younger, though!

      It’s funny to hear you say that you feel like you are sharing Your name with those other Angelas! But I really, really understand – completely! My best friend in first grade was also named Michelle, so I got used to that early. But there is an author Michelle, with my last name (which is not that common, really) and when I found that out, I was a little irritated. It’s like she got my life or something!! Sheesh.

      September 27, 2012

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