From the NYT:
Freshman Jacquizz Rodgers ran for 186 yards and two touchdowns, and Oregon State built an early lead and held on for a 27-21 upset victory over top-ranked Southern California on Thursday night.
I believe in Sweden there's a law that all newborns' names must be chosen from an approved list.
No, there's no list, but there is a committee that will refuse to approve the name if you decide your little darling should be called Turdblossom Bernadotte or Mutually Assured Destruction Hammarskjöld.
ReplyDeleteJacquizz or LaDainian would probably pass muster. Actually, Turdblossom might, too, unless they know what turd means.
I know a couple who battled with them because they wanted to give their kid the middle name Mig. Like the Palins, this couple claimed it was Norwegian, while the committee reasonably objected that it might be burdensome to be named after a Soviet fighter jet. The couple eventually got their way.
By the way, the Swedes keep quite good statistics on baby's names. They can be found in English here. The SCB is the national statistical agency.
ReplyDeleteYea, soon they'll only have Dhimmi names on that list. Europeans are going to PC themselves into Islam.
ReplyDeleteActually Mohammed is now the second-most popular boys name in the UK according to our Office for National Statistics.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23428641-details/Mohammed+now+second+most+popular+boys'+name+in+Britain/article.do
In England last week I heard a pregnant teenager (White) on her mobile phone discussing what to call her kid. Whether it was a boy or girl she was going with Tiana, the only question was whether to have an apostrophe somewhere - probably before the 'I', but maybe after it.
ReplyDeleteIt's like really hard to make these names up!
Names were once intended to place you in a specific community and culture, these nu-names are intended to NOT place the child in a specific community.
Virtual names for virtual lives. And T'iana was computer-generated, literally: she'd found it on the internet, of course.
In Catholic countries back in the good old days, you were only allowed to choose names from the Bible or from the calendar of Saints' names. There was no shortage of odd names in those if you were into it, but at least there was a limit to what you could name your children after.
ReplyDeleteNow pretty much anything is allowed as long as it's not profane or demeaning.
If you ask me, typical US "Black" names now in vogue ARE demeaning. What was wrong with Jack and Jill?
Yeah, and relatedly, I don't think anyone is allowed to run that fast in Sweden either.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter and I sometimes have a laugh looking at the results of the 100 and 200 meter dash in her local track meets.
ReplyDeleteTwo stories I've head, both true:
There was a girl in Alabama named Latrina.
My sister's ex-boyfriend's sister once worked as a special ed teacher in Detroit, and there was a girl in her class named Female (pronounced with two long e's, accent on the second syllable) Jackson (I'm not sure of the last name). The sister/teacher always wondered why they gave their daughter that name, and finally got the chance to ask when the mother showed up at a PTA meeting. The mother replied, "We didn't name her that, the hospital did. When she came back from the birthin' room, they had already put a plastic band around her wrist with that name on it."
I hope they approve of the good old names - Eric Bloodaxe, that sort of thing.
ReplyDeleteSimilarly, they don't let you run that fast in Sweden either. God bless America!
ReplyDeleteSwitzerland and France have lists of approved names, I haven't heard anything about a Swedish list before.
ReplyDeleteYea, soon they'll only have Dhimmi names on that list.
ReplyDeleteLike a man on another blog who claimed he never eats halal food, this comment is an example of someone who repeats words without knowing what they mean. As it is, there are only two distinctively Islamic names on the 2007 boys' list, #72 and #95, and none on the girls' list.
I wonder whether Jacquizz's parents were fans of Shakespeare, because the name of the character Jacques in - can't remember which play - is pronounced in 2 syllables, more or less like the name here (i.e jay-queez).
ReplyDeleteDoes Jacquizz rhyme with Wack Jizz?
ReplyDeletewell, for all our complaining at least our immigrants are Christian. It may simply be thanking God for small favors, but I'd rather the most popular boy's name be Juan than Mohammed.
ReplyDeleteLooks like Mohammed is #71 in 2007, up from #72 in 2006.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's not too late for Sweden if they shut off the floodgates NOW.
Not ten years from now.
Compare: Explosive, super-secret Toronto demography report
The funniest inner city names I've seen with my own eyes were Tequila and Toshiba. Think for a moment about the kind of mother who would call her child Tequila. There was also a Sha-qui-qui. I've only heard of Latrina from others, I haven't seen that myself.
ReplyDeleteFrom the Wikipedia entry on Kobe Bean Bryant:
"His parents named him after the famous beef of Kobe, Japan, which they saw on a restaurant menu."
Among others things, ghetto names tell us about the primacy of ethnocentrism above most other considerations in the minds of people who haven't been extensively, expensively brainwashed to reject it. This primacy is the natural human condition. Jacquizz Rodgers would have probably derived some tangible benefits in his life if, as a Jack Rodgers, he could have been occasionally confused with a white guy on paper. But his parents chose the "ethnocentric" route anyway. The facts that that's not actually an African name and that it's unintentionally hilarious are beside the point.
I believe the Germans also have a list of permissible names. How boring.
ReplyDeleteBtw, what's the sociobiological explanation for American blacks inventing "colorful" names?
I don't care if his name was *%&$&$-ing $&)*)$-er. Obviously, the thing to be celebrated here is that USC lost.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you'd prefer the Argentinian model as well, where all newborns must be given biblical names.
ReplyDeletefrance is the country where names have to approved.
ReplyDeleteMaybe his mom is a big fan of Shakespeare.
ReplyDelete"Mig" is a pronoun in Swedish and Norwegian, so however you slice it, it's a bit of an odd name.
ReplyDeletethe funniest ghetto name, at least in big time sports, had to be Simian Rice (tampa bay linebacker). Can you imagine naming a black kid Simian?
ReplyDeleteThe French state used to exploit its list of approved names to prohibit Breton names.
ReplyDeleteBtw, what's the sociobiological explanation for American blacks inventing "colorful" names?
ReplyDeleteIt follows Rushton's continuum. Blacks are the most individualistic: NE Asians the least. At the other end of the spectrum you have all those Asian-American females named Lisa, Tina, and Amy.
the funniest ghetto name, at least in big time sports, had to be Simian Rice (tampa bay linebacker). Can you imagine naming a black kid Simian?
ReplyDeleteIt's funny indeed, but at least it's spelled differently: "Simeon".
"Simeon" is a real name from way back. There are various St. Simeons.
ReplyDeleteIn Hungary there is also a list for approved names by the Hungarian state to ensure appropriate Hungarian-ness.
ReplyDeleteIronically, the most commonly used Hungarian names are NOT Finno-Ugric in origin -- but Hungarianized versions of common Judeo-Christian names. Most Hungarians do not realize this.
Some real tribal Hungarian names:
Bendegúz
Álmos
These tend not be very popular in general, but there has been a trend to revive some of these names.
Hungarianized version of Christian name:
István = Steven
Ferenc = Francis/Frank/Franz
BTW Hungarian gypsies for some reason have been known to name some of their kids 'Britni' as in Britney Spears (Szpírs).
When I worked at a fabric shop in North Charleston in 2000, I met a 15-year-old with a baby girl. I can't remember the first name, it was ghetto, but it ended in "Two". The mother and grandmother explained that the young mother was the first "Laquita" or whatever and the baby was "Laquita Two".
ReplyDeletehalfbreed -
ReplyDelete"My sister's ex-boyfriend's sister "? Sounds like a pretty plausible source. However, my girlfriend at the time told me that story as a joke 20-some-odd years ago.
http://www.snopes.com/racial/language/names.asp
Doubting Thomas -- I met my sister's boyfriend (who struck me as credible), but I never met his sister, but it was told to me as a true story. I guess I can't swear it's true. And the fact that you heard it as a joke does make it seem less likely. Maybe I shouldn't be so credulous.
ReplyDeleteI keep a list of this stuff, from customer databases and other sources I have access to.
ReplyDeleteMy top specimens so far are "Cecretia" and "Ladrecka." No s---.
Btw, the david who commented about running isn't me. He or she should use "david two." LOL
""Mig" is a pronoun in Swedish and Norwegian, so however you slice it, it's a bit of an odd name."
ReplyDeleteNot quite, "mig" is a pronoun (me) in Swedish and Danish, usually pronounced 'may' and 'my' in the standard languages.
The Norwegian equivalent is 'meg' (most commonly pronounced 'my' or 'Meg' depending on dialect - there is no real standard form for spoken Norwegian).
In Finland there is an approved list of names, but sticking to it is not mandatory.
ReplyDeleteGiven that a fair proportion of white Americans are naming their children after consumer brands like "Magnum" or "Lexus" or "Del Monte", the name "jacquizz" seems just about par for the overall course. Some white folks even name their kids things like "Moon Unit", or name them after cities like "Paris" or "Dallas". What next, "Hoboken" Hilton? I have no love for so-called "ebonic" names either, but our "free market" naming system seems better on the balance than gubment bureaucrats getting involved. That seems to be the case in parts of Europe.
ReplyDelete"Paris" as a name has quite a long pedigree. Ever read "Romeo and Juliet"?
ReplyDelete