People naming their kids after products.
http://www.suntimes.com/output/lifes...ws-name29.html
Quote:
Look Pepsi, it's your new little sister, Porsche
October 29, 2003 BY ANDREW HERRMANN Staff Reporter
There once was a woman named Pepsi. No, this isn't a limerick. There really was a woman named Pepsi. Cleveland Evans discovered her in Michigan about 20 years ago, a gem in his research of names, namers and namees. Lately, Evans has been getting attention for his analysis of the names of 4 million babies born in 2000, data he got from the Social Security Administration. What fascinates Evans, a psychology professor at Nebraska's Bellevue University, is how many people name their kids after products--often high-end ones. He's found Infinitis and Lexuses, Fantas and Guinnesses, Armanis and Rayons. There were six girls named Cartier, after the watch, 15 Champagnes, after the bubbly and 36 Cateras (a kind of Cadillac). There were 442 girls named Essence, whose mothers may have been inspired by the magazine. For boys, he culled Courvoisier (7), Camry (12), Ronrico (6), Dodge (17) and ESPN. Two of them. One from Texas, one from Michigan. He found 29 kids named Skyy -- a kind of vodka. Six Skyy boys; 23 Skyy girls. Beats the boys name Lavoris. Evans said he helped talk a woman out of naming her girl Tyranny -- "You don't want to name your daughter 'despotic, evil government,' '' he said.
How people name their children is the result of "a combination of culture, personality and social class,'' said Evans. "People who see themselves as creative and avant garde would be more likely to pick unusual names, as you can see by the names Hollywood stars and rock stars pick. Everybody remembers Moon Unit and Dweezil, [singer/producer] Frank Zappa's kids,'' he said. People who are less educated are more likely to use something offbeat, like Cheyenne. The better educated have a fonder connection to history. Some names take a while to get used to. The late actor River Phoenix, whose siblings were named Joaquin, Rain, Liberty and Summer grew to like his distinctive moniker. Shirley Campbell of East 101st Place named her daughter Atari. Not after the computer game, though. The name was inspired by the 1962 John Wayne film Hatari! "She's beginning to like it,'' said Campbell. And how old is her daughter? "Twenty-eight,'' said the mom.
SOME ODD NAMES Evian Infiniti Cartier L'Oreal Darvon Ikea Dodge Jetta Rayon Lexus
What are the chances of any of these parents NOT coming from the ghetto. Courvoisier? Catera? Please.
Well, I guess Filipinos aren't the weirdest "name-givers" on the planet. I'll be sure to tell my girlfriend's nephew Philjay that he's lucky not to be named ESPN.
