Can you guess what Google will fill once you start typing in the search bar? There is a category devoted entirely to names. Test your knowledge, Family Feud style.
About Names
About Names: Cameron journeys from the Highlands to Hollywood
Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. This recent column explores Cameron.… Read More
Why we change our names
About 22,000 Canadians change their names each year. This article about changed names, discusses the many issues behind an individual’s decision to go through this bureaucratic process. The author interviews both Diane Dechief, former vice-president of the Canadian Society for the Study of Names, and Dr. Iman Nick, president of the American Name Society.
Names exhibit in Nashville, TN explores identity and prejudice
Donna Woodley’s pop-up exhibition “What’s in a Name?” explores African-American identity and the prejudices in today’s society through names. Why should names like Sarah and Elizabeth be recognized and acceptable spellings by spell-checkers when LaKeisha and Shanica are not?
This event is at Fond Object, 1313 McGavock Pike, Nashville, TN 37216 through October 8th.
Cartographers’ Guild Discussion Forum on Toponymy and Lingustics
Interested in discussing all things related to maps, map makers, and place names? Then check out the Cartographers’ Guild and its discussion forum “Toponymy and Linguistics.”
Culinary Onomastics
They call em aubergines, courgettes, and haricot beans. We call em eggplants, zucchini, and navy beans. Which names came first? Why is there such a difference between food names in British and American English? Check out the Oxford Dictionaries’ answers to these and other onomastic culinary conundrums.
Zooborns.com – Animal Naming Contests
There might be websites that are cuter, but probably not many. At zooborns.com, visitors can catch the latest news (plus adorable photos) of baby animals born in the zoos and aquariums around the world. The site also provides details about special contests (past and present) run by zoo officials looking for new names for their bundles of joy. For example, visitors to the site can read all about the naming of the Asiatic Lion cub triplets, Kali, Sita, and Sonika in Great Britain’s Cotswold Wildlife Park. Some of the most recent fur babies who are looking for a name include a baby Bonobo born in the Jacksonville Zoo (USA), a wildcat kitten born in Chester Zoo (Scotland), and a female European lynx kitten born in Zoo Wroclaw (Poland).
Test your knowledge of Marvel character names
If you are into science fiction and fantasy, chances are you have already heard of Blade, Captain America, Daredevil, Deadpool, Ghost Rider, the Green Goblin, and the Silver Surfer. But how about the names Squirrel Girl, X-23, Cable, Kitty Pryde, Gambit, and Emma Frost? Test your knowledge of Marvel character names!
Cognitive Toponymy Project
The Royal Society of Edinburgh has initiated an innovative scientific project to investigate how place names are used to help people conceptualize space in Western Europe. The collaborative project involves three of the world’s universities: Glasgow, Copenhagen, and St. Andrews. Read more about the Cognitive Toponymy Project.
6 Disproportionately Common Names By Profession
Are names indicative of our professions? Verdant Labs put together a chart of the disproportionately common names in each of a wide variety of professions.