Images

“Codex Sassoon” Sells for $38.1 Million

A page of Codex Sassoon (Photo by Ardon Bar-Hama, Public Domain)
A page of Codex Sassoon (Photo by Ardon Bar-Hama, Public Domain)

According to an article in USA Today, a 1,100 year-old copy of the Hebrew Bible has been auctioned for $38.1 million. Named for David Solomon Sassoon, a collector of Judaica and ancient manuscripts who purchased the codex in 1929, Codex Sassoon is considered one of the earliest complete copies of the Hebrew Bible. The buyer was a group known as the American Friends of the ANU Museum of the Jewish People; they plan to donate the codex to the museum in Tel Aviv.

Read more about the codex and its namesake over at USA Today.

Introducing the George Washington University “Revolutionaries”

A Bust of George Washington at GWU (Photo: Public Domain)
A Bust of George Washington at GWU (Photo: Public Domain)

According to a report in The Washington Post, the George Washington University Colonials are now the George Washington University Revolutionaries. The “Colonials” was a moniker that University leaders and students alike “deemed divisive and dated during a recent period of racial and social reckoning”. Nick Anderson writes, “Revolutionaries, tying to Washington’s role as a military leader in the American Revolution, is GWU’s first new nickname since Colonials was adopted in 1926. In the past few years, Colonials fell out of favor because the moniker was seen as a proxy for European imperialism, offensive to Indigenous peoples in the United States and elsewhere. Many non-White students, in particular, did not identify with the nickname.”

Read more over at The Washington Post.

“Swastika Mountain” Renamed Mt. Halo

Calapooya Mountains from Fairview Peak Lookout, Umpqua National Forest, Oregon (Photo: US Forest Service, Public Domain)
Calapooya Mountains from Fairview Peak Lookout, Umpqua National Forest, Oregon (Photo: US Forest Service, Public Domain)

“Swastika Mountain”, located Western Oregon’s Umpqua National Forest, was recently renamed “Mt. Halo”. According to an article on NPR, the change was a move supported by local residents. Though the swastika symbol and name belonged to a long-defunct cattle ranch in the area active in the early 1900’s (and the Sanskrit term dates back “as far back as 7,000 years and means good fortune or well-being”), residents believed the name acquired new meaning in the 20th century and was therefore no longer appropriate. The new name, Mount Halo, honors Chief Halito of the Yoncalla Kalapuya tribe.

Read more over at NPR.

About Names: Dr. Evans on the Top Baby Names of 2022

Photo of a newborn (Photo by Kimberly Vardeman, CC-BY-2.0)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his May 21st column, he discusses the top baby names of 2022.

On May 12, the Social Security Administration released the United States’ top baby names of 2022.

On SSA’s lists, Liam and Olivia were first, as they have since 2019.

SSA counts every spelling separately. I add together spellings pronounced the same, creating lists I believe more accurately show popularity.

When alternative spellings like Jaxon were added, Jackson was first from 2013 through 2020. In 2021, Liam beat Jackson for No. 1 for the first time. In 2022, Jackson declined again, allowing Noah to take second spot.

Liam and Noah are international baby name stars. Both rank in the top 10 in Switzerland, Sweden, Quebec, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland and Argentina. Noah’s also No. 1 in both England and Germany.

After Jackson, the rest of my 2022 male top 10 were Oliver, Elijah, Mateo, Lucas, Aiden, James and Luca. Mateo and Luca knocked Grayson and William back to 11th and 12th.

Mateo, the Spanish form of Matthew, rose 8.3%, jumping to sixth from 12th. Mateo got a boost back in 2015 when it was given to the baby on “Jane the Virgin.” Its rise shows the influence of Latin American culture on baby names in the United States. Mateo’s now No. 1 in Chile and Argentina, and No. 2 in Mexico.

Last year Santiago was No. 1 in Mexico. Santiago increased 19.8% here last year, third quickest rise among the top 100.

Luca rose 9.1% to reach the top 10, after soaring 37% in 2021. Luca’s the Italian and Romanian form of Luke, with Luka the same in Balkan Slavic languages.

Want to learn more? Read on to learn more about the top baby names of 2022!

Tasmanian Devils and Trademarks

Tasmanian Devil (Photo by Vassil, CC0 1.0, Public Domain)
Tasmanian Devil (Photo by Vassil, CC0 1.0, Public Domain)

A recent article in The Wall Street Journal explores the tricky subject of a familiar trademark of the tasmanian devil. The trademark is especially contentious for residents of Tasmania, including those who might want to name their sports teams after the local marsupial. Mike Cherney writes about the problem:

“Warner Bros., owner of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and other Looney Tunes personalities, has its teeth in more than a half-dozen trademarks in Australia linked to its Tasmanian devil cartoon character, often called Taz. Officials with the Australian Football League—the major league for Aussie rules football, which involves kicking a ball through uprights on a giant oval field—are concerned about legal issues with pursuing a Devils moniker because of those trademarks.”

Read more about this trademark issue over at The Wall Street Journal.

Call for Book Chapter Proposals: “Chosen, Bestowed, Acquired, Assigned: Names and Naming in Youth Literature”

“Children’s Literature” (Photo by Shambhavi Karapurkar, CC-BY-4.0)

Call for Book Chapter Proposals

Chosen, Bestowed, Acquired, Assigned: Names and Naming in Youth Literature

Edited by I. M. Nick and Anne W. Anderson

Just as names are among the first and most basic means by which we order and make sense of our world, so too do names in works of literature help readers order and make sense of created worlds. Moreover, names in literature often connote more than they denote. This edited collection will consider how names, depictions of naming practices, and explorations of name theory in youth literature can enrich our understanding of created worlds and, by implication, of our real world. For the purposes of this collection, we draw on the Children’s Literature Association’s conception of literature as “books, films, and other media created for, or adopted by, children and young adults around the world, past, present, and future” (https://www.childlitassn.org).

Chapters proposed for this volume might address names, naming, and name theory in youth literature of any media and/or modality, from any perspective, and using the analytical tools of any discipline. From the names of places, people, animals, and plants to the monikers of fairies and goblins, cyborgs and droids, any type of name from any time period or from any language is welcome. Please see the American Name Society’s glossary of naming terminology (https://www.americannamesociety.org/names/). The primary works examined may be fiction or non-fiction. The only subject-matter stipulation for submission is that the primary intended reading audience of the piece(s) of literature investigated must be youth (i.e., children, adolescents, and/or early adults).

The following is a partial list of possible topics, but we also welcome being surprised by other pertinent suggestions.

  • Names as chosen, bestowed, acquired, assigned, or self-selected
  • Naming practices, rites, rituals, and regulations and their implications
  • Literary devices or linguistic mechanisms used in creating names and their implications
  • Questions of unnaming and renaming of people, places, and things
  • Questions of names and identity, self-hood, and socio-cultural connection
  • Names as constructions of normal vs. abnormal, good vs. evil, acceptable vs. anathema
  • Theoretical frameworks for analyzing names in youth literature and media
  • Challenges and strategies for translating names
  • Names of the non-human, inhuman, mechanical, and systemic and their implications
  • Names in galaxies far, far away and in subatomic systems
  • Names as markers of political, ideological, historical controversies
  • Nonsensical names and/or memetic names and their implications
Proposal Submission Process

  • Abstract proposals (max. 500 words, excluding the title and references) should be sent as a PDF email attachment to Dr. Anne W. Anderson (YouthLit2023@gmail.com).
  • For organizational purposes, the proposals must include “YOUTHLIT2023” in the subject line of the email.
  • All proposals must include an abstract, a title, and a preliminary list of references.
  • The full name(s) of the author(s) and the author(’s’) affiliation(s) must appear in the body of the email. These details should NOT appear in the attached proposal.
  • In the case of multi-authored submissions, one person must be clearly identified as the primary contact.
  • The DEADLINE for proposal submissions is July 15, 2023. All proposals will be submitted to a double-blind review process. Authors will be notified about acceptance on or before September 15, 2023.
  • Final chapters (max. 7,000 words, excluding abstracts and references) will be due March 15, 2024.

For further information about this call, please feel free to contact Dr. Anne W. Anderson (YouthLit2023@gmail.com). We look forward to receiving your proposals!

Call for Book Chapter Proposals: “Names, Naming, Gender, Sex, and Sexuality”

Call for Book Chapter Proposals

Names, Naming, Gender, Sex, and Sexuality

Edited by I. M. Nick and Sharon N. Obasi

Recent years have seen a significant increase in public awareness of and sensitivity towards the diversity of individual and group identities where gender, sex, and sexuality are concerned. These developments have also been accompanied by the introduction of many new names for individuals and groups to label these developments. At the same time, in many places around the world, there has been a marked backlash against recognizing the complexity of identity where gender, sex, and sexuality-are concerned. These counter movements have also been marked by onomastic developments. The current call is for book chapters that specifically explore the interplay between names, naming, gender, sex, and sexuality. Possible subjects to be explore include, but are by no means limited to the following:

  1. Law and regulations governing the personal names of individuals by gender, sex, and sexuality
  2. Names for diverse individual and group identities (e.g., cis, trans, bi, LGBTQ+).
  3. Naming customs in cultures that recognize three or more genders
  4. National and international trends in gendered names and naming
  5. Naming, gender and artificial intelligence bots, virtual assistants, etc.
  6. Inferring gender based on phonology (phonoonomastics)
  7. Researching names and gender: perspectives on compliance and integrity
  8. Naming and gender policies in education
  9. Names and gender in advertising and health messaging
  10. Historical and/or cross-cultural investigations into (in)official names for gender and sex

Proposal Submission Process

  • Abstract proposals (max. 500 words, excluding the title and references) should be sent as a PDF email attachment to Professor I. M. Nick (nameseditor@gmail.com)
  • For organizational purposes, the proposals must include “Gender2023” in the subject line of the email
  • All proposals must include an abstract, title, and a preliminary list of references;
  • The full name(s) of the author(s); the author(’s’) affiliation(s) must appear in the body of the email. These details should NOT appear in the attached proposal.
  • In the case of multi-authored submission, one person must be clearly designated as the primary contact
  • The DEADLINE for proposal submissions is August 15, 2023. All proposals will be submitted to a double-blind review process. Authors will be notified about acceptance on or by September 15, 2023
  • Final chapters (max 7,000 words, excluding abstracts and references) will be due April 15, 2024

For further information about this call, please feel free to contact Professor I. M. Nick (nameseditor@gmail.com). We look forward to receiving your proposals!

Call for Book Chapter Proposals: “Chosen, Bestowed, Acquired, Assigned: Names and Naming in Youth Literature”

“Children’s Literature” (Photo by Shambhavi Karapurkar, CC-BY-4.0)

Call for Book Chapter Proposals

Chosen, Bestowed, Acquired, Assigned: Names and Naming in Youth Literature

Edited by I. M. Nick and Anne W. Anderson

Just as names are among the first and most basic means by which we order and make sense of our world, so too do names in works of literature help readers order and make sense of created worlds. Moreover, names in literature often connote more than they denote. This edited collection will consider how names, depictions of naming practices, and explorations of name theory in youth literature can enrich our understanding of created worlds and, by implication, of our real world. For the purposes of this collection, we draw on the Children’s Literature Association’s conception of literature as “books, films, and other media created for, or adopted by, children and young adults around the world, past, present, and future” (https://www.childlitassn.org).

Chapters proposed for this volume might address names, naming, and name theory in youth literature of any media and/or modality, from any perspective, and using the analytical tools of any discipline. From the names of places, people, animals, and plants to the monikers of fairies and goblins, cyborgs and droids, any type of name from any time period or from any language is welcome. Please see the American Name Society’s glossary of naming terminology (https://www.americannamesociety.org/names/). The primary works examined may be fiction or non-fiction. The only subject-matter stipulation for submission is that the primary intended reading audience of the piece(s) of literature investigated must be youth (i.e., children, adolescents, and/or early adults).

The following is a partial list of possible topics, but we also welcome being surprised by other pertinent suggestions.

  • Names as chosen, bestowed, acquired, assigned, or self-selected
  • Naming practices, rites, rituals, and regulations and their implications
  • Literary devices or linguistic mechanisms used in creating names and their implications
  • Questions of unnaming and renaming of people, places, and things
  • Questions of names and identity, self-hood, and socio-cultural connection
  • Names as constructions of normal vs. abnormal, good vs. evil, acceptable vs. anathema
  • Theoretical frameworks for analyzing names in youth literature and media
  • Challenges and strategies for translating names
  • Names of the non-human, inhuman, mechanical, and systemic and their implications
  • Names in galaxies far, far away and in subatomic systems
  • Names as markers of political, ideological, historical controversies
  • Nonsensical names and/or memetic names and their implications
Proposal Submission Process

  • Abstract proposals (max. 500 words, excluding the title and references) should be sent as a PDF email attachment to Dr. Anne W. Anderson (YouthLit2023@gmail.com).
  • For organizational purposes, the proposals must include “YOUTHLIT2023” in the subject line of the email.
  • All proposals must include an abstract, a title, and a preliminary list of references.
  • The full name(s) of the author(s) and the author(’s’) affiliation(s) must appear in the body of the email. These details should NOT appear in the attached proposal.
  • In the case of multi-authored submissions, one person must be clearly identified as the primary contact.
  • The DEADLINE for proposal submissions is July 15, 2023. All proposals will be submitted to a double-blind review process. Authors will be notified about acceptance on or before September 15, 2023.
  • Final chapters (max. 7,000 words, excluding abstracts and references) will be due March 15, 2024.

For further information about this call, please feel free to contact Dr. Anne W. Anderson (YouthLit2023@gmail.com). We look forward to receiving your proposals!

Publication: “Perspectives on Latter-day Saint Names and Naming” (Routledge, 2023)

A new edited volume on names and naming in the Mormon church was published by Routledge on 29 March 2023. The volume, titled Perspectives on Latter-day Saint Names and Naming and edited by Dallin D. Oaks, Paul Baltes, and Kent Minson, “approaches cultural, historical, and doctrinal dimensions of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through a fresh lens that explores how these dimensions intersect with names and naming.”

Included in the edited volume is a chapter by ANS past president Cleveland Evans, titled “Contemporary Latter-day Saint Naming”. Evans is interviewed about the project in a Deseret News article, saying “I have been interested in given names since I was myself a child, and have previously done research on how African American names and Hispanic names differ from those of non-Hispanic whites, as well as some work on how naming patterns differ across social class in the United States.” Read more about the project over at Deseret News on Yahoo.

Evans is also interviewed by BYU News, where he speaks about the project and his primary research question: “Are Latter-day Saint children’s names really distinctive?” In his response, Evans says “The kernel of truth in the idea that Latter-day Saint parents favor unusual names is that while the huge majority of Utah parents use the same names as the rest of the country, enough favor unusual names that people will remember it. As a psychologist, I know that vivid and striking things will often distort people’s memories so that we think unusual examples are more common than they are.” Read more over at BYU News.

The book is available now from Routledge.