Finnish names in the late 1800s. Image: Severin Falkman (1880) / Museovirasto, Musketti / Yle

Finland will update name laws at the start of 2019 to provide residents with a wider range of options for their own names as well as their children’s. The new laws will create more space for foreign-background names and families. First names will no longer have to conform to Finnish tradition. That said, many foreign-background names that have become widespread as a result of immigration already comply with Finnish naming practice.

But civil servants will still regulate name-giving in Finland to some degree. Last year, the names committee maintained by the Ministry of Justice nixed parents’ plans to name baby boys Alcapone, Enikko, Monck, Weicca, and Topelius. Officials also shut down Poon, Wolf, Fafnir, Marj-Linn, Paulii, and Tuhka (’ash’) for girls.

The association asks Jean-Paul Durand, mayor of Villers-sur-Mer, to rename the rue Saucisse the “rue Soycisse”. (© Pays d’Auge)

In Dordogne, France, the animal rights organization, PETA, has petitioned the local mayor to alter the name of a main street in the medieval village. According to PETA, the street currently known as “Rue de la Saucisse” (Sausage Street) should be changed to something less offensive to animal-lovers.  What was initially viewed by public officials as a joke has now sparked considerable controversy. Interestingly, according to some townspeople, the place name was actually inspired by the nickname given to a long-deceased villager who carried the moniker “Saucisse” with pride.

The group has officially requested that the town’s mayor steps in and renames it “Rue de la Soycisse” after soy, a common ingredient in vegan meals. Unfortunately for PETA, the request has already been poo-pooed by Mayor of Issigeac Jean-Claude Castagner. Castagner told Le Parisien that he initially thought the letter from PETA had been sent as a “gag”, but “after checking, I realized that it was an official [request].”

From 1990 to 1994, the North Korean government exhumed and returned the remains of US American soldiers who had died during the war. Those remains were placed in 208 boxes. According to Department of Defense officials, as many as 400 different soldiers may be represented in those boxes.  For decades now, military forensic scientists have been attempting to identify the names and identities of these Missing in Action/Prisoners of War.  A crucial key to unlocking this mystery has not only been the use of DNA technology, but the recovery of an incredible list of MIA/POWS who died while being held captive.  Composed in secret by a surviving POW John Johnson, this list contains the names of 496 fellow soldiers. In a project called Finding the Families, researchers are using this onomastic data to help finally put a name to soldiers who valiantly fought and died while serving their nation. To date, military officials estimate that more than 7,800 US American soldiers from the Korean War remain unaccounted for. Click here to view the names on the “Johnnie Johnson List” or to learn more about the government’s continuing efforts to locate the names of Korean War POW/MIAs.

“What’s in a Name?” is a new original YouTube series from 1623 Studios in partnership with the Gloucester Historical Commission. On this episode, Mary Ellen Lepionka explains the history behind place names on Cape Ann and their Algonquian roots. Mary Ellen is an independent scholar researching the history of Cape Ann from the last Ice Age to around 1750 for a book on the subject and is a trustee of the Massachusetts Archaeological Society and co-chair of the Gloucester Historical Commission. Visit her website at www.capeannhistory.org and view the video below!

Avery, Bruce, Carter, and Diego, Vaughn, Wesley, Xyler, and Ulmer. What do all of these names have in common? According to the Weather Channel, these names are on the list of Winter Storm Names 2018-2019. The names will be used in alphabetical order to identify winter storms that meet objective naming criteria based on National Weather Service winter storm warnings, blizzard warnings and ice storm warnings. Want to see the other names on the list? Check out more information at the Weather Channel!

In Cincinnati, Ohio, if you happen to travel down “Fox Street” and then take a sharp turn to the right, a few years ago, you might have found yourself on a short byway named “Coon Street”.  Given the proximity to “Fox Street”, it may well be that the intersecting street was simply given a completely tame animal name: Coon as in Raccoon. However, the origin of the mysterious place name might, of course, be completely different.  Despite research conducted by the Cincinnati Committee of Names, the source of the toponym remains unclear.  The long-standing federal mandate to avoid public derogatory place names is nevertheless quite clear.  For this reason, the City Planning Commission has announced that it will take steps to replace this street name with something less offensive. Check out this article at the Enquirer at Cincinnati.com to learn more!

©Bud Boccone 2014

What do the following names have in common: St. Bernard of Menthon, Louis Dobermann, Parson Jack Russell, and King Charles II? If you answered they are all names of famous people, you are correct. If you answered that they are all names of famous dog breeds, you are also right! There are four more AKC breeds named for real-life people, and another named for a fictional character. Can you name them?