General Chat

Caroline .......... that reminds me of OH's two surnames!

My father-in-law was given a second forename ....... his mother's surname. When he came to open a business in the 1930s, there was another business in the town trading under his surname, so f-i-l added his second name to his surname as a distinguishing factor so that nothing would go to the wrong place..

After that, he soon became called Mr X Y in his private life as well .............. not hyphenated.

Of course, X Y was extended to his wife and then to his children.

We always used to know when anyone was contacting us that they were from the home town if they addressed us as Mr & Mrs X Y

Luckily, there is almost no-one left now who knew OH under that double surname. ;-)

My late father in law was known by his middle name in Quebec and his first name in Ontario...only because his uncle first name was the same as his and he lived in their house so to save any confusion he sued his middle name. We always knew where people knew him from by which name they used.

My kids all have two names and they hear the full name when I'm mad at them :-D

When my daughter was born, we gave her 2 names intending that she should be called by the second one, for some silly reason that I now cannot recall.

Those were the names that were put on her hospital name tags, and I pretty soon found out that the nurses were all calling her by the first name. It didn't matter how many times I called her by her second, they insisted on using the first.

By the 3rd day, I decided that was enough. Luckily OH had not yet gone to register her birth officially, so we changed the names around so that the first name became the second name and that is on her birth certificate..

We always used her full name when talking to or about her, as I still do .............. except when we were out in public and we needed to shout loudly for her. Then we used the first initial only.

When it came time to get her graduating year jacket with name on one of the sleeves, she opted to use only the initial. All her friends put their favoured name in full, but daughter used only her initial.

Saying that initial out loud can also sound like a name, but she never ever responded to anyone who she didn't know or whose voice she didn't recognise who called her by that "name".

Her husband began calling her by a shortened version of her name when they first got serious, though he insists on not having his name shortened.

So she now has 2 names within the family!

When I used to visit many primary schools and had to call the register, I was always glad of the chance to have a quick read-through in case there were any unusual names.

I remember one time, when I thought I was well prepared when I came across Sian.
With partly Welsh heritage, I thought I had that sorted, but No, it turned out she was pronounced Cee-Ann.

I have a nephew who actually changed his first name...same pronunciation, but entirely different spelling.

He was Paul and legally changed to Porle :-S

I only have one forename, but am different names to people I know.

Family and people I knew before I married address me by my full forename.

My husband started calling me by an abbreviated form of that name, so many people now call me by that name. Some people vary it a bit and change it to Gwen. I do answer to that, but can't bring myself to sign myself that way, so come Christmas cards or whatever, I have to remember who I am to the various people and sign cards appropriately.

My sister-in-law has always been known by her middle name. Her brothers used their first names.

Not only was my dad known by his second name, my sister has a 'double barelled' forename, say Mary-Ann, but is known as Mary, and one of my brothers is known by one and all as Gerry - which isn't his name at all! :-S

Strange isn't it which of our names we are known by if we have more than one forename.

I've just seen a post on another thread about the publicity shy Royal couple and how the young lady likes to be known by her second forename.

Both my brother and myself have two forenames. He has always been known by his middle name and I've always been called by my first name.

Both of our children have a first and middle name, but both have always been known by their first names.

Mind you, for many years I thought that my real name was 'Hey, You!' :-S :-D