By Peter Pavarini
I recently learned how to rename a boat. Last year, a friend of mine purchased a secondhand 42’ SeaRay but didn’t care for the name given to the vessel by the prior owner. Unlike renaming a dog rescued from a local animal shelter, it’s more complicated to change the name of a boat weighing in excess of 5 tons. At the very least, the new owner must adhere to the U.S. Coast Guard’s name and hailing port requirements[i] and apply for a new Certificate of Documentation.
Placating the Sea Gods
My friend explained, however, that these legal requirements are just the beginning of what must be done to rename a boat properly. If a new owner wants to ward off seven years of bad luck (such as a sinking or other maritime accident), he must do some other things to satisfy the sea gods. Admittedly, I haven’t researched this point, but apparently Poseidon’s dominion over the seas preempts federal jurisdiction when someone wishes to rename a boat.
First, the boat’s new owner must remove every item bearing the boat’s previous name, including décor, nameboards, and even life preservers. Then, the former name must be stricken from every written record – including logbooks, maintenance documents and cocktail napkins. Finally, the new owner must write the boat’s old name in water-soluble ink on a metal tag. He must also be careful not to bring any item with the new name onboard the vessel just yet.
After that, there’s a “purging ceremony” in which the boatowner is required to address Poseidon himself by reciting a purging statement (prayer?) at the bow of the boat before tossing the metal tag with the old name into the water. Only after he is certain that the metal tag has come to rest at the bottom of the sea may the supplicant begin the official “renaming ceremony”. At this point, he must ask Poseidon to intervene on the boat’s behalf in seeking the favor of the four wind gods – Boreas, Zephyrus, Notus and Eurus. Once they too have been appeased, then the boatowner and crew are free to celebrate the boat’s renaming with a bottle of champagne.
The Intrinsic Power of a Name
The concept of names having intrinsic power has been a theme in literature and mythology throughout history. It stems from the age-old belief that, by knowing or speaking someone’s true name, you gain some degree of control over that individual’s being. I never knew this also applied to certain inanimate objects, but to ancient mariners, something as amazing as a ship capable of sailing the high seas must have possessed a spirit of its own – a feminine one at that.
Yes, I do believe that a person’s name is much more than a way to distinguish someone from everyone else in the world. Indeed, a person’s name is at the very core of his or her identity. Parents choose names for their newborns for a variety of reasons, most commonly because of family tradition or lineage. As much as first names go in and out of fashion, some classic names seem to have endured because of their special meaning. Often, parents give their children such names in hopes that they will live up to the high standards of those who previously had those names.[ii]
The Durability of a Name
Unless officially changed, a person’s name applies from birth until death and hopefully beyond the grave. As long as someone’s name continues to be mentioned, the memory of that person is never extinguished. Because of that, names allow us to connect with the past, present and future of every person who has ever lived.
In the words of Brazilian author Paulo Coehlo:
“Knowing someone’s name meant knowing that the other person was a human being and not ‘the enemy’. Knowing someone’s name transformed him into a unique and special individual, with a past and a future, with ancestors and probably descendants, a person who has known triumphs and failures. People are their names; they’re proud of them; they repeat them thousands of times in their lifetime and identify with them.”[iii]
Coming Up with the Right Name
The importance of coming up with a name can be traced back to the very dawn of mankind. In Genesis 2:19-20, God gave the first man Adam the right to name every living creature:
“Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.”
King Solomon, said to be the wisest man who ever lived, is credited with valuing a person’s name more than all the riches in the world – and Solomon was believed to be very rich:
“A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.”[iv]
Outside of Judeo-Christian culture, names are equally important. In the Native American tradition, names are considered an important element of tribute. It is a sign of respect to be called by one’s given name; disrespect when failing to do so. When Native Americans were forced to adopt unfamiliar Western names, the loss of their original names has been described as a “knot of sorrow . . . carried like a stone buried in the heart.”[v]
With all due respect to William Shakespeare, Juliet’s legendary line from Romeo and Juliet seems at odds with the philosophy of most esteemed writers:
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell so sweet.”[vi]
Poetic maybe, but not logical if your name is Capulet and your family is feuding with your beloved’s family – the Montagues. In those instances, names are especially important.
Naming Characters in a Book
Every author seeks to find just the right name for a character in a book – typically one that is both memorable and relevant to the story. Just like a book’s preliminary title, the name of a fictional character may remain fluid while his or her role fully develops. On the other hand, some stories take shape around the name of the book’s principal character. In those cases, the power of the protagonist’s name may itself be an element of the book’s plot. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby comes to mind. Toward the end of his 1925 novel, the author revealed that Jay Gatsby’s real name was James Gatz, who was the son of a destitute North Dakota family, not the fabled tycoon he portrayed. This subtle difference in names revealed how Gatsby’s fame and fortune had all been built on illusion.
Until recently, it was common for immigrants coming to America to anglicize their names in order to “fit in” with mainstream culture[vii]. Although immigration officials at Ellis Island frequently did this for them, many of these people welcomed the chance to begin again with a new identity. As the demographic makeup of America has changed, foreign-sounding names and unusual spellings have become more common and in many instances are a plus for those seeking recognition. Nicknames and abbreviated names have always been popular especially among celebrities and those born with rather plain names.[viii]
A Person’s Name Is an Anchor Point
Every person has the potential of making a meaningful contribution to society. No one arrives already wonderful. It takes time, talent and commitment to achieve great things in life. Knowing someone’s name – the way they wish to be recognized – is confirmation that they really matter. Whether their contribution is big or small, it is impossible to recognize achievement without affixing a name to it.
In essence, a name is an anchor point in the development of one’s identity. Like the name of a boat, it cannot be cast aside at whim or purely for the sake of convenience. While a person’s character may continually be re-shaped by circumstances – public and private – an individual’s perception of self-worth remains inextricably tied to his or her name.
[i] E.g., the new name must not be phonetically identical to any obscene, indecent or profane language, or to any racial of ethnic epithets. 46 C.F.R., Sec. 67.123.
[ii] My wife and I will be attending a couples’ shower for our niece who is expecting her first child. One of the games we will be playing is coming up 52 names – one boy name and one girl name for each letter of the alphabet. Imagine going through life named Xenia or Xander!
[iii] The Winner Stands Alone, Harper One Books, 2009
[iv] Proverbs 22:1.
[v] Robin Wall Kimmerer quoted in “The Seemingly Small Act of Knowing People’s Name Can Make a Big Difference”, www.zingermanscommunity.com/author/ARI/, July 1, 2021.
[vi] Romeo & Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2.
[vii] Rajat Panwar, “Why Getting Someone’s Name Right Matters”, Harvard Business Review, January 11, 2022.
[viii] Sean Jean Combs is a good example of the power carried by a name. The discredited rapper has gone by “Diddy”, “P. Diddy”, “Puff Daddy” and “Bad Boy” at different stages of his career, but few members of the public knew it was actually Sean Jean Combs who had become the infamous entertainment mogul.
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