Friday, August 13, 2010

Stuck in The Middle


So the other day, I was fussing at my daughter. “Cricket Marie! Get out of the toilet bowl!”

Ahem, yes I’ve managed to give my sweet furry little girl a middle name.

That got me to thinking about middle names. The origins, the stories behind them. Mine is, as you might surmise Marie. This reflects my Catholic heritage when it was common (whispers) back in the 60’s to honor the Blessed Virgin by giving your daughter a variation of her name: Marie, Mary, Marion etc.

It has a good ring to it. “Joan Marie get your chin away from that hot cookie sheet!” Um, despite the exhortation from my mother, I didn’t and have vivid memories of the burn on my 4 yo chin and the great big Band-Aid on it.

Middle names did not begin until the late Middle Ages and not with English speakers until the 1600’s. As you can imagine with most history, the practice started among the aristocracy. In America middle names gained popularity after the American Revolution in, the South. “Fannie Mae, would ya’ll pass those biscuits please.” The enlistment form for World War I was the first form to provide space for a middle name.

The source of middle names began with lineage connections…great grandfathers, favorite aunts, rich relations. Many women took their maiden names as their middle names. This is the case our own Suz who can trace the practice in her family back to the 1800’s

Eventually, bestowing middle names became a way to differentiate people as the population increased where in any given area you may have fifteen “John Smiths”. So now you had “John William, John Davis, and maybe a John Jacob Gingleheimer Schmidt. Soon doing so became a custom and people drifted from familial monikers to names of people they admired.

So here’s a short quiz.

1. This new teenage idol’s middle name is Drew
2. His sister may have been reincarnated but Henry Beatty goes by this middle name.
3. Suave and debonair James Niven is known by this name.
4. She served hot dogs to the Queen of England…that Anna Roosevelt.
5. Christopher…not a very swashbuckling middle name for this popular pirate.
6. You’d expect something a bit more wolfish than Michael for this Aussie hunk.

Even the Banditas have middle names. Susan’s middle name was a tribute to her father, Roberta. JoMama’s middle name is Jo which often happens if you don’t care for your first name, hence my mom was always Thelma instead of Frances. And in the course of composing this, I found out one of our Bandita’s middle name is JOAN! Can you guess who it is?

So. What about you? Do you like your middle name? If you’re comfortable sharing we’d love to hear it. If you’re like Jeanne and Anna S. who have no middle name, or would change yours what would you change it to and why? What do you think the Golden Rooster’s middle name is?

78 comments:

Kim in Baltimore said...

Aloha!

Kim in Baltimore said...

Normally I'm stuck in the middle of the comments ... but imagine my surprise when I logged onto Romance Bandits at 10 pm Hawaiian time to see that NO ONE had claimed the Golden Rooster.

So we shall have a great day surfing on the North Shore! I'll ask him then what is his middle name (mine's Ann).

Kim in Baltimore said...

The 10 pm news reminded me that Captain Jack Sparrow can be found on the Revenge of the Queen Anne, anchored in Kaneohe Bay near the Marine Corps Base. So perhaps the Golden Rooster and I will look for him when we're done surfing ... I wonder what Jack's middle name is?

Jane said...

I don't have a middle name and I've always wanted one, but don't know which name I would choose. I only know that the answer for question 2 is Warren Beatty and 6 is Hugh Jackman.

Dianna Love said...

I'm awful at trivia so I'll leave the quiz to those who are much better at it like Kim. :)

No, I'm not sharing my middle name that I replaced with my maiden name Love. :) That was the whole point in replacing it - to put it away in the archives. I'm sure my mamma meant well but it so does not fit me.

Dianna Love said...

Oops - I meant the trivia buff Jane.

Back to the coffee pot for another injection...

Unknown said...

have a good day with GR Kim

Hi Joan ... I don't have a middle name ... I tell everyone my mother had to think of 2 names as I am a twin (a boy) but then again my younger brother only has one name. I think 1 maybe Justin Bieber as that is the only new teenage idol I know
2 Warren Beatty
3 David Niven
5 Errol Flynn (he is another Aussie)
and of course 6 is our own Hugh Jackman

Suzanne Ferrell said...

Hey Joanie!

I grew up without a middle name, my Daddy said I had one built in! And I was only Suzanne when I was in trouble, so I guess he was right, but it gave me pause for quite a few years.

However, if given the choice of no middle name or my sisters's middle name, I'd take none!!

See, my mom had two sisters, Frankie and Glenna. They never had kids and wanted Mom to name my sister after them. Now Mom had good sense and couldn't in all good conscience name a baby Frankie Glenna or Glenna Frankie, so she used their middle names combined for my sister's...
Lee and Belle

Yep, hehehe, she got Leebelle as her middle name.

Stop, laughing, y'all!!! Okay, you can laugh, I sure have over the years.

Needless to say, she couldn't wait to dump that moniker when she got married!

Buffie said...

Well hello Joan Marie!! :-)

I have to say that my mother (bless her heart!) gave me a dozy of a name. As a child I was teased constantly about it, but as an adult I have grown to love it.

As you all know, my first name is Buffie. And yes, it *IS* on my birth certificate. :-)

My middle name is Jo.

So every time I started at a new school (which happened a lot -- 8 times) the teacher(s) would call me "Buffie Jo," and I was cringe with embarrassment. "Just Buffie," I would tell them.

The answer to # 1 is: JUSTIN BIEBER

Terry Odell said...

My mom goes by her middle name, my dad has none (when in the service, it was listed as NMI (no middle initial).

Mine goes along with my first name, but I don't use it much. Although when I was a little kid, my mom called me TeeLee.

When we moved to Florida, the DMV insisted I use my maiden name as my middle name, so my driver's license was totally different. And that carried over when we moved to Colorado, because they said unless I wanted to bring in my birth certificate, they had to use whatever was on my FL license. But when I get junk mail I can tell if it was harvested from the DMV because of the different middle initial.

Terry
Terry's Place
Romance with a Twist--of Mystery

gamistress66 said...

I was named after my dad's sister who passed away before I came around. She went by her middle name (she, her mom & a neice all shared the same 1st name) which became my middle name. Funny thing -- I looked a lot like her when young, was often told by my aunts/uncles but believed it after seeing a picture of her at about 5 and could have sworn it was a picture of me at that age.

Anna Sugden said...

Nope NMI here. And I'm married to a man with NMI too. When we used to work together, we used to laugh at the people who used to insist that he had to have a middle name. Those of you who work in business, you'll recognise the practice of addressing a document to someone by their initials.

One of the directors was so insistent that in the end my hubby made one up - it's Eric, he said (after Eric Cantona - footballer extraordinaire!). For the rest of his time there, this man always addressed documents to my hubby with KES.

Anna Sugden said...

BTW I haven't forgotten that I have prizes to award for naming the English Rooster and from Eloisa James' visit. Will try to get those announcements up this weekend.

hrdwrkdmom aka Dianna said...

A Rose by any other name is still a rose........That is what was in the baby book of names. :-D

My name is Dianna Lynn and a gazillion other women born in the 50's and early 60's share the same two names, my mother was different and spelled Dianna with two n's, the reason I share my name with so many was there was a movie star named Diana Lynn.

I don't really know what else would go with Dianna, it is a long name so the middle would have to be short.

I always felt like I was in trouble when my full name was used. Actually, if my full name was used I WAS in trouble as a rule. I had a nickname until I was in high school and still have cousins that don't even know my real name.

For those of you that have NMI there are some people who make up the difference and have two middle names. That can mess up a business form. I was married to a man that used his third name.

Louisa Cornell said...

OOOH !! Lucky GR to go and visit Kim! Hope he learns to hang ten, or eight, or however many he has!

Let me see how I do on the quiz.

1. Justin Bieber

2. Warren Beatty

3. David Niven

4. Eleanor Roosevelt

5. Johnny Depp

6. Hugh Jackman

How'd I do?

My middle name is Lynn and I like it. Short and sweet. I was actually named after a famous actress, or so my Mom says. My Welsh grandmother, however said I was named after the Welsh word for mystic elf. I can live with that.

And Joan, my cat Rebecca has the same middle name as Miss Cricket. Rebecca Marie is named after a dear friend of mine, the moving force behind our local humane shelter for years. My Rebecca Marie was born the day before my dear friend lost her fight with breast cancer. And my Rebecca Marie KNOWS she is in trouble if I use both names.

As kids we KNEW we were in for it if Mom called us by first and middle names.

My Mom, however, doesn't have a middle name. She was one of twins and I guess they had only picked two names.

Susan Sey said...

Hey, Joanie! Great post today!

And yeah, my middle name's Roberta. I won't even get into what my maiden name was--suffice it to say, it was worse than Roberta.

As for the GR? Why, it's Danger. Didn't you know? Danger is his middle name. :-)

Hellie Sinclair said...

My middle name is Marie too. My first name happens to be Frances, which when I asked my parents WHERE they got this hideous name, they said they pulled it from my great-grandmothers who were both Sarah Frances. WHY they couldn't have gone with Sarah, which there were at least a few more of, I don't know.

There was a time when I was in 2nd grade, I tried to get everyone to call me by my middle name. My aunt Trixie bribed me with a toy horse if I would do so. Being horse mad, I caved. It probably would have been too difficult to remember answering to Marie anyway.

Nowadays I just go by my computer name--Hellion--which seems more appropriate anyway.

(Incidentally I love name meanings too. Frances means "Free" in the Teutonic; and Marie, for Mary, means "sorrow, bitter" or "rebellious"--I prefer the second meaning. Maybe my parents chose wisely: free and rebellious seems like a fun thing to live up to.)

Hellie Sinclair said...

Correction: my aunt Trixie bribed me with a toy horse if I *wouldn't* change my name.

jo robertson said...

What a fun post, Joanie!

Aloha, Kim, and congratulations. Way to be quick!

Middle names are often hilarious, I think, and a way to stick in a horrible-sounding family name, but still honor the person.

JWZ1978 said...

Good morning!

My fur child has a middle name as well, she is Harley Sue :)

I added a middle name when I got married, I added my maiden name as a second middle name so I could still use it if so desired. I like my middle names (Ellen Williams) but I have to say that with the first name starting with "J" and a last name starting with "Z" I have awesome initials :)

Joan said...

Whoa Kim!!! Shaka (?sp...term for hang loose??? What do I know, I learned it at the Polynesian at Disney) on grabbing the GR! Pick out a pretty lei so he can add it to his collection of things like Mardi Gras beads!

I sense a bit of Jack Sparrow stalking there in Hawaii. Don't know what Jack's middle name is, but his counterpart's is in the quiz.

Joan said...

Jane,

You're correct in your answers.

I was going to use Lady Gaga's name as a trivia but dang...it was long and bizarre. Does that surprise anyone?

I did have one chance to choose a name for myself. At confirmation it was the tradition to choose a saintly name. I REALLY wanted to be called Bernadette but decided on Elizabeth.

Joan said...

Hmmm...guessing, guessing Dianna's hidden name.

Dianna Goddess?

Dianna, Princess of Wales?

Ok, you can borrow Marie.

Dianna Marie!!! Write more books!

Joan said...

Barb Marie.....what middle name would you like?

I'm first born. My mother chose one girl and one boy's name. Being the girl, I got Joan. I asked her what girl name she'd had picked out when she was expecting my brother. She said none....

I was looking to see if it would've been a cooler name :-)

Joan said...

Oh, and Barb,

While it's true Errol is an Aussie, he's not the answer to the pirate question.

I just threw up his picture because I just watched a fascinating documentary about him and have falled in love all over.

:-)

Joan said...

Awwww...LeeBelle......

Now see that would be the PERFECT Southern name Suz!

Leebelle reminds me of Bluebell which reminds me of ice cream which....

Sorry...gotta run to the grocery.

Joan said...

Hey Buffie Jo!!!!

Why do I suddenly have visions of Petticoat Junction?

Betty Jo, Bobby Jo, what was the
3rd sister???

Jo wouldn't work for me. Joan Jo

Sounds like a monkey....JoJO

Joan said...

Aww Terri.

I like TeeLee.....reminds me of exotic places..

But darn that DMV!

Joan said...

gamistress66 what a wonderful tribute to your family lineage!!!

And isn't it cool when that same lineage is reflected in pictures?

Joan said...

Hey Anna!

KES huh?

I like to see if people's initials make up real words or funny ones.

At the hospital, our docs memonics are first three letters of last name, first two of first name.

Some pretty hysterical combos...

Joan said...

Dianna Lynn....I LIKE it!

Dianna Lynn! You get your nose out of that book right now!!!

I've often wondered why my Mom picked Joan....Joan Sutherland? Dear God, I hope it wasn't Joan Crawford.

I always go with Joan of Arc.

Joan said...

Wow Louisa!!! What a cool meaning for your middle name!

You may call me "Mystic Elf"

Dianna!!! You're a Mystic Elf too!!!

Taking a decidingly mystical turn on the blog today.

So sorry about your friend but I believe she'd think it the highest tribute to have one of the precious animals she cared for carry on her memory.

Joan said...

Golden Danger Rooster?

Hmmmmm...I can see it....I was thinking egg......

Remember you're telling us at conference about all the "Bobs" your dad knew. At least they didn't name you Susan Bob.

Susan Bob! You get away from that raccoon!

Joan said...

Well Hellion Marie...you little hellion.....

Joan means "God is gracious" or "Gift of God".

I'm surprised that Marie has such rebellious roots.

Maybe you should have honored your aunt on gone by Trixie!

Joan said...

Hi JWZ!!!

Welcome to The Lair!!!

Ellen is a soft, flowing type of name and what a cool name for your fur baby.

My friend adopted an Airedale Terrier that came with the name of "Harley Marie"

Seems Marie is big in the pet world!

Kathy Martin said...

I am another Marie. It was popular as a middle name for Catholics earlier than the 60s. I was born in 1950. My first name is Kathleen which was also very popular when I was born. There are no other Kathleens in my family but I sure went to school with a lot of them!

Kim in Baltimore said...

Joan, you referenced Disney's Polynesian Hotel. Back in June, we stayed at the military resort next to the Polynesian, so we cut through it to use the Monarail. My son noted many errors in promoting Polynesia. For example, Tonga is not in Polynesia but Micronesia - at least he is paying attention in class!

And we have plenty of middle names in Hawaii, for example, King Kamehameha's full name is:

Kalani Paiʻea Wohi o Kaleikini Kealiʻikui Kamehameha o ʻIolani i Kaiwikapu kaui Ka Liholiho Kūnuiākea.

Not sure what would be listed on his driver's license.

Suzanne Ferrell said...

Susan: As for the GR? Why, it's Danger. Didn't you know? Danger is his middle name. :-)

Hehehe

I can hear him now, dressed in his tailored tux, at the chicken bar over a vodka martini, a french accent...
"my middle name is danger, mon cheri"

Minna said...

Well, for a long time I didn't like my middle name, because it's so old fashioned. But it was my great grandmother's name. I won't tell you what it is, but I can tell you this: my both of my given names can be traced back to the name Vilhelmiina, which in turn can be traced back to the name Wilhelm, which means will+helmet.

And speaking of names, I'm very hard trying to remember the names of two English-Japanese dictionaries and or Japanese grammer or kanji books (see? I can't even remember excatly what type of books they were). I only remember one had blue and the other had yellow cover and the titles were written with red letters in English. But without the titles or the ISBN number, finding them seems to be kind of difficult.

Joan said...

Hi Kathy!

Isn't that true about names! A parent thinks they've come up with a different or uncommon name and poof...suddenly there are 15 Chases, 24 Moniques and on and on.

The youngest Joan I've run into in recent memory was about 25. I got very annoyed when, in looking it up at a baby name site it started with "This middle aged name..."

Ackkkkkk!

Terri Osburn said...

The name I go by is a nickname, so my real first name is the ode to my Catholic roots. Since I don't really look like a little flower, I don't use it much, but in HS the teachers called me Theresa. Five years later when my cousins arrived in HS and asked if they were related to Theresa, they both said no.

Everyone in my family has "L" middle names. Two Lynns, two Lees and one Lawrence. He is the oddball in so many ways, we often blame the middle name.

I gave my daughter quite a long name. Isabelle Malory, the Malory from the Lindsey family series. I do love those books so.

Like many others, if we were called by our first and middle names, it meant we were in trouble. My mom even does it to my dad, which cracks me up. Oh, and my sister gave her a cat a middle name too - Skeeter Marie has a fun ring to it. LOL! What's up with cat's and Marie?!

Joan said...

Wow Kim....

The King's name is a mouth full!!!

I guess he could cut the red tape by just lising "K"

As to Disney they try and I love them for it. They sure got it right with the creme brulee in France at Epcot!

Have I mentioned I LOVE the creme brulee there?

Joan said...

Hi Minna!

Now see Minna Marie would have a nice musical rhythm to it.

So some ancestor named will wore a helmet?

Can't help at all about the Japanese books, but good luck in finding them.

Joan said...

Wow Theresa O!!!

I like Theresa and yes she's a big name in the Saint world.

And wow on naming your little one after a romance novel name. My friend did that with her son, Chase.

And LOL on Skeeter Marie! Do many of ya'll with dogs do middle names?

Minna said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dianna Love said...

Ha, no Goddess middle name for me.

Thanks for the offer of Marie but my sister got that middle name, which I would have kept! Or Lynn like Hrdwrkdmom aka Dianna has. :) Those are both really nice.

Donna MacMeans said...

Yay Kim! The Rooster is certainly going to enjoy his day with you - wish I was there!

No good at the trivia so I'll leave that to braver souls.

My mother did the maiden name thing on me, but it's not overly cumbersome. Still I tend to use my maiden name as my middle name as I don't want to lose that connection.

The GR's middle name - I'll toss Eggbert into the pool.

Loucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindy said...

What a FUN post, Joanie!

And Kathy/Kathleen, I feel your pain. As another child of the 50s, seems like EVERY girl was named Cindy or Debbie. Of course, I was unique because every other Cindy was Cynthia. Not ME!

My middle name is after my maternal grandmother since Loucinda is sorta kinda after my paternal grandmother. I too knew I was in trouble when my mother called me by both my names, and MAJOR TROUBLE when I was called by my 'real' name and middle name.

One of my dogs has a middle name. She was named for the car designer Carel Shelby. But since Shelby is such a sweet southern name, we added Belle, so she is Shelby Belle, or simply The Belle.

The GR strikes me as Southern even with that French heritage, so I'm thinking his middle name is Beauregard (after the Civil War general) or simply Beau. Whadda ya think?!?!

AC

Susanna Fraser said...

I was born on my paternal grandmother's birthday, and her name was Eunice. So that's my middle name. As a child, I hated it because it's so old-fashioned, but now I like the connection to my family history.

My husband (first name Dylan) has the middle name Eugene for his grandfather. Multiple people told me our wedding invitations, with both of our full names, made them think of the opening line of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. ("There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it.")

Terri Osburn said...

My cat's name is Bumblebee so I'm skipping the middle name. (Bumblebee McGee?) Though he's often called things NOT appropriate for polite company. LOL!

Sarah Simas said...

Well it's good to know that I'm not alone in NOT having a middle name. Only my full name is the dosey. LOL Sarahdiane. Yep, my folks couldn't decide, so squished together it was. Luckily, they were nice and used "Sarah" as my nickname. It's always a blast explaining my name when filling out paperwork. LOL and *groan*

As for the Golden Rooster, I think I'm gonna go hang w/ him and my buddy Kim in Hawaii and search for Capt. Jack. Sounds a lot more fun than housework!! *wink wink*

Fun post and am totally lovin' the pics. That last one is it Errol Flynn? I adore him! :)

Joan said...

Donna,

So we'll add you to the maiden name, middle name.

Do ya'll know anybody who married somebody with the same name i.e Joan Jackman Jackman?

I think Eggbert might be one of the GR's alias....

Joan said...

Somehow I have no trouble imagining your mother having to whip out the "real" name for you AC....imp.

Awwww....how cute about Shelby Belle. And really The Belle sums it up doesn't it? There is a certain elevated status with being called The Cricket.

And Beau? I'm liking it.

Terri Osburn said...

My suggestion for the GR would be Filligree. Golden Filligree Rooster. Esquire.

Joan said...

Susanna,

Eunice and Eugene? Sounds like a match made in heaven.

The little bit that we've been able to trace our ancestry back reveals NO other Joan's. There are few Maries and loads of Marys

But I stand alone as Joan

Joan said...

Terri,

Bumblebee McGee has a fun ring to it.

I try to limit cursing around my baby's sensitive ears but there have been a few "That Darn Cat" moments...which I immediately amend with snuggles and kisses.

And Filagree...I REALLY like that. The Esquire is a given.

Joan said...

Hi Ms. Sarahdiane!!!!

I have a last name that I just automatically spell when given it.

Joan...being such a rare and, ahem, middle aged name I also end up having to spell. Invariably they want to spell JoanN

Even the French servers at the creme brulee resturant at Disney called me "Joann". I insisted no! It's Joan as in Joan of Arc! Remember her?!!!

hrdwrkdmom aka Dianna said...

Joan said...
Dianna Lynn....I LIKE it!

Dianna Lynn! You get your nose out of that book right now!!!


I wish I had a quarter (inflation) for every time I had heard that and not just in my childhood!

joven said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
pjpuppymom said...

Love the blog, Joanie! Um...just what was Cricket Marie doing in that toilet? Hmmmm?

My mom wanted to name me Patty Jo. ::shudder:: My dad held out for something a bit more formal so I ended up with Patricia (my mom's name) and a middle name (Joan) after my dad's youngest sister (my mom always claimed she was the only female in my dad's family who was nice to her when they were dating). But I still got stuck with the nickname of Patty Jo for most of my childhood ::sigh:: and my aunts, uncles and many cousins still call me that.

Nancy said...

Kim, congrats on the rooster! Surfing should give him a challenge.

Nancy said...

Joan, my middle name is my grandmother's maiden name, and no one can pronounce it. It appears on both of my diplomas and, unfortunately, my car title, but I've managed to avoid having it appear on contest certificates.

I use my middle initial when signing official documents and no other time.

Loucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindy said...

OOOOO! I LOVE Filigree for the GR! GOOD ONE, TerriO!

Dianna Lynn, I got "Put down that book!" a lot while growing up too. ;-)

And LOL Nancy on the unpronounceable middle name. You'd THINK McGary would be easy... but I got called McGray, McGrary, McGarrity... EVERYTHING but McGary. :-P

AC

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Hey Kim, you snagged the chookie! He's used to heading to Aus for the day, but I don't think he's ever been to Hawaii. Grins.

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Dianna Love said: to put it away in the archives. I'm sure my mamma meant well but it so does not fit me.

Is this like James Tiberius Kirk, where we'll have to go forever before we discover the deep dark secret of Dianna Love? Grins.

My friend's mom was going to name her Beryl and went with Katherine instead. Beryl's her middle name. Eeek!

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Suz said: Stop, laughing, y'all!!! Okay, you can laugh, I sure have over the years.

Heeheehee. Sorry. It's a Southern Thing.

In my family we normally name the boy-chil'ren after their Grandfathers from each side. Well, that would have done terrible things to my children. We already had 7 Jameses, or so it seemed, So it would have been Otis James, if we didn't want to do James. Or if we went for middle names Herman Otis.

Oh, H*LL no! Poor child.

They got good names out of the deal, but not those names...Grins.

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Susan said: As for the GR? Why, it's Danger. Didn't you know? Danger is his middle name. :-)

Grins. And here I thought it was Trouble.

Snork.

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Joanie asked: Do ya'll know anybody who married somebody with the same name i.e Joan Jackman Jackman?

I do! A friend of mine in college was Cindy Watson. She married a totally unrelated man named Watson making her Cindy Watson Watson. Grins.

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Joan said:
I like to see if people's initials make up real words or funny ones.


We had an interesting time of this with naming our sons. :> I got the bright idea of naming our eldest Benjamin Alexander Adams for some bizarre genealogical reasons I won't go into.

My darling husband promptly said, "Baaaaaaa. We're SO not going there."

"What? Huh?"

"Benjamin, Alexander, Adams. B. A. A." NOPE!!!

We also nearly had CPA...

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Joan said: Even the French servers at the creme brulee resturant at Disney called me "Joann". I insisted no! It's Joan as in Joan of Arc! Remember her?!!!

Ah, yes, but to the "real" Francophiles, this would be Jeanne d'Arc. Pronounced "Jauhnnnnnn"

I too stand alone with my name in family lore. And I ALWAYS have to spell it. It's prounounced Jeannie. Or Genie. But spelled w/o the i. I get Jean, Jean-anne, and occasionally, when someone hasn't looked closely enough, Joann.

Nope. Jee-nee. Jeanne. Grins.

Suzanne Ferrell said...

Jeanne: We also nearly had CPA...

We didn't do those bad things to our kids, but when you put each of their first initials together, it spells out ALE...as the kids say, "Dad's favorite drink!" LOL

catslady said...

I don't care for my middle name - it's Constance. My grandmother's name was Concentina (Italian) and they thought that was the closest. I would have prefered her real name. My one daughter's middle name is Catherine - first name of both grandmothers. My other daughter has her father and grandfather's middle name Lee.

The old Italian way was the oldest son was named after the father's father then the mother's father and same for the daughters. Then you went to uncles and aunts etc. It ended up that most families had all the same names since families were large and they would younger kids would start repeating the same names lol.

Joan said...

OMG, PJ!!!!! The J stands for JOAN?!!!

No wonder we're kindred spirits!!!!

I bake famous Choc. Chip cookies and you do turtles!

It's a sign!!!!

Susan Sey said...

Joanie wrote: Remember you're telling us at conference about all the "Bobs" your dad knew. At least they didn't name you Susan Bob.

And likely it's only because they didn't think of it. My new nephew is named Robert after my dad, only they're calling him Robbie.

I myself call him Bobbert. I think it's funny. My sister does not. :)

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Susan said: I myself call him Bobbert. I think it's funny. My sister does not. :)

Sisters sometimes do NOT have a sense of humor about these things. I do, but then again, I'm a bit odd. Grins. My sister has alllllll kinds of names for my youngest. He kind of "calls" for nicknames because of his personality.

One of them involves Bob as a middle bit. Grins.

Joan said...

Hey Jeanne!

Ah....James T. Kirk....star hero extraordinaire!

Beryl sounds like an exotic 1940's star with auburn waved tresses in a snood.

Herman Otis, Jeanne?! That sounds like a Cabbage Patch Dolls name! Good thing your boys had a strong mother!

And an equally sharp Dad who picked up on BAA...

Joan said...

Catslady,

That reminds me of the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" where Constatine is introducing the groom's parents. This is my brother Nick and his son Nick, my other cousin named Nick and his sons Nick, Nick and daughter Nicky...

Hilarious!

Joan said...

I myself call him Bobbert. I think it's funny. My sister does not. :)

LOL