tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post3056634310480002660..comments2024-03-23T12:38:46.260+00:00Comments on The History Girls: Naming names – Michelle LovricMary Hoffmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06241989732624913706noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-85786348087895097632012-06-11T19:54:33.189+01:002012-06-11T19:54:33.189+01:00Excellent post.... I've been writing in the Ro...Excellent post.... I've been writing in the Roman era up until now, so have used the magnificent lists of Ala and legions, plus the who's who of ancient Rome, and then a rather lovely book on slaves and traders that I found was full of outstanding Greek names for the conscripts to the legions. Moving into the 21st century again, I tend to use the names of former class mates, mixed and matched, but shall become more adventurous now. I 'see' names in colour (all words have colour) so it's important to find the right colours to go with the colour palette of the book...Manda Scotthttp://wordpress.mcscott.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-26609110068449830232012-06-11T19:10:06.421+01:002012-06-11T19:10:06.421+01:00I use the "Great British Surname Profiler in ...I use the "Great British Surname Profiler in history" to find what region a character may have links to http://gbnames.publicprofiler.org/default.aspx - it gives geographical distribution of GB surnames in 1881 and 1998, as well as allowing you to search on categories (eg. Celtic, Occupation, after female parent; and so on).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-40863287418782305442012-06-11T15:03:49.706+01:002012-06-11T15:03:49.706+01:00I'm really impressed by the perfect recall you...I'm really impressed by the perfect recall you all seem to have of your characters from past books. Don't you ever get the midnight abdabs not being able to remember stuff from your own stories?Lauriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15930897883956794890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-73115894204446589542012-06-11T08:57:48.270+01:002012-06-11T08:57:48.270+01:00For years I have used Kate Monk's Onomastikon,...For years I have used Kate Monk's Onomastikon, now at http://tekeli.li/onomastikon/. It was originally produced as an aid for role-playing games, but it's also perfect for a writer who needs an authentic name for e.g. a fourteenth century Hungarian peasant.Bob Newmanhttp://www.volecentral.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-859369592704312502012-06-10T21:46:07.897+01:002012-06-10T21:46:07.897+01:00Michelle, it is "Names through the Ages"...Michelle, it is "Names through the Ages" by Teresa Norman (Berkley Books, NY)1999. I bought my copy second hand so I have no idea whether it is still in print but you might pick up a secondhand copy somewhere. It covers England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France and the (later) US but there are hints of information about elsewhere in Europe throughout the book. The meanings tend to be very brief but they can, of course, be checked elsewhere.catdownunderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06959328192182156574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-35928240567001139352012-06-10T15:53:45.789+01:002012-06-10T15:53:45.789+01:00I have been using names of spam sending email acco...I have been using names of spam sending email accounts, usually doing a mix and match of names and surnames. <br />Graveyards, monuments, and manifesti funerali are good indeed, just as much as phone books.spacedlawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12462723005560128474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-72522572387186606632012-06-10T14:59:24.464+01:002012-06-10T14:59:24.464+01:00Great post! And all the better for being short and...Great post! And all the better for being short and sweet and numbered! I'm so glad you mentioned MAPS as a source of names, too.Caroline Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07249424644829463560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-10750056091619380812012-06-10T11:48:21.313+01:002012-06-10T11:48:21.313+01:00Oh yes, Adele, I love 'replace all' too! I...Oh yes, Adele, I love 'replace all' too! I had a Mauro morph into a Gianni in my last adult book. He originally behaved like a Mauro but he got less clever and more innocent so he needed a more childlike, open name. <br /><br />Susan, thank God they left 'Sterkarm' alone. That word gets all the primal synaesthestic synapses snapping, and did for me, even before I read the wonderful books. Hope Part III, The Sterkarm Unmentionable (?) is well on its way?michelle lovrichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01026972300195225090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-87453827207112675092012-06-10T11:26:38.458+01:002012-06-10T11:26:38.458+01:00This is a wonderful post and also very useful...I ...This is a wonderful post and also very useful...I have no idea where names come from but sometimes I will write a story and just know that the name is wrong ...then I have to do Control F and change all the names at one fell swoop. It's fun doing that. I love ALTOPONE and those wolves are heavenly, every one of them. I love the end credits of Hollywood movies. American names are amazing and so diverse....adelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15826710558292792068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-20293695939927433892012-06-10T11:19:28.112+01:002012-06-10T11:19:28.112+01:00Great post, Michelle. Names are so important - and...Great post, Michelle. Names are so important - and Mary is right (as usual) - until you get the name right you don't have the handle on the character.<br />If I'm looking for a modern name, I will often look through the editorial section of a magazine, where all the contributors names are listed. For other periods, it can be harder.<br />One of my books has characters called: Unwin, Elfgift, Hunting, Ebba, Kenelm, Wulfweird and Kendrida. I've often been asked how I managed to make them up, when they are all Anglo-Saxon names. (And 'Unwin' is the name of the villain and means 'Un-friend' or 'enemy').<br />My publishers were very uncertain about the name 'Sterkarm' in my Sterkarm books. They thought it sounded too much like 'Starkadder' or 'Blackadder'. Granted, but by then I'd been writing the book for a couple of years, and the name was too fixed in my head to be changed. Besides, it's a translation of the real reiver name, 'Armstrong' into Danish.Susan Pricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07738737493756183909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-1912645345691952792012-06-10T10:52:16.841+01:002012-06-10T10:52:16.841+01:00Yes, Sue, Mary is right - Enda is a character in m...Yes, Sue, Mary is right - Enda is a character in my current WIP. Graveyard is a highly appropriate reference, sadly. Shivers down the spine! <br /><br />I agree with you, Mary, the character has to have a name as well as a face, a height (for looking into eyes) and accent before I can write him or her.<br /><br />And Louise, yes, nicknames are great. But I have found I cannot easily create a nickname for my characters. A diminutive, yes - and often essential given the long Italian names I use, like Temistocle. But nicknames - tricky. A view through a lens the imagination does not have? Taking one's invention too seriously? Can we see our characters only OUR way, unless they are real and there is research help?<br /><br />I find it fascinating how the names of those convicted of bad crimes immediately acquire a bad aura. <br /><br />catdownunder - what is that reference book? sounds essential.michelle lovrichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01026972300195225090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-88393175141448382942012-06-10T10:32:37.776+01:002012-06-10T10:32:37.776+01:00Wow, Sue - I wonder if you know how prescient your...Wow, Sue - I wonder if you know how prescient your Enda reference is!<br /><br />I can't write a character properly till I know their name.<br /><br />Graveyards are very good.Mary Hoffmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06241989732624913706noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-68752571723729247302012-06-10T09:59:04.997+01:002012-06-10T09:59:04.997+01:00Very interesting - your names are always terrific,...Very interesting - your names are always terrific, and even more so when you know their derivation. You need that notebook though - I saw a lovely one on a war memorial a few weeks ago, but have forgotten it - and the other day someone from Cornwall was interviewed on TV, called Enda Something - and did I write it down? I did not.Sue Purkisshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09084528571944803477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-51254708876577230382012-06-10T08:25:09.569+01:002012-06-10T08:25:09.569+01:00Gorgeous post. There's something beautifully D...Gorgeous post. There's something beautifully Dickensian about a lot of your names - and I'd love to know how he chose his too.<br /><br />My characters tend to arrive with names already attached, which I then have to research to see if they're genuine. Working in the 19th century army I've also had the added bonus of nicknames, which can quite legitimately be suggestive of character. I tend to choose those first, then 'work backwards' to find out what the original name would have been.<br /><br />You're right - it's fun!alberridgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15986443240923520466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-5096797951724063822012-06-10T08:03:27.932+01:002012-06-10T08:03:27.932+01:00The "Hatched", "Matched" and &...The "Hatched", "Matched" and "Dispatched" columns are useful for surnames. My characters tend to tell me what their given names are. I check in reference books or look on line. I have one marvellous reference book that gives names in the UK and Europe right back to before the Middle Ages. It makes fascinating reading.catdownunderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06959328192182156574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-71448129017913123572012-06-10T01:43:33.224+01:002012-06-10T01:43:33.224+01:00Delicious (I use this word too much)--still, tasty...Delicious (I use this word too much)--still, tasty is too curt--so, delicious post. Really enjoyable revelations!Ms.https://www.blogger.com/profile/09479767121319709878noreply@blogger.com