The American Name Society

I found a group that actually studies names and naming practices. It is called the American Name Society.

http://www.wtsn.binghamton.edu/ans/Default.htm

Their website states: "Since the first issue in 1952, NAMES has published hundreds of articles, reviews, and notes on various aspects of name study. Some recent articles show the variety of interests of the Society's members, from literary onomastics to personal names, and from placenames to names of organizations."

Some of the articles that look interesting are:

"Impressions Created by Given Names." Albert Mehrabian. March 1997.
"On the Meaning of Personal Names: A View from Cognitive Psychology." Tim Brennen. June 2000.

How Did the Name "Hooker" Get Associated with Prostitutes?

If you are a woman and your last name is Hooker, you might feel like you have a "pretty bad name."

One of the stories about the name "hooker" being associated with being a prostitute is taken from the name of Major General Joseph Hooker (1814-79), a Union commander during the Civil War. According to the story, Hooker's troops were poorly disciplined and famous for fraternizing with the "working girls" of the day, in some accounts a practice tolerated by Hooker who was said to allow prostitutes to set up shop in the troopers' barracks. 

However, even preceding "Hooker's" working girls was the slang term "to hook," which  meant "to entice or swindle." An 1850 magazine illustration titled "Hooking A Victim" shows ladies of the night in hoop skirts plying their trade at Broadway and Canal Streets in New York City.

Information about Major General Hooker at http://www.civilwarhome.com/hookbio.htm

Meet The Real Fockers

Meet the Fockers, which was a sequel to the popular movie Meet the Parents, featured Ben Stiller and Robert DeNiro. Since its release in 2004, Meet the Fockers has grossed over $500 million worldwide and another sequel will be coming titled Little Fockers.

To promote the movie, Universal Pictures staged a Focker Family Reunion at Universal Studios Orlando in Orlando, Florida.

In honor of the comedy, Meet The Fockers, representatives from Universal Orlando combed the country for families with the last name 'Focker' to participate in a Focker family reunion. A Universal Orlando spokeswoman estimated there were up to 100 Focker families in the U.S. and said 25 of them -- including mother Fockers, daddy Fockers and baby Fockers -- were invited to the park to see an advance screening of 'Meet The Fockers' a week before the film's official release date.

First found in Holland, there are many variations of the Focker name including Fock, Focke, Fockes, Focck, Fockk, Foock, Fockez and Fockz.The name Focker is still very common in the Netherlands and in the United States people with the name Focker are found living in New York, California, Michigan, Texas, California and other states. 

Wong Focker likes in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Mamalo Focker lives in Houston, Texas. Betty Focker lives in Grafton,Ohio.  Darryl Focker lives in Billings, Montana.

Of course, there are endless possibilities for “Pretty Bad Name Combos” with intermarriage with the Fockers.

• If Mary Baby married Chris Focker, she would be a Baby-Focker.
• If Suzie Dumb married Darryl Focker she could be a Dumb-Focker.
• If Carolyn Mad married Bob Focker, she would be a Mad-Focker.
• If April Double married Frank Focker, she would be a Double-Focker.
• If Amanda Smellie married Bart Focker, she would be a Smellie-Focker.

Read more about the movie at the Internet Movie Database:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0290002/

Welcome to the Pretty Bad Names Blog

Life is tough for everyone, but it is even tougher for those with an embarrassing or "bad" name. Have you ever known anyone with a bad name? And if you personally have a "bad"name, how has it affected your life?

For years I have been taking notice of unusual, embarrassing and downright bad names. Even before the movie "Meet the Fockers" I had wondered why people with such last names as Frankenstein and Cretin (French for idiot) and Rotten and Bad and Crapper and Stinky had not legally changed their names.

This is not to criticize these people or make fun of them. In fact, we need to have compassion for any individual who has to face the possible mockery of his or her peers. This is especially true for children, who are often very sensitive. The best defense might be to develop a sense of humor about one's name in these circumstances.

There must be many stories out there of how people have coped with "bad" names. Feel free to leave your comments and experiences on this blog.