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