(OT) Just out of Curiosity: Middle Names

Try going through life *without* a middle name. No one ever believes you
don't have one. People just think it must be something *awful* and you
don't want to tell them. Only my oldest brother has a middle name. My
other brother and I don't have one. My parents didn't have middle names,
either. AFAIK my grandparents didn't have middle names. Sometimes (poorly
designed) web forms insist the middle name field is mandatory so I have to
make something up. I don't really understand the point of middle names. Is
it so if you hate your first name you can use the other one? (What happens
if you don't like either one? LOL)

How many of you folks have a middle name? And if you do, which name do you
go by, the first or the middle?

OB cats: Persia is (as usual) stretched out in a puddle of sunshine behind
my chair. I gave her another nice brushing last night. She purred like mad


Jill

On 2011-08-18 12:25 PM, jmcquown wrote:
Try going through life *without* a middle name. No one ever believes you
don't have one. People just think it must be something *awful* and you
don't want to tell them. Only my oldest brother has a middle name. My
other brother and I don't have one. My parents didn't have middle names,
either. AFAIK my grandparents didn't have middle names. Sometimes
(poorly designed) web forms insist the middle name field is mandatory so
I have to make something up. I don't really understand the point of
middle names. Is it so if you hate your first name you can use the other
one? (What happens if you don't like either one? LOL)

How many of you folks have a middle name? And if you do, which name do
you go by, the first or the middle?

OB cats: Persia is (as usual) stretched out in a puddle of sunshine
behind my chair. I gave her another nice brushing last night. She purred
like mad

Jill

You get middle names because your parents wanted to honour more than one
relative or friend by naming you after them, wanted to honour a relative
but couldn't stand actually using the name every day so they put it in
the middle, liked the sound or the look of the two names together,
couldn't agree between themselves about a name & so used two, followed
some family naming tradition like the one in which children get their
mother's surname as a middle name, etc.

I have a middle name but use it very rarely - it's sometimes required on
legal documents that call for a full legal name. The only person who
called me by both first and middle names died years ago, and no one else
has picked up the habit.

It's really annoying when you go by your middle name (which I don't, but
a relative does), because people who don't know you well tend to call
you by your first name. It used to be easier to simply use a nickname or
middle name but now more and more your ID has to be issued with your
full legal name on it.

--
Cheryl

On Aug 18, 3:55*pm, "jmcquown" wrote:

How many of you folks have a middle name? *And if you do, which name do you
go by, the first or the middle?

I have a middle name (Susan) but I don't like it and rarely use it....

The all time winner I know for middle names (apart from Brian Eno and
I'm not sure which parts of his name are his surname or his middle
names) is a guy I was at college with- his dad wanted to call him
Julian Michael (Julian because he liked the name and Michael after his
father) and his mum wanted to call him Christopher Stewart (for the
same reason his dad chose the names he did) so they tossed a coin and
his mum lost so he was named Julian Michael Christopher Stewart! He
loathed any form with "middle name" on it because there was never
enough room

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

On Aug 18, 9:55*am, "jmcquown" wrote:
Try going through life *without* a middle name. *No one ever believes you
don't have one. *People just think it must be something *awful* and you
don't want to tell them. *Only my oldest brother has a middle name. *My
other brother and I don't have one. *My parents didn't have middle names,
either. *AFAIK my grandparents didn't have middle names. *Sometimes (poorly
designed) web forms insist the middle name field is mandatory so I have to
make something up. *I don't really understand the point of middle names.. *Is
it so if you hate your first name you can use the other one? *(What happens
if you don't like either one? LOL)

How many of you folks have a middle name? *And if you do, which name do you
go by, the first or the middle?

OB cats: *Persia is (as usual) stretched out in a puddle of sunshine behind
my chair. *I gave her another nice brushing last night. *She purred like mad


Jill

My grandmother's parents theorized that nobody ever likes their middle
name anyway,
so they let their 9 children choose their own when they were old
enough. You could
choose one for yourself; but it would be a massive hassle to change
all your legal papers.
And a friend of mine's middle name is "H." Just an "H". What were
his parents thinking?
OB Cats: Frank's middle name is Bob. I guess Bootsie's middle name is
"Girl", since she
always gets called Bootsiegirl.
I always thought my Maine Coon grandcat Orion had the most beautiful
registered name.
It was "Dreamaine's Darkstar of Orion."

Sherry

"jmcquown" wrote in message
...
Try going through life *without* a middle name. No one ever believes you
don't have one. People just think it must be something *awful* and you
don't want to tell them. Only my oldest brother has a middle name. My
other brother and I don't have one. My parents didn't have middle names,
either. AFAIK my grandparents didn't have middle names. Sometimes
(poorly designed) web forms insist the middle name field is mandatory so I
have to make something up. I don't really understand the point of middle
names. Is it so if you hate your first name you can use the other one?
(What happens if you don't like either one? LOL)

How many of you folks have a middle name? And if you do, which name do
you go by, the first or the middle?

OB cats: Persia is (as usual) stretched out in a puddle of sunshine
behind my chair. I gave her another nice brushing last night. She purred
like mad

Jill


This is a little off topic but something that only happens with a killer in
the news
If they kill a person they use their full name include their middle name
specially serial killers
IF they attempt or just do harm only their first and last

"Sherry" wrote in message
...

On Aug 18, 9:55 am, "jmcquown" wrote:
And a friend of mine's middle name is "H." Just an "H". What were
his parents thinking?

Sherry

- - - - - - - - - - -

Your friend was in pretty good company. Harry Truman did not have a middle
name, just the initial "S."

MaryL

On 8/18/2011 9:55 AM, jmcquown wrote:
Try going through life *without* a middle name. No one ever believes you
don't have one. People just think it must be something *awful* and you
don't want to tell them. Only my oldest brother has a middle name. My
other brother and I don't have one. My parents didn't have middle names,
either. AFAIK my grandparents didn't have middle names. Sometimes
(poorly designed) web forms insist the middle name field is mandatory so
I have to make something up. I don't really understand the point of
middle names. Is it so if you hate your first name you can use the other
one? (What happens if you don't like either one? LOL)

How many of you folks have a middle name? And if you do, which name do
you go by, the first or the middle?

OB cats: Persia is (as usual) stretched out in a puddle of sunshine
behind my chair. I gave her another nice brushing last night. She purred
like mad

Jill

I was born into a catholic home, and in the catholic religion the middle
name is a saint's name - you get it when you are baptized (in the
catholic religion that's very soon after birth so they just put it on
your birth certificate). Mine is Theresa. You also get a *second*
middle name when you have your confirmation, another saint's name. Mine
is Maria. So I'm stuck with the moniker Lorraine Theresa Maria Reeves
(maiden name) Crews.

--
Hugs,

CatNipped
See all our masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped

See the RPCA FAQ site, created by "Yowie", maintained by Mark Edwards, at:
http://www.professional-geek.net/rpcablog/

Email: L(dot)T(dot)Crews(at)comcast(dot)net

On 8/18/2011 10:52 AM, MaryL wrote:


"Sherry" wrote in message
...

On Aug 18, 9:55 am, "jmcquown" wrote:
And a friend of mine's middle name is "H." Just an "H". What were
his parents thinking?

Sherry

- - - - - - - - - - -

Your friend was in pretty good company. Harry Truman did not have a
middle name, just the initial "S."

MaryL

Ben teased me for the longest time when we were first dating. I'd ask
him his middle name and he'd just say "J". I kept after him time after
time after time, asking him what the "J" stood for and he would always
just reply with one word, "J". Finally, after having teased me enough
he answered, "Jay, J A Y, Jay"! DUH!!! ;

--
Hugs,

CatNipped
See all our masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped

See the RPCA FAQ site, created by "Yowie", maintained by Mark Edwards, at:
http://www.professional-geek.net/rpcablog/

Email: L(dot)T(dot)Crews(at)comcast(dot)net

On 2011-08-18 1:22 PM, Matthew wrote:
wrote in message
...
Try going through life *without* a middle name. No one ever believes you
don't have one. People just think it must be something *awful* and you
don't want to tell them. Only my oldest brother has a middle name. My
other brother and I don't have one. My parents didn't have middle names,
either. AFAIK my grandparents didn't have middle names. Sometimes
(poorly designed) web forms insist the middle name field is mandatory so I
have to make something up. I don't really understand the point of middle
names. Is it so if you hate your first name you can use the other one?
(What happens if you don't like either one? LOL)

How many of you folks have a middle name? And if you do, which name do
you go by, the first or the middle?

OB cats: Persia is (as usual) stretched out in a puddle of sunshine
behind my chair. I gave her another nice brushing last night. She purred
like mad

Jill


This is a little off topic but something that only happens with a killer in
the news
If they kill a person they use their full name include their middle name
specially serial killers
IF they attempt or just do harm only their first and last



I suppose it's to reduce the annoyance caused by mis-indentification. If
John Adam Smith is merely charged with pickpocketing under the name
'John Smith', John Alan Smith, John Brian Smith and all the other John
Smiths will probably never hear about it and won't care much if they do.
If, on the other hand, he's convicted of some particularly henious
murder, the other John Smiths might be annoyed at being confused with
him. If they give the full 'John Adam Smith', only other John Adam
Smiths will be annoyed.

--
Cheryl

"CatNipped" wrote in message
...
On 8/18/2011 9:55 AM, jmcquown wrote:
Try going through life *without* a middle name. No one ever believes you
don't have one. People just think it must be something *awful* and you
don't want to tell them. Only my oldest brother has a middle name. My
other brother and I don't have one. My parents didn't have middle names,
either. AFAIK my grandparents didn't have middle names. Sometimes
(poorly designed) web forms insist the middle name field is mandatory so
I have to make something up. I don't really understand the point of
middle names. Is it so if you hate your first name you can use the other
one? (What happens if you don't like either one? LOL)

How many of you folks have a middle name? And if you do, which name do
you go by, the first or the middle?

OB cats: Persia is (as usual) stretched out in a puddle of sunshine
behind my chair. I gave her another nice brushing last night. She purred
like mad

Jill

I was born into a catholic home, and in the catholic religion the middle
name is a saint's name - you get it when you are baptized (in the catholic
religion that's very soon after birth so they just put it on your birth
certificate). Mine is Theresa. You also get a *second* middle name when
you have your confirmation, another saint's name. Mine is Maria. So I'm
stuck with the moniker Lorraine Theresa Maria Reeves (maiden name) Crews.

--
Hugs,

CatNipped

I love the name Theresa! Also Marie. Lorraine makes me think of SNL.
Nothing wrong with that, either!

The Scots had this tradition of using the maternal great grandmother's
maiden name and the maternal grandmother's maiden name as two middle names
for their daughters. My aunt Jean (Jean Brown) was Jeanne Aiken Douglas
Brown. She was married twice but I don't remember the name of her first
husband; he died very young, well before I was born. Of course you tack the
name of your husband on at the end. It gets more complicated with the
second daughter... I think you go back another generation. (I don't
remember and there's no one left to ask.) I do remember my mother would
have been Christina Ditty Laws Brown but her parents decided not to to that
to her. She was just Christina Brown

I'm glad I'm just Jill

Jill