By Don L. F. Nilsen and Alleen Pace Nilsen Onomastic Variation By Don L. F. Nilsen and Alleen Pace Nilsen

Acronyms, Initialisms and Numbers O. J. Simpson ( was known as the juice and was a spokesman for Orange Juice). Tony Dorset had the initials T.D. meaning “touchdown.” Note that Siddhartha Gautama and Jesus of Nazareth are known by their roles—Buddha and Christ or Savior. In Peanuts there are characters named 3, 4, and 5.

Jesus a.k.a.?

Aliases (a.k.a.) Barry Humphreys, Bruce Banner, Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent, Peter Parker, Wolverine  Dame Edna, The Hulk, Batman, Superman, Spiderman; Wolverine’s aliases depend on the situation Note that Superman has to become Clark Kent to keep from being a superhero, while Bruce Wayne hides his identity by becoming Batman. Prince  the artist formerly known as Prince. He is also known as “The Love Symbol.”

The Love Symbol a.k.a. ?

Hugh Jackman a.k.a. ?

Then there are the doppelgangers, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr Then there are the doppelgangers, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Tweedledum and Tweedledee, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. There are also code names like POTUS for Barack Obama FLOTUS for Michelle Obama Sawhorse for Al Gore Angler for Dick Cheney Evergreen for Hillary Clinton Phoenix for John McCain.

FLOTUS a.k.a. ?

Anagrams In the Lemony Snicket books, Count Olaf is an anagram of Al Funcoot Foreman Flacutono and Dr. O. Lucafont. In the Harry Potter books, Tom Marvolo Riddle is an anagram of “I am Lord Voldemort.”

Aptronyms in John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress Christian Faithful Mr. Brisk Mr. Great Heart Mr. Honest Giant Despair Giant Grim Madam Bubble Mr. Despondency Mr. Moneylove Mrs. Bats-Eyes

Foreman Flacutono a.k.a. ?

Brand Names Blendings Efferdent toothpaste Danskin tights Allerest allergy medicine Slimnastics Mylanta antacid medicine

Associations Chevrolet Lumina Honda Acura Mitsubishi Precis Nissan Maxima Nissan Altima Sentra Car Volkswagen Jetta

Mexico City Zoo: Ying Ying Washington D.C. Zoo: Ling Ling Hsing-Hsing London Zoo: Chia-Chia As a mark of affection, Chinese parents often give their children double names. Since Pandas are native only to China, Pandas also receive double names.

Misspellings Sunkist Oranges Jello Dessert DieHard Batteries Evenflo baby bottles Klos kids’ clothing Mop & Glo cleaner Sew n’ Vac repairs

Shortened Phrases

“X-Rated” Brands Sinex medicine Sominex medicine Xerox Kotex Clorox Exxon Kleenex Ford Ranger XLT Hyundai Excel

Character Names In Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind she had a character named Pansy. On the advice of her editor she changed the name to Scarlett O’Hara.

Cryptonyms James Bond, Karl Malone 007, The Mailman (because of his number 32, the cost of a stamp at that time, and because “he delivers!”) In Get Smart Maxwell Smart was Agent 86 and his sidekick was Agent 99.

Karl Malone a.k.a. ?

Gender Identifications Authors like S. E. Hinton and J. K. Rowling use initials. And Mary Evans  George Eliot.

Toward Ethnicity Cassius Clay, Daniel Michaeli, David Cornwell, Jerry Rivers, Lesane Parish Crooks, Lew Alcindor, Susan Weaver  Muhammad Ali, Danny DeVito, John Le Carré, Geraldo Rivera, Tupac Amaru Shakur, Kareem Abdul Jabar, Sigourney Weaver

Cassius Clay a.k.a.?

Away from Ethnicity Aaron Chwatt, Avram Chomsky, Bernard Schwartz, Carlos Estevez, Carlos Ray, David Kaminsky, Dino Crocetti, Doris von Kappelhoff, Enrique Martin Morales, Frederick Austerlitz, Gerald Silberman  Red Buttons, Noam Chomsky, Tony Curtis, Charlie Sheen, Chuck Norris, Danny Kaye, Dean Martin, Doris Day, Ricky Martin, Fred Astaire, Gene Wilder

Frederick Austerlitz a.k.a. ?

Jacob Cohen, Jennifer Anastassakis, Joan Molinsky, Jonathan Leibowitz, Joseph Levitch, Larry Zeigler, Louise Ciccone Ritchie, Margarita Cansino, Melvin Kaminsky, Paul Rubenfeld, Raquel Tejada, Salvatore Bono, Winona Horowitz  Rodney Dangerfield, Jennifer Aniston, Joan Rivers, Jon Stewart, Jerry Lewis, Larry King, Madonna, Rita Hayworth, Mel Brooks, Pee-Wee Herman, Raquel Welch, Sonny Bono, Winona Ryder

Jacob Cohen a.k.a. ?

Toward Formality Andre Young, Dana Owens, Frances Gumm, Gary Keillor, James Bumbarner Dr. Dre, Queen Latifah, Judy Garland, Garrison Keillor, James Garner NOTE: We don’t normally go in this direction. We would prefer to be thought of as informal and maybe a bit off beat.

Frances Gumm a.k.a. ?

Away from Formality Aaron Chwatt, Allen Konigsberg, Caryn Johnson, Clerow Wilson, Cordazer Broadus, Dante Smith, David Atkins, Gordon Sumner, James Osterberg, James Smith, John Sanford, Joseph Keaton Red Buttons, Woody Allen, Whoopi Goldberg, Flip Wilson, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Mos Def, Sinbad, Sting, Iggy Pop, LL Cool J, Redd Foxx, Buster Keaton The rapper Christopher Wallace  Notorious B.I.G. and then  “Biggie Smalls.”

Caryn Johnson a.k.a. ?

Away from Formality Curtis Jackson, Leonard Hackett, Louis Armstrong, Marshall Mathers, Marvin Aday, Milton Superman, Oshea Jackson, Otha Bates, Phyllis Driver, Robert Van Winckle, Salvatore Bono, Scott Thompson, Shelton Lee, Stanley Burrell, Tracy Morrow  50 Cent, Buddy Hacket, Satchmo, Eminem, Meat Loaf, Soupy Sales, Ice Cube, Bo Diddley, Phyllis Diller (note assonance), Vanilla Ice, Sonny Bono, Carrott Top, Spike Lee, M. C. Hammer, Ice-T

Louis Armstrong a.k.a. ?

Away from Old Fashioned Herbert Gleason, Goldie Studlendgehawn, Malcolm Little, Marion Michael Morrison (also away from gender ambiguity) Jackie Gleason, Goldie Hawn, Malcolm X, John Wayne

Marion Michael Morrison a.k.a. ?

Nicknames Donald, Edward, Elizabeth, Francis, Gerald, Harold, Jacqueline, John, Joseph, Josephine, Judith, Leonard, Lucille, Margaret, Marjorie, Melvin, Nicholas, Patrick, Richard, Robert, Salvatore, Samuel, Susan, Theodore, Thomas, William  Don, Ed, Lizzy/Lisa/Beth/Betsy/Elsbeth, Frank, Jerry, Harry/Hal, Jackie, Johnny/Jack, Joe, Jo (in Little Women), Judy, Leo, Lucy, Maj/Margo/Maggie/Meg/ Marge/Peggy/Peg, Mel, Nick (this is his “nick-name,” Pat, Dick, Bob, Sal, Sam, Sue/Suzie/Suzie Que, Ted, Tom, Will/Bill/Billie

Patronyms (first names become last names) Brian, Casey, Connor, Donald, Gerald, Jack, John, Murry, Neil, Owen, Patrick, Reilly, Ryan, Will  O’Brian, O’Casey, O’Connor, McDonald/O’Donald, Fitzgerald, Jackson, Johnson, McMurry, Neilsen/McNeil/O’Neil, Bowen (Ap Owen), Fitzpatrick, O’Reilly, O’Ryan, Wilson

Pen Names Charles Dodgson, Daniel Handler, Richard Bachman, Samuel Clemens  Lewis Carroll, Lemony Snicket, Stephen King, Mark Twain And Theodore Seuss Geisel  Dr. Seuss, Theo Le Seig, and Rosetta Stone

Samuel Clemens a.k.a. ?

In the early 1800s, Louisa May Alcott’s father, Bronson, changed their family name. The name Allcox became Alcott.

Louisa May Alcott

When Ernest Hemingway was in high school (1916-1917) he used all of the following pen names: B. S. E. H. Ernest Hemingway Ernest MacNamara Hemingway Ernest Michaelowitch Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway

Pet Names These names tend to be mild insults. Please tell us the pet names of people you know. For example: I have a cat that I call “Dipper Hips.” That’s my cat’s “pet name.” My own name is Don Lee Fred Nilsen, so people used to call me Dolphin (DLFN). When people call me Donald, I correct them by saying, “No, Donald is the duck.” In the army I went to German operas, so my buddies called me “Fledermaus.”

Fledermaus a.k.a. ?

Pseudonyms Mary  Maria  Marianne “Ave Maria,” marionnette Note that in the music industry most of the Pseudonyms are quite dark or playful, like the following: Alien, Buck Satan, Hypo Luxa, Jello Biafra

Recycling of Names David Copperfield (Dickens Character), Dolly Parton (Country Singer), & Englebert Humperdink (Opera Composer), Yogi Berra (baseball catcher)  David Copperfield (magician, né David Kotkin), Dolly (sheep cloned from a mammary gland), & Englebert Humperdink (singer, né Arnold Dorsey), Yogi Bear (cartoon character) On Lost, the con-man James Ford takes on the alias of “Sawyer” from another con-man who goes by the name of “Tom Sawyer.” He is part capitalist (Ford) and part con-man “Sawyer.”

Who is it? A.K.A.?

The Name Jacques in France In France, the non-aristocrats were called “La Jacquerie.” Originally this referred to any peasant or non-aristocrat, but later it referred to the “peasant uprising” that marched from Marseille to Paris and stormed the Bastille. In Charles Dickens’ Tale of Two Cities, three of the characters are named Jacques 1, Jacques 2 and Jacques 3.

Stage Names In 1920, Alan Bolt became America’s first important sexy movie star. But first, he had to change his name to Rudolph Valentino.

Rudolph Valentino

But he went back to his original name, telling his agent, “They can learn!” In his first movie, Arnold Schwarzenegger went by the name of Arnold Strong. His agent told him that Americans would never say Schwarzenegger.

Arnold Schwartzenegger

Symbolic Names Casanova, Don Juan, Sam, St. Patrick  a casanova, Byron’s Don Juan, and Mozart’s Don Giovanni, *Uncle Sam, St. Patrick’s Day *Note “Uncle Sam”  “United States.”

United States a.k.a. ?

Place Names When settlers came to Arizona, they invented such place names as: Carefree Golden Valley Inspiration, Paradise Valley Phoenix Tucson

Booze Crossing Contention Del Muerto Grasshopper Junction Hookers Hot Springs Tombstone But people just passing through Arizona invented such names as:

Toponymic Names Cody, Montana, Tex, The Virginian Chevy Chase, Dakota Fanning, Indiana Jones, Minnesota Fats, Rock Hudson & Tennessee Williams Cornelius Chase, Henry Deutschendorf, Janet Rasmussen, River Bottom  Chevy Chase, John Denver, Janet Reno, River Phoenix

Harrison Ford a.k.a. ?

Names Web Sites American Name Society: http://www.wtsn.binghamton.edu/ANS/ Baby Names: http://nameberry.com/