Friday 29 August 2008

What's in a Name?

I'm sitting here in Colorado blogging and watching TV, (the kids and Ball & Chain are playing golf). John McCain has just announced that his running mate for VP is the little known Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin. (Don't worry, I'm not going to go all political on you.)

She has just introduced four of her five children. All very nice. Her eldest daughter, I swear, was introduced as Bristol. Yes, Bristol. Now for us Brits living in the States, strange and made-up names are nothing new. I once worked with a woman whose grand-daughter was called Tangeria. Many American children are given names that sound more like surnames - usually because that's exactly what they started off as. And yes, there are boys and girls walking around with geographical names like London, Dallas, Kenya, Savannah etc.

But Bristol???!!!

I think perhaps someone should take them all aside and have a quiet word. For anyone reading this in complete confusion, I should explain that because of Cockney Rhyming slang, the poor girl might as well be called Boob, Tit, or Knockers. You see, in Cockney rhyming slang, Bristol City is the phrase for titty, and it's often shortened to Bristols, as in "Nice pair of Bristols".

That's all. Tee hee! (I just hope, for her sake, I misheard.)

19 comments:

  1. Just be glad she didn't introduce her fifth child, Thrupenny Bits Palin.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You are totally right, one of her daughters is called Bristol! Her other kids have equally "unique" names. Track, Willow, Piper and Trig. She also eats moose hamburgers. Interesting...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh dear, how unfortunate, I hope she never visits England.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Haha.
    I was introduced to a mom whose son was called, Mitch. His full first-name as it turned out is Mitchigan. Not too crazy for an American, except he lives in Michigan.
    True.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thrupenny bits - never heard that one! Brilliant!
    I have heard of girls called Willow (you have to hope she is like one) and Piper, but two boys called Track and Trig. And McCain is proposing she leads the country should anything happen to him??? She Obviously wasn't thinking big picture when she named the kids - agghh!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I found out after I named my eldest that her name was also a place in England (Hadleigh).

    She really hates her name, but as I am fond of telling her, I could have named her Milton Keynes.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Goes back to that wonderful American name "Randy"...no one can hear that and keep a straight face over here!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Yes EPM, I noticed that in The Times today, her name is really Bristol - how unkind! But what a clever old thing McCain is - it will be interesting to see what comes next. M xx

    ReplyDelete
  9. Not wanting to get all political Margot, I think most Dems are rubbing their hands in glee at this selection!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Expatum, that is Hee-larious! I totally agree about Americans with their strange named kids and my Irish friends in England cringe when I tell them that I know a girl called Rory in the US. It's like calling your daughter Paul. Before I too get all political, I would like to say what I notice here is the feminised versions of men's names like...Philippa, Nigella, etc... Sorry, it's just wrong. Not even Nigella Lawson can make the name Nigella sound good to my ears.

    Sarah Palin is a crazy, unfathomable choice but what's up with Trig and Track? Why not Frick and Frack? Go Obama!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Yes, the first thing that came to mind was Frick and Frack, but I thought it might not translate.
    My son's name, Aidan, was very unusual 12 years ago but is now as common as muck (grr), AND people are now using it for girls. We even have another one in the family over here - female. Mind you, I have a boy's name, and although it's not my fault, it should give me pause. But it never does.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I know of people who named their daughter Brighton. Also, it made the front page news on msnbc that a couple in Billings, Montana had given their son the name Espn, pronounced "Espen". The wife decided that since she had the deciding vote on all the girls they'd had, she was relinquishing her rights and said HE could decide what to their only son should be named. There are no words, really.

    ReplyDelete
  13. You have to wonder what goes through some parents minds when they name their children. I know celebs often come up with something totally OTT, but Gwen Stefani calling her newborn son Zuma Nesta?

    ReplyDelete
  14. Poor kid! The name needs changing! Fast.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I just saw today that's Bristol's also 5 months preggers. I hope she's ready for some hard work, course she'll probably have a ton of nanny's now.
    At least they didn't name her Eartha Kitts!

    ReplyDelete
  16. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  17. OMG Toni ROFLMAO - I just literally heard this on CNN now Bristol is knocked up and said to the hubster you do realise this means tits or boobs!!

    I was about to post on a similar theme after coming across other Brit places as kid's names - watch my space!

    ReplyDelete
  18. We had the same giggle over this.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Wow- I had no idea Bristol meant boobs- that's so ... wrong. Funny, but wrong. :)

    ReplyDelete

The more the merrier....

Blog Archive