Heathen Names

[Psychonaut]

What are you thoughts on the practice that so damn many people in the Heathen community practice: the taking of "Heathen" names?

On the one hand, I can understand why some people who have overtly Christian names (like myself) might want to disassociate themselves from that in order to make a more or less clean break from Christianity. However, since, for most of us anyway, ancestral veneration forms a huge part of the core of our religion, it seems horribly disrespectful to go by a name other than that your parents gave you. This is especially true for surnames, many of which have been preserved through the paternal line for hundreds of years. Additionally, the taking of made up names really seems to be a manifestation of the same kind of SCA mentality that I find so distasteful in much of contemporary Heathenry. I can hardly help but giggle when I find that "Ragnar Halfdansson" is really James Milton or something like that.

[SPQR]

lol I find it rediculous. People need to stop playing make-believe and just go by their real names.

The gods arn't going to look at you in a brighter light just because you call yourself something you got out of a fairy tale

[Baron Samedi]

I see the taking of a "heti" or two to be very useful for magical workings of our folkway (something you and me would understand, Psychonaut).

I would pick just a single heathen-esque name in relation to some of my ancestry. Like Cerderic or something....

But yeah, the whole "Donarsson" surname stuff.... Just a bit too strange for me. Most of our surnames are ancestrally relevant to not have to do that.

[Jägerstaffel]

It's a common way of identifying yourself.

People do it in cults all the time.

I haven't taken any kind of Heathen name and I won't. I hate my given name; as it is Biblical in origin (my mother just liked the way it sounded) and I am very fond of my surname and would never dream of changing it; it's a royal European surname.

I think it's important to respect the name you were given with, but it's also important to identify with our culture that has been removed from us; so I can understand the desire.

I gave my youngest son an Old Norse name, though, so he won't have that problem. :)

As for Ragnar Halfdansson; he's probably a Larping dork bard anyway - so he should be ridiculed mercilessly.

[SPQR]

I gave my youngest son an Old Norse name, though, so he won't have that problem. :)


Awesome, may I ask what it is?

[Jägerstaffel]

Awesome, may I ask what it is?

Sanchez Jose.

[Barreldriver]

As for Ragnar Halfdansson; he's probably a Larping dork bard anyway - so he should be ridiculed mercilessly.

Dork bard = most awesome two words ever!!! lol

I would choose names that generally were used in my family such as Talford, Mainous, Let, Arvell, Johan, Adolfus, Starling, Clifford, while throwing in some more "ethnic" names but keeping them within reason like Eric, Cerdic, Alfred, etc... but would never name my kid something like Byrthnoth lol that would lead to trauma for the child later on, though I do love the name myself.

[Thorum]

Unless I lived in the backwoods of Northern Europe (which I would love), I too think it is funny and "unnatural" some of the names. If I may throw in my personal (limited) experience, I have named my 2 daughters, Linnea Valerie and Alina Leigh (see Photos thread). They fit in here in America (barely) yet give my girls a sense of their heritage too. I hope, as Rafbeorn says, it averts the trauma of having too strange a name. My first name being Leigh sucked here in the States as I was continually being trashed for having a "girl's" name. Sorry, if a bit off-topic.

[Psychonaut]

I see the taking of a "heti" or two to be very useful for magical workings of our folkway (something you and me would understand, Psychonaut).

OK, I should've clarified that. I'm specifically not talking about heiti. :D


I gave my youngest son an Old Norse name, though, so he won't have that problem.

I think that's the best solution. Instead of being so self centered that we forsake the surname of our ancestors and sully the intentions of our parents by altering our names, we can prevent this from happening again by having children and giving them appropriate names. We did, and I hope he'll appreciate it later on.

[Solwyn]

This is an interesting thread. I am enjoying everyone's answers, so I figured I'd throw my 2.5 cents in.

99.9% of the time, I go by Nicole. I see no reason not to, and in most cases, it is my name online just as it is offline. Much easier to get around, LOL, when I'm not having to worry about who knows me by what name. I'm quite pleased with my name which is Germanic in origin, as the first two basically mean battle maiden and pushy bitch, and the last points to what my family did when my ancestors lived in Brittany.

My father picked my first two names for me specifically because they did represent the family heritage, and because of their meaning: I was born two months early and was in frail health, and unfortunately he had to ship out for six months that day. A little bit of folk magic at play - give me the names to give me a leg up in life when he can't be around.

However, that being said, I put a lot of thought into Solwyn - the sort of thought and vision that can only occur when one is dropped into the Canadian Arctic for a bit of self-imposed silence. I highly recommend it. You have no idea just how noisy the world is until you go to a place without wires running everywhere. Aside from the fact that our people come from the north (for the sake of brevity, yes, I am aware of the whole out of Africa theory. LOL) its a great place to stomp, scream, blow snot bubbles, and encounter Mother Jorth at her most inhospitable and beautiful.

Where was I? Oh yeah, names. Just because they sound a little freaky to someone doesn't mean that there wasn't thought put into it - even the Donarssons and Odhinssons of the world probably have reasons for why they chose those names. :thumb001:

It doesn't always mean that those of us who take on a spiritual name are into that role-playing game crap. Lordy be, I can't even get into Tetrus, let alone something that requires me to spend several hours making some little cyber man run around and gather spells and tools. LOL. I've never owned a period outfit, never been to one of those Ren fests, and never done the SCA thing. Never did Viking re-enacting, never did larping, none of it. ;)

My name marks the end of one period of my life and the beginning of the next. Simple as that.

[Brynhild]

My name derives from the Old Welsh Gwenhwyfar, and I wouldn't change that for anything. From what I've seen of those Heathens who have changed their names to something like Sweyn or Ragnar etc, it's their way of looking better than the average Joe Bloggs who are more than happy with themselves, and I treat them with the contempt they deserve - as a joke!

[Gooding]

My first name is quite common in Scotland and Ireland and my middle name is common in England and to a lesser degree in France. The first Andrew was an Andrew Lawson who came here from Coleraine, County Londonderry,Ireland.He was an ancestor on my maternal line.If Frigga is pleased to grant me a son, he'll be an Andrew as well.Robert is from my father's side.Both my Dad and great-grandfather Gooding were Roberts.I see no need to alter my names(well, further.I'd gone by Andy my whole life, but I was Robert Andrew Gooding before I'd changed my name to Andrew Robert McDonald Gooding.I put the Andrew first to keep folks from calling me Bob, which is my father's name).

[Hilding]

"Ragnar Halfdansson"

Halfdan means "Half danish" but also "half done" or not really completed (probably some form of bashing the danes).

About the changing of names, one should be fully aware of what the "new" name stands for symbolically and it should fit with the personality I think. It was common even in the old days to use several names depending on who you were talking to.

[SPQR]

Sanchez Jose.

Hahahahaha! :thumb001:

[Frigga]

I wouldn't change my first name. I like it too much! My mother named me, and it means Worthy of Great Love, or One Who is Loved. When my mom divorced my real dad, and remarried to my step father, who is now Dad to me, I wanted him to adopt me so that I would carry the name of Eriksen, and not Lloyd. It's for personal reasons, mainly hatred of the man who abused me. I never went through with it, but I love my step father just as much as if he had adopted me. I suppose that I carry the Lloyd name with me to this day, because it was being a Lloyd that shaped who I am today. I don't know if I would be precisely who I am without my life experiences. So, I keep my name, as a scar of sorts. Every day that I live without breaking down, and doing myself in, is a day that I've beat him, and I can say that I've survived being a Lloyd. I find the meaning of the name Lloyd interesting as well. It's Welsh, and it means gray. Maybe it means wisdom, maybe it means gray like the sky, or a castle of stone. Or it means haggard, and full of woe. I'm not certian. But, I think that I need to carry this name of mine for a little longer. Because, casting aside this name for a fake one is denying my family, and denying all that I've gone through to get to where I am today.

[pure maiden]

Hello, I am new here, my user name is the meaning of my real name,which is Karen. It is of Danish and Greek origin I think. Scandinavian.


my Middle name is Lynn, which is short for my mothers name Linda which is Spanish for, Pretty. It also means Lake or Water. It is also of English origin.

and my Last Name is Delaney:

("Origins

In its form, Delaney is a Norman name, from De l’aunaie, meaning ‘from the alder grove’, and doubtless some of those bearing the name in Ireland are of Norman stock. However, in the vast
majority of cases it was adopted as the anglicised form of the original Irish O Dubhshlaine, from dubh, meaning, ‘ black’, and slan, meaning ‘defiance’.

The original territory of the O Dubhshlaine was at the foot of the Slieve Bloom mountains in Co. Laois. From there they spread also in neighbouring Co. Kilkenny, and the surname is still strongly associated with these two counties. The most famous historical bearer of the surname was Patrick Delaney (1685-6-1768), Church of Ireland clergyman, renowned preacher and close friend of Jonathan Swift, of whom he wrote a celebrated ‘Defence’.)

My Irish blood derives from KilKenny Ireland as far as I know.

I am proud of my name and my heritage and I wouldn't change it for anything. To me its a slap in the face to my ancestors and my family. Besides I like it so why change it to something else.

Also, If I decided to have children, I all ready know what I would name my Daughter, one of my paternal ancestors had a very cool first name for a girl:

"Honor."

It is a cool sounding name and it is what I would want her to have as well so it works either way. Also its a great name for a boy as well. Another cool ancestral name is: "Lancelot".

My feeling about names is that I don't like Jewish Names or names from the Bible or other non- European cultures as I am not Jewish or Non- European.

So I am glad my parents did not give me one and instead opted for one that reflected more my true heritage. My brothers name as well is Glen Robert Delaney, Glen is a Scottish name and so is Robert my Dads name, which is Robert the Bruce, after our king, king of the Scots.


Anyways I am glad to be here, Hail to everyone here!

[Cato]

The only name of mine that I'm not really fond of is my middle name (Abraham). I've thought about changing it legally to something English, like Edward or Alfred.

What looks better?

Robert Edward/Alfred Wilkins
Robert Abraham Wilkins

To me, not really having an attachment any longer to Christianity, I think that the former stands out. Adopting a heathen nickname, that was what I did when I had my initial nickname here on the forum: hroda, which was apparently used as a nickname for men with longer hrod-prefixed names, like hrodberaht (Robert). If I were to adopt a name like, say, Torulf Odinsson I'd feel silly.

[Hrafn]

I think changing names is an individual issue and it should be treated as such.

Personally, i would never give myself last name other than one i have in my family.My first name is anyway name of an Heathen God and my father and my granny gave me that name. I am happy about that, as well as i am happy that i was not growing up in family which has deep background in any of the worlds major religions.

My late father has died as an Heathen, my grandad was researching and studying Nordic cultures and as my late dad didn't have any belief in Judeo-Christian or Muslim God and my mum can be as well classified as such.
I respect that and carry on the tradition.

[Zankapfel]

My given name is an old Norse name (or Latin as it was written the same), some people look a bit startled when they learn it but I'm often told it's a beautiful name (:

[Kempenzoon]

Personally I consider the silly alternative names to be an SCA/Wicca thing mostly, and I tend not to take those people too seriously. Though it obviously depends from name to name as well. If someone names themselves Aglarond Shadowsoul irl ... that to me says a lot.

Personally I don't really have this problem though, so maybe it's easy for me to criticise it. My first name does come from Old Germanic and while it's not a strictly "heathen" name, it's still connected to both my roots and to nature.

edit: Well, to be fair, according to my parents, they picked the name as a Dutch derivative of a Roman Emperor's name. But the fact remains that this name existed in some form before these areas were Romanised, and as such the Romanised explanation of the name meaning is an anachronism and I only accept the original Germanic interpretation.

[Piparskeggr]

Well, where I came from to Asatru, one assumed names of a faithful or "magickal" nature, to compliment one's given name. So, for me, it was just a habit to have a name to be known by in the community. Also, I've lived in the "Bible Belt," where an alias is a handy thing to have. Though it is quite easy to find out my given name, as I usually have it somewhere, anywhere, I post.

As a Roman Catholic boy, I was "confirmed" as Stewart, which is my dad's name, not a saint's as the priest wanted.

I was known as Mountain Runner when I was looking into Native American ways, particularly Mohawk.

My "magickal name" in Wicca was Watcher (never got initiated, so no Lord Watcher occurred ,-)

Stefn is just a variant on Steven, my given name.

Ullarsson, because I believe that Uller gifted me with a vision-dream-seeing of him, welcoming me home to the Northern Folkway.

Piparskeggr is a nickname given me in my earliest days of contact with other Asafolk about 18 - 19 years ago, when my beard was much more a coarse ground black pepper color than its current mostly salt ,-)

Heck, my great grandfather changed his name to Robinson when he came over to the US from Lithuania, so he'd be accepted better.

However one chooses, so long as you do not deny who you are...no foul.

Be well - Steven Patrick Stewart Robinson, aka Pip o' the many names =)

[asulf]

For my part I lost my parents, changed my name "Marc" Greco Roman (Martykos) in Greek for the renter Mars, the god of war asulf Wolfgang Germanic and more like my name, family name right "Germain "No I like it that relates to Rome and its legions ... I am Pagan and Ulfhednar So act

[Hrimskegg]

My name is more Christian than I'd like it to be. My first name is Zacrey, which means...down the line: "God Recalled." I would really rather not be recalled by the Christian God, ever (no offense to him). The rest of my name is Monte, or tip of the mountain and Hansen, son of Hans (which is a Germanic bastardization of John). In the end, I'm seriously considering a change to my first name, and my father who gave it to me is a serious deadbeat. I'm also very fond of patronymic conventions, and I'd hate to have my children bare the last name Zacreysen.

Anyway, until I find a decent first name, Hrimskegg(r) (Frostbeard) will have to do.