Re: Naming Patterns
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In reply to:
Re: Naming Patterns
Carole Egan 10/27/13
There was a tradition of naming children according to the following rules:
The 1st son was usually named after the father's father
The 2nd son was usually named after the mother's father
The 3rd son was usually named after the father
The 4th son was usually named after the father's eldest brother
The 5th son was usually named after the mother's eldest brother
The 1st daughter was usually named after the mother's mother
The 2nd daughter was usually named after the father's mother
The 3rd daughter was usually named after the mother
The 4th daughter was usually named after the mother's eldest sister
The 5th daughter was usually named after the father's eldest sister
The problem with relying too heavily on naming patterns is that, apart from the fact that not all families followed it, there are lots of things that can upset it. Common ones that I have encountered are when the father and either of the grandparents have the same name. So you obviously can’t have two or even three sons all with the same name, so a different name must be used instead; if a child dies young, then it was common practice to re-use the name. And if you don’t know about the death, your analysis of who they were named after will be completely wrong; Or if a close relative had just died and their name was used out of respect. I have also noticed that many families liked to name the odd child after the local Minister/Priest, schoolteacher or a relative with no children of their own. So for all these reasons, whilst tradition says, for example, that the 4th son was usually named after the father's eldest brother, it isn’t always so.
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Re: Naming Patterns
Carole Egan 11/10/13