Photo pinched from the Internet especially for Adrian....
Uma Karuna Thurman, the Kill Bill star, who had her first child by
Arpad Busson in July, finally revealed her baby’s name a few weeks ago –
Rosalind Arusha Arkadina Altalune Florence Thurman-Busson. She is to be known as Luna. It may seem long-winded but Luna has a pretty
short name by comparison with some.
In 1966 bricklayer Peter O'Sullivan decided that any old name
would not do for his third child, a girl. Her name should honour his favourite
Liverpool soccer team (plus its manager, coach and trainer). I wonder what Paula St. John Lawrence Lawler
Byrne Strong Yeats Stevenson Callaghan Hunt Milne Smith Thompson Shankley
Bennett Paisley O'Sullivan called herself in later life?
Perhaps the most burdensome name ever given to a child was to the
daughter of Arthur and Sarah Jane Pepper, another Liverpudlian couple, in
1882. The laundryman gave his daughter
one name for every letter of the alphabet, in this way: Anna Bertha Cecilia
Diana Emily Fanny Gertrude Hypatia Inez Jane Kate Louise Maud Nora Ophelia
Quince Rebecca Starkey Teresa Ulysses Venus Winifred Xenophon Yetty Zeno
Pepper. She was born on 19 December 1882
in West Derby, Liverpool, England, and registered in that area in January
1883. (Some sources give her 'S' name as
Sarah but the name Starkey can be seen on the certificate.)
By contrast, Ivy is a pretty short name. Perhaps
Son-who-watches -films should have made more of an effort? How about Lovely Intelligent Vivacious Energetic Rascally Photogenic Observant Opportunistic
Ladylike Feline Companion or Liverpool FC
for short? I mean, Ivy for short.
Introductions
Did you know a cat has an eco-footprint comparable to a Volkswagen
Golf. I’m not sure who measured that, or
how, but it sounds impressive. Does that mean that if Ivy does a high mileage she becomes a Rolls Royce?
Daughter-who-takes-photos and Son-in-law-and-Friend-who-loves-Otters called in on Friday and met Ivy for the first time. It was love at first sight.
Exploring new friends.
Packaged up, ready to send to the USA, if Daughter-who-takes-photos doesn't steal her first....
She needs a lot bigger box than she did a month ago.
The Museum
I haven't forgotten that I promised you a trip to the upstairs of the new Liverpool Museum. The post is drafted...
LOL! I love the photos of Ivy meeting her relatives! Made me smile.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I often think when I hear of adults with burdensomely (is that a word?)long names, what those poor kids had to go through in school learning to write his/her name!!! That would be torture!
'Burdensomely' sounds like a good word for it to me!
DeleteThanks John, much appreciated.
ReplyDeleteBloody silly names for a little girl though. I wonder has she been socialising with the Beckhams.
Good looking son along with good looking cat. He, the son, has kind eyes.
ReplyDeleteIvy never fails to bring a smile to my face and let me utter a wistful "aaaaaaw!" when I look at her pictures. My mind instantly switches to 3-year-old mode, going "I WANT ONE!", but my 44-year-old sensible Librarian mind manages to keep the 3-year-old at bay, and I don't think I'll have another cat anytime soon. Then again, who knows...
ReplyDeleteAs for names, I do not even have a middle name. My parents didn't deem that necessary for either of their children.
I bet the 3 year old wins eventually!
DeleteThis is very funny! And I love the hyphenated "nicknames" that you use for family members. Very clever. k.
ReplyDeleteThanks Karin. I have to confess the overall idea wasn't original - I came across it on the blog of a very bright (in all senses) young lady blogger called 'L'Archiduchess' who, sadly, has disappeared from blogdom.
DeleteSeems a bit tedious. I prefer names like Ivy, Max and Rocky.
ReplyDeleteFrom the novel Damnation Alley by Roger Joseph Zelazny, we have Hell Tanner, a name that holds a great deal of fascination for a teenager who enjoys science fiction. Zelazny even had an explanation:
The seventh (and youngest) child in his family, he received his unusual moniker when the nurse asked what name to put on the birth certificate. His father answered "Hell" and left the room.
Let the powers that be track that one through our public school system. Ha!
Good one, Jack!
DeleteI would hate to be the one having to register all those names to the birth certificate! I wonder if they have extra long ones for weirdos who give their kiddos all those names? Although I am quite fond of "Starkey"...since it's my last name! At work they all just call me "Starko"..except for one Doc who calls me "Starcasm". Hmmmm, I wonder why? Your cat is so cute...much cuter than mine. Wait, Squeak isn't not cute..she's just not nice. Maybe a box sent to England would be the answer??
ReplyDeleteAh, poor Squeak. I blame the parents myself - the sire and dam, that is! You know the saying 'Give me a cat until she's five weeks and she's mine for ever' or something like that.
DeleteI like the names you've chosen for your family members to identify them by...cute. I'm a cat person too and love the name Ivy. I wonder what the thinking is behind giving a child a list of names..I just don't get it, when they're going to end up using just one. And when they are asked to put down their entire legal name for something...well, that's just a shame.
ReplyDeleteHear, hear.
DeleteYou already pointed out what struck me most about these pictures... she's getting SO BIG already!!! *sniffle*
ReplyDeleteAll the better to cause chaos...
DeleteWhere did her youth go? It seems like only yesterday she... Come to think of it, it was only yesterday.
Yeah Ivy!!
ReplyDeleteI would probably have spent the entire evening playing with her as well....she is a cutie.
I can't imagine having a first grader with such long convoluted names! How egotistical of the parents, I think.
ReplyDeleteOf course, I love the photos of Ivy. Longing for someone like her, I mull, then that two cats are more than enough!
cheers!
I think Ivy seems a very appropriate name for your cat - and practical. (Just imagine having to call out a dozen names to try and catch her attention...)
ReplyDeleteI find it hard to understand the point of giving a child half a dozen long names even though knowing from start that you'll end up calling her something completely different "for short"!
Ivy may be pracrical but it's hard to remember to use it. She's 'Puss, puss,' or Ivy Puss,' or 'That darn cat' most of the time.
DeleteJohn,
ReplyDeleteJust wondering...am I the only one who wonders if the girl with the alphabet names, the "S" for "Starkey", could she be related to Ringo from the Beatles? His name is really Richard Starkey. I hope that YAYA knows that since that was her maiden name!
No one mentioned a word about him, and I, being a big Beatles fan, must stand up and recognize Ringo. I always loved him, and still do!
Great post by the way, I go by my middle name, it was just what I was always called. When you are one of FIVE, your parents can't be bothered to call out too many syllables!
There are a lot of Starkeys in the Liverpool phone book so I suspect any relationship may well be pretty far removed, Kay.
DeleteI was christened Clive John so I too use my middle name. I used to be called Clive but prefer John so I changed it when I met She-who-must-be-obeyed, I mean Partner-who-loves-tea.