Just an excerpt:
Name: Misteri Nigger, second "i" silent. No, said the California Court of Appeal in 1992, because it constitutes "fighting words": "[I]f a man asks appellant his name and he answers 'Mister Nigger,' the man might think appellant was calling him 'Mister Nigger.' Moreover, third persons, including children hearing the epithet, may be embarrassed, shocked or offended by simply hearing the word. This example illustrates how use of the name may be 'confusing' with the potential for violence." Definitely does sound like asking for trouble; "Russell Lawrence Lee" is much safer. [Lee v. Superior Court, 9 Cal. App. 4th 510
(1992).]
I love that "fighting words" line.
You can find more incredible(ulous) stories of names at this link: http://www.slate.com/id/2196204/pagenum/all/#page_start
Now, what would YOU change your name to if you truly hated your given one?
3 comments:
Nice article!! I think they made a mistake however. There is no second 'g' in the term "fightin' words". The term is uaually preceeded by the words "Thems is".
I would like to be named '&'- pronounced: Ampersand. What do you think?
LOL!
Actually I think I would change my name to:
First name: Da
Last name: Bizomb
That way my voicemail would say something to the effect of, "Hello. Yes, you have reached Da Bizomb. Unfortunately I am a bit busy right now to take your call because I am Da Bizomb. But your call is very important to me so please leave a message and I will return your call as soon as other people leave Da Bizomb alone."
Way back when I used to work in branch banking there was a child whose name was Patti Cake. I can't imagine what happened to her. The parents must have had a weird sense of humor.
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