Tuesday 3 September 2013

What's in a name?

Today's prompt from The Daily Post is:

Do you know the meaning of your name, and why your parents chose it? Do you think it suits you? What about your children's names?

My name is Silvia.

The first and last time I checked its meaning was in Grade 6 when I had to complete an assignment. It means something along the lines of 'girl in the woods' or 'girl in the forest' or 'girl in a place that's green and nature-y and filled with dangerous animals that would eat her as soon as she tried going feral'.

In that sense, no, my name doesn't suit me. I couldn't survive in the wild for even a day.

However, I've been thinking about my name in another sense. Just the other day, my Short Fiction tutor said my name is something to live up to. I'm assuming he was talking about Sylvia Plath, which is pretty cool because she was a great writer and I'm aspiring to be a great writer. I was happy he made that remark, at least until I remember Sylvia Plath committed suicide. Still, my name gives me a goal and I love it all the more for that.

Sylvia Plath

As for my children's names... don't get me started. I don't have children yet and I don't plan to for a long time, but those poor things are going to hate me for their ridiculous names. It's very likely I'll name them like I name my characters because they're both my babies. Wren, Junia, Mell, Alcor and Feri are some right off the top of my head. But I might go in another direction and name my children after my favourite anime characters. Ace, Zoro, Nico Robin and Law.

Nico Robin from One Piece

Either way, I'll be naming my children with love and I hope they'll learn to accept their names as I have accepted mine.