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Weird Personal Names

Tunn11 said:
We had a big debate at work about name badges. The powers that be wanted at least given names on the badges but some staff objected. The main reason being they said was that someone who'd found out their name could call to them in the street and they would think it was someone who knew them and be off their guard, particularly going home on late nights.

The powers that be attended a meeting with the concerned in the library with them and seemed to be at least partly persuaded by the above argument. However as they left the meeting and walked through a busy library another member of staff held a 'phone out to one of the staff from the meeting and yelled. "'Ere Gill, your Joe's on the 'phone; shall I put it through to the staff room?"
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We have our names on badges and we HAVE to wear said badges all the time on shift (presumably so customers know who to complain about). Nobody has ever shouted my name out, although some customers do find it...not funny, exactly, but I think there may be an element of control in it, to use our names continually during an interaction. Almost as though they are warning us that they know our names so we can't pretend that this interaction didn't happen...
 
In a previous job (many moons ago) that required name tags, I was speaking to a customer who, after a while, referred to me by my first name. Initially it took me aback, as I thought, how do you know my name, outside of this conversation, where I've never met you before? Took me a while before I realised!
 
We have to wear badges with full name on at all times in my work place. I think it would be a good idea that if they do this that they add pronouns too. Might as well if we have to have ID badges anyway.
 
catseye said:
We have our names on badges and we HAVE to wear said badges all the time on shift (presumably so customers know who to complain about). Nobody has ever shouted my name out, although some customers do find it...not funny, exactly, but I think there may be an element of control in it, to use our names continually during an interaction. Almost as though they are warning us that they know our names so we can't pretend that this interaction didn't happen...
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Yes it was about identifying people to blame. TBH it didn't bother me but when they started talking about invented names or numbers I did ask for No6 (Spelt VI).

Honestly I'm not normally an awkward ******* but that place drove me and many others to it. Many just moaned to the union others came up with names like Edna Bagge - they asked for it.
 
The hospital I worked at required all employees to wear name badges with full name and photo. Most of us just wore them backwards.

Now many places that require badges only have person's given name because of people's concerns for safety, especially working with public.
 
Delightful said:
We have to wear badges with full name on at all times in my work place. I think it would be a good idea that if they do this that they add pronouns too. Might as well if we have to have ID badges anyway.
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I get mistaken for a man All The Time (I have short hair. That is all. In no other way do I look like a man!), so I now have a real understanding of how it feels to be misgendered, and I'd go for having pronouns on our name badges if it would do away with 'oy! Mate! Oh, sorry like, I fort you wuz a bloke...'
 
Delightful said:
I think it would be a good idea that if they do this that they add pronouns too. Might as well if we have to have ID badges anyway.
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I think it's a good idea if we stay on topic and avoid divisive social-media fodder.
 
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I've just come across someone who spelled their first name all in capitals (but not their surname). Bit odd. Looks like an acronym. AKOS.
 
catseye said:
I suppose Mitzy might be a pet or nick name of course. I do hope so. Great name for a cat, not so much for a child that's going to grow up...
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ramonmercado said:
I know someone who had a dog called Mitzy.
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Erinaceus said:
A fan of the actress Mitzi Gaynor?
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catseye said:
Mitzi just makes me think of the phrase 'Mitzi Gaynor and her nasty plywood teeth', which I think was the Pythons.
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Or biker parents who are fans of Ogri and his girlfriend, Mitzi.
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brownmane said:
The hospital I worked at required all employees to wear name badges with full name and photo. Most of us just wore them backwards.

Now many places that require badges only have person's given name because of people's concerns for safety, especially working with public.
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Some places - such as hospitals and government buildings - require ID badges, if only to prevent imposters. As an arena cleaner (Wow! Poetry!), we were issued with them, as we had contact with the public including children. It's accepted that you can tuck it into your pocket or shirt - firstly it keeps it out of your way and secondly, it's available should someone request it. Usually, though, the name is so small, it's hard to read rapidly.
When it comes to name badges ("Hi! I am ..."), it's very much a corporate thing to pretend a friendliness and approachability between staff and customer. I feel it's only recently considered a personal security issue, as getting someone's name and place of work is a good jumping-off point to intrusion on the internet - which wasn't an issue in earlier decades.
 
Stormkhan said:
Some places - such as hospitals and government buildings - require ID badges, if only to prevent imposters. As an arena cleaner (Wow! Poetry!), we were issued with them, as we had contact with the public including children. It's accepted that you can tuck it into your pocket or shirt - firstly it keeps it out of your way and secondly, it's available should someone request it. Usually, though, the name is so small, it's hard to read rapidly.
When it comes to name badges ("Hi! I am ..."), it's very much a corporate thing to pretend a friendliness and approachability between staff and customer. I feel it's only recently considered a personal security issue, as getting someone's name and place of work is a good jumping-off point to intrusion on the internet - which wasn't an issue in earlier decades.
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Yup, all good points.
My photo ID displaying my full name has to be worn at all times when I'm in work. Most have it on a lanyard but I've refused on safety grounds; 1. It could catch in something and more likely, 2. It's a personal and work security risk.

So mine is clipped to the D-ring I installed over a front trouser pocket for that very purpose. I can produce it when necessary but nobody can read my name unless I do.

Haven't yet been challenged by managers over this. Can't wait for that to happen as I'll be launching into a tirade about how workers have been identified, tracked down, intimidated and compromised by various criminal elements.
Can back this up as I did a paper on it for my Criminology MA. Terrifying.
 
Lord Lucan said:
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A quick search shows at least 10 people called Peace Eshiet on Linked In. As this is for business/professional profiles, I assume they're real names rather than jokes.

Peace, or Peacelyn, seem to be fairly common names in Nigeria, and Eshiet is too. I think it's actually pronounced as 3 syllables, "eh, shee, ett" which doesn't make it any less funny to an Anglophone when they see it written down.

I used to have a school mate called Kamaljit. I'm sure that is a common enough name in his culture, but we pronounced it "camel sh*t" which he generally took with good humour.

The start of the thread was about weird personal names. A name that is common in culture A is not weird just because it is unfamiliar in culture B. However, when it happens to sound like an unfortunate expression in language B, I suppose it counts as weird.

I vaguely recall that there was a car (Fiat?) that didn't sell well in some South American country because the name sounded the same as their word for "dog sh*t". Decades later, I don't know if it was true, or just another anti-Fiat joke.
 
Mikefule said:
I vaguely recall that there was a car (Fiat?) that didn't sell well in some South American country because the name sounded the same as their word for "dog sh*t". Decades later, I don't know if it was true, or just another anti-Fiat joke.
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It must have been the Mazda Laputa ("la puta" meaning "the prostitute" in Spanish, it wasn't a commercial success in Spanish speaking countries, even if the aforementioned car did not suck ...).
 
AmStramGram said:
It must have been the Mazda Laputa ("la puta" meaning "the prostitute" in Spanish, it wasn't a commercial success in Spanish speaking countries, even if the aforementioned car did not suck ...).
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I did some Googling. I have not independently verified these. I couldn't identify the Fiat that means dog sh*t.


Toyota MR2 stood for ‘Midship (engined) Runabout 2-seater’, but, sadly, in French ‘MR2’ happens to sound exactly like merde (sh*t)

Buick La Crosse launched in 2005 in the USA, the name LaCrosse referencing the sport. Across the border in Canada, however, it needed a new name, as ‘LaCrosse’ is slang for masturbation.

Isuzu: a small truck with a tipper rear was introduced with the name ‘Light Dump’. (Needs no clarification!)

Mazda truck called the Titan Dump. (Same idea.)

Audi E-Tron. Étron actually means turd in French.

Audi TT Coupe allegedly sounds to the French like tete coupé (head cut off).

Mitsubishi T-Box (a small ban) can be re-spaced as Mitsubi sh*t box.

Fiat Uno. Uni is Finnish for fool.

Honda Fit/Honda Jazz. They were going to call it the Fitta, but that is a rude word for the female genitals in some Scandinavian languages.

Chrysler PT Cruiser - a vehicle that many car enthusiasts think of as a sad parody of a real hot rod. Sometimes referred to as the Pity Cruiser.

Lamborghini Reventón apparently means burst tyre in Spanish.

VW Jetta. In Spanish, a jetta is a losing streak, or a run of bad luck.

Ford Pinto. Pinto = small penis in Brazil.

Citroen C-Métisse. Métisse was intended to refer to it having the hybrid option to run in 4 wheel drive, front wheel drive, or rear wheel drive. Unfortunately, a common French meaning of Métisse is bastard.

Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. In German, mist is dirt or crap.

Ford Kuga may sound like cougar (itself, a slang term for sexually predatory older woman) but in Slovenian and Serbo Croation, it means pestilence or black death.

The Mitsubishi i-MiEV (Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle). In German, Miev is a smell.

VW Vento. It may go as fast as the wind (probably) but in Italian it is a colloquial term for fart.

Chevrolet Nova, and Lada Nova. No va means doesn't work or won't go in Spanish.

Daihatsu Scat. Scat is animal poo.

Mazda Laputa. La Puta = female dog or prostitute. However, Laputa was also a fictional island in Gulliver's Travels.

Mitsubishi Pajero. In some Spanish languages/dialects, Pajero means w*nker.

Hyundai Kona. In Portugese, kona = c*nt.

Also, from my own memory, the motorcycle, Yamaha TDM, not considered a particularly exciting bike, and it is often affectionately referred to as the tedium.
 
escargot said:
Yup, all good points.
My photo ID displaying my full name has to be worn at all times when I'm in work. Most have it on a lanyard but I've refused on safety grounds; 1. It could catch in something and more likely, 2. It's a personal and work security risk.

So mine is clipped to the D-ring I installed over a front trouser pocket for that very purpose. I can produce it when necessary but nobody can read my name unless I do.

Haven't yet been challenged by managers over this. Can't wait for that to happen as I'll be launching into a tirade about how workers have been identified, tracked down, intimidated and compromised by various criminal elements.
Can back this up as I did a paper on it for my Criminology MA. Terrifying.
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Most hospitality have done away with name badges in my experience. The last place I worked at still used them although I didn't have to wear one as I worked in the kitchen.

I don't want complete strangers to know my name. As you've pointed out that's open to abuse. All they need to know is what's for sale and how much it is. I remember when tripadvisor was still new, a bloke I know was asked what the soup of the day was and he joked, just banter, "Heinz 57" .. then went on to tell them the real soup. Just a bit of harmless friendly fun to add a personal touch to his service. He was wearing his name badge so got named personally in a scathing online review.

When I was cooking at Morrisons, I used to trade my name badge with a waitress for a laugh and nobody ever said anything. A mate in another department hated his boss so much, when it was his boss's day off, he'd wear his name badge instead and be rude to customers on purpose. :chuckle:
 
Stormkhan said:
I'd say that ID/name tags as a management 'intimidation' tool is a long stretch.
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At worst, they're tracking devices and all it takes is one unreasonable customer who can't get their own way reporting someone to one manager who's looking at making cutbacks and you've got Stormkhan written on a badge and pinned to you chest. Good luck with asking the unreasonable customer their name because they won't tell you that.
 
Mikefule said:
I did some Googling. I have not independently verified these. I couldn't identify the Fiat that means dog sh*t.


Toyota MR2 stood for ‘Midship (engined) Runabout 2-seater’, but, sadly, in French ‘MR2’ happens to sound exactly like merde (sh*t)

Buick La Crosse launched in 2005 in the USA, the name LaCrosse referencing the sport. Across the border in Canada, however, it needed a new name, as ‘LaCrosse’ is slang for masturbation.

Isuzu: a small truck with a tipper rear was introduced with the name ‘Light Dump’. (Needs no clarification!)

Mazda truck called the Titan Dump. (Same idea.)

Audi E-Tron. Étron actually means turd in French.

Audi TT Coupe allegedly sounds to the French like tete coupé (head cut off).

Mitsubishi T-Box (a small ban) can be re-spaced as Mitsubi sh*t box.

Fiat Uno. Uni is Finnish for fool.

Honda Fit/Honda Jazz. They were going to call it the Fitta, but that is a rude word for the female genitals in some Scandinavian languages.

Chrysler PT Cruiser - a vehicle that many car enthusiasts think of as a sad parody of a real hot rod. Sometimes referred to as the Pity Cruiser.

Lamborghini Reventón apparently means burst tyre in Spanish.

VW Jetta. In Spanish, a jetta is a losing streak, or a run of bad luck.

Ford Pinto. Pinto = small penis in Brazil.

Citroen C-Métisse. Métisse was intended to refer to it having the hybrid option to run in 4 wheel drive, front wheel drive, or rear wheel drive. Unfortunately, a common French meaning of Métisse is bastard.

Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. In German, mist is dirt or crap.

Ford Kuga may sound like cougar (itself, a slang term for sexually predatory older woman) but in Slovenian and Serbo Croation, it means pestilence or black death.

The Mitsubishi i-MiEV (Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle). In German, Miev is a smell.

VW Vento. It may go as fast as the wind (probably) but in Italian it is a colloquial term for fart.

Chevrolet Nova, and Lada Nova. No va means doesn't work or won't go in Spanish.

Daihatsu Scat. Scat is animal poo.

Mazda Laputa. La Puta = female dog or prostitute. However, Laputa was also a fictional island in Gulliver's Travels.

Mitsubishi Pajero. In some Spanish languages/dialects, Pajero means w*nker.

Hyundai Kona. In Portugese, kona = c*nt.

Also, from my own memory, the motorcycle, Yamaha TDM, not considered a particularly exciting bike, and it is often affectionately referred to as the tedium.
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I had (an incredibly tedious) friend who used to call the Honda Jazz the 'Honda Jizz'. Mildly amusing the first time but amazingly annoying the forty-fifth. But then he did have the sense of humour of a twelve year old.
 
catseye said:
I had (an incredibly tedious) friend who used to call the Honda Jazz the 'Honda Jizz'. Mildly amusing the first time but amazingly annoying the forty-fifth. But then he did have the sense of humour of a twelve year old.
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Did you hear Clue at the weekend?
Movie titles ruined by changing one letter - All That Jizz. :chuckle:
 
escargot said:
Did you hear Clue at the weekend?
Movie titles ruined by changing one letter - All That Jizz. :chuckle:
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I didn't! Love that programme so much but only really get to listen when I'm going out in the car. But that phrase would probably give me flashbacks...
 
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