Wot's in a name?

[MTARR@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU]

Hi!

It is interesting what people have been saying about names.  David Bowie
is referred to in many circles as simply "Bowie", and Kate is, well, Kate.
People who have known me for a day soon figure out who I'm talking about
when I say "Kate".  But the reason?

Sinead O'Connor is "Sinead" because there aren't too many others out there
in the realm of the well-known.  Happy Rhodes is "Happy", because there aren't
too many others out there anywhere.  It's a matter of sense and efficiency.
But it also has something to do with the fact that there just aren't as many
female performers in the realm of the known as there are males, and the men
tend to have names that repeat themselves all over the place.  When we say
Kate in this forum, it's with certainty that those who read it will understand.
I'd venture to guess that in the Jane Siberry mailing list "Jane" suffices,
where outside the last name needs to be appended for those who don't know.
And so on.

If there were more performers in our frame of reference named Kate, we'd
have to come up with a way of distinguishing the real one from the impostors.
:)
	        *---------------------------------------------*
                |      	         Meredith Tarr                |
	    	|                      ***                    |
	        | "Living in the gap between past and future" |    
	        |   	       	       ***                    |
	  	|	   mtarr@eagle.wesleyan.edu           |
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