Juliet Capulet's most daunting question!

The Name Game:

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." This has got to be one of Shakespeare's most famous quotes that beautifully encapsulates the central struggle of the play - Romeo and Juliet. 

Centuries after this quote was penned down, it still continues to hold significance and  forces us to put our thinking caps on. What does a name really signify? Does a person's name matter? Is there a connection between someone's name and his/her personality? Can a person's name influence his/her personality? These are just some of the questions that I have pondered upon in the last few days. 

The basic understanding of semiotics would help us understand the relationship between words and their meanings. But learning and using a word entails more than just associating meaning to it. It involves a process of linking a network of ideas and emotions to the word. The reason I'm bringing this up is because names are words too and every name evokes within us a set of ideas and emotions. 

We use these preconceived ideas and emotions to form a judgement about a person's character and personality, merely based on his/her name.

My name is Deepti, which means "the last ray of hope when all hope is lost". My father named me and says that I have always been his ray of hope. He also wanted to give me a short name that wouldn't give much room to 'weird nicknames'. My name is a common Hindu feminine name and it is because of this commonality that people are very accepting of me from the get go. The name is familiar and comforting. And for the longest time this acceptance made it easy for me to be accepting of my name.

The meaning of my name does to a certain extent align with my personality and has also influenced it in many ways. I have always carried a sense of responsibility with me because of the expectations  my family had from me. I have been convinced for as long as I can remember that I would make my family proud and be an achiever. I did manage to achieve a few things related to public speaking and my academics. My name is a source of motivation to me and it keeps me going. 

My problem arises not from the meaning of my name but from the sound of it. It's soft and a tad bit too feminine for my liking. My personality on the other hand is loud and dynamic. I'm opinionated and straight forward. Although I'm a firm believer of the fact that the concept of 'femininity' is a social construct, this very construct combined with my petite physique, makes people associate a set of attributes to me that certainly opposes my actual personality. Their assumptions of course turn to dust once they interact with me.

Analyzing my feelings has helped me understand that my problems arise from what other people take away from my name and not from what it means to me. This is simply because people form an image of another person based on his/her name when they first interact and it is the most human thing to do. Surnames also form a crucial element of judgement in this context. In a country like India, surnames give away the caste, language and religion of a person very easily. My surname - Nickam - is a dead giveaway. It reveals that I'm a Hindu and that I'm a Marathi. These elements, combined with the existing stereotypes in our society contribute to the image that a person forms about me. 

Understanding and respecting this power of a name is crucial, especially in the field of marketing. The name of a brand can make or break a deal. If the name of a brand aligns with its personality and the service that it is offering, it is more likely that a consumer would associate positive connotations to the brand name. 

Sorry Juliet, there's a lot in a name.