In Freakonomics rebroadcast of “How Much Does Your Name Matter?”, Dalton Conley, a sociologist at Princeton University, brings in his children to discuss his book Parentology.
Dalton Conley’s children have two very exquisite names, his daughters name is E and his son is named Yo. Mr. Conley decided to give his children these names to begin a social scientist experiment, about names and what affect they have on a person. Dalton believes that who you are, who you turn out to be, may be related to the name that you were given when you were born. He wishes to create the question of; Would my children be treated differently with names like Sara and Jake?
The Conley children names are extraordinarily long, but Mr. Dalton let his children choose what they would go by. Harper Nora Jeremijenko- Conley was shortened to E, and Yo Xing Heyno Augustus Eisner Alexander Weiser Knuckles Jeremijenko- Conley was shortened to Yo. These ideas of nicknames convey a personal realization, E and Yo will always have interesting names that some people may not like, but it does not matter as long as E and Yo live the life they choose and live it greatly through their names.
As the show continues, the topic of popularity with friends and parents is erupted. Conley believes that when a parent chooses their kids’ names, they are mainly trying to impress others instead of thinking of the child. Thoughts are always swarming their brain wondering if he/she will approve or if he/she will want to be friends with someone of that name. He advises to stay away from this type of parenting before the child is even born, because it will carry on into how the child is raised as well.
Steve Levitt is brought onto the show and brings light on the radical revolution in black names throughout the 1970’s. As many of us remember, blacks and whites were having very similar names during this time frame. I believe that this was a way that African Americans could show that the color of their skin did not make them unequal to others, so they named their kids they same as other white children. Over a period of 10 years this mindset has completely changed, black parents decided that the identity they wanted for their children was one of their own, and one that was distinctly different from white culture.
Both Levitt and Conley have spent their lives trying to measure something life the effect of a name. They each show that names not only reflect on the child but also the parents, a parent must choose a name that their child can stand out and make a difference with, not a name that is appropriate and allowed by in society.
Your full name is your identity, but at the end of the day and at the end of the show, this name is just a “name” it does not define what you will and can do in life. So, always live it to the fullest no matter if your name is Sara or just a letter in the alphabet, like E.
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