Given and Chosen Names
Most of us (at least in the western tradition) are given our names at birth, and for most of us this is the name that we will use for the rest of our lives. By my way of thinking, I like to view this name as the hopes of our parents and community for us (so if they had an aunt named Madeline that they aspired their child to be, they might therefore give her that name, or if there was a famous person they hoped their child could emulate). While I recognize that in our modern culture many do not choose names this way, but rather by whether or not they have an instinctive response to the name as good, there is still some element of the name that is given to carries with it your parents and their community’s understanding of what is good, and therefore their hopes for the life you will lead.
Perhaps, as I have written before, we reach a stage in our lives when we can set for ourselves the type of life we want to lead and the person we want to be. This would be akin to the Christian idea of being reborn, in which the spirit must be reborn to accept a person’s new faith (or perhaps similar to the general idea of a spiritual quest from Native American cultures, though these may be more western lore than reality). I would suggest that when a person has attained some level of reason and experience, they should find their own values, even if those are different from the values imparted by those who brought you into this world and raised you (though hopefully still respecting those original values to the best of ones ability).
Accordingly, at such point in one’s life, I would also suggest that perhaps a person should pick a name (or names) for themselves that sets out the person they would like to be and the things that they value (similar to how people may spend effort thinking of a name for their business that aptly describes the type of business they want to be). While many times people do not think of the meaning in name when they use it to refer to other people, some do, and it is perhaps more important to the person themselves as how they think about themselves and the image that they have of themselves. As one starts to ask oneself who they are and collect the fragments of the answer into a whole, it is perhaps worthwhile to have a name for that collection (or perhaps multiple names), a pithy way to refer to the totality of oneself. Just as in naming a child, one might set a name an ideal of who they want to be, or a description of the reality of who they are, or some mix of both.
In practice, the need for a name one chooses and creates for themselves is relevant in how one presents oneself, whether that be in business or online, when you need to create from scratch a name that you are comfortable being called by and identified with. It also needs to be a sign to let others know of who you are and what you are about. I don’t propose that people go to their friends and family and reintroduce themselves under their new chosen name, but perhaps for new connections it could be used, and for new ventures the opportunity could be taken to come up with a name befitting the enterprise.
Perhaps an attempt at a definition. Name: a pithy description of a person (or entity) such that the substance of the person (or entity) is recognizable to both the addressor and addressee; an apt symbol for a larger whole. It is perhaps worth noting that the origin of name there is a connotation with reputation, and is worth considering that while one can give themselves a name, a name might, perhaps, be more commonly given to you by those around you based on how they describe you. Still, it is probably best starting out with the name one would like for oneself and hope that it is apt and fair enough that others also use it.
I like the idea of discovering who you are and who you want to be, and when you have done so coming up with a quick reference to that entity (which some might consider their soul or spirit), even that name is only used by yourself to have a description of the vision of yourself. From there, I think it may naturally follow, as one pursues one’s life path, that there will be opportunities to use this name (or select from amongst your several chosen names) to use as the symbol for one’s character and ideals that one uses to present themselves to new people they meet and interact with along the way.