What's in a Name?

A name is an identity, in some way. It's who we are. Names can change; identities can change. But I thought I would make a post talking about my name. One of my instructors this quarter had my cohort do a presentation at the beginning about what our name meant, the history behind it, or however we wanted to go about it. He gave us a lot of freedom, which I appreciated because I like to do what I want. ;)

I talked about why I was named Holly Lynn Wisniew. One of my classmates didn't have a particularly good story about why she was named, so she decided to do her presentation on other names she's called. I thought I would throw a little of that in here also, because I go by lots of names, especially at work.

HOLLY

I was born November 11th, so within the holiday season, and a family friend suggested that since I would be born around Christmas my name should be Holly. That's where that comes from. It's a winter plant, and no profound meaning.

LYNN

My middle name is really special to me. My parents didn't care about the name Lynn or what it meant. However, my grandpa, my dad's dad, who passed before my parents even met, was named Leonard. Everyone called him Len. My dad's middle name is Leonard, and so is my cousin's. They wanted to give their first child a middle name that represented this. If I had been a boy, my middle name would've been Leonard. But since I'm not, they chose something similar enough. Lynn means "beside still water" or something like that. Leonard means "lion-hearted".

WISNIEW

Wisniew is a Polish name that was originally, "Wisniewski", pronounced with v's and not the way it looks, at all. It means cherry. I love my last name because it unifies me with my close and extended family. I'm a Wisniew. I love last names. They signify belonging, and family.

OTHER NAMES I'M CALLED

Hollybejolly

Holls


Hollsballs

Bjolly/bjolls

Hollsbejolls


Holliba

The bunny girl

At home, I'm only called Holly or Holliba (by my dad; don't ask). Hollybejolly was my baby nickname started by my aunt, again because I was born around Christmas, and I told someone at work my "nickname" and variants have spiraled out from there. And the bunny girl, because, well....that's me. Everyone calls me something different, but I love it because it's unique, and each name means something different to each person. Each name comes from a bond we share and I think that's so cool.

Comment down below what your name means and your most-used nickname. Let's talk about it!

Thanks for reading. See you on Saturday, right here! My next post is going to be a little controversial, possibly...subscribe so you don't miss out!

H.L.W.