Black names
 

Watching diferent sports I have curious about the names of black players like
LaDainian Tomlinson and JaMarcus Russel. If seen more like DeAndre LaRonda and so on. And i wonder why is that prefix added? Does it have som cultural significance or is it "just" because it makes the name nicer?

Re: Black names
 

:confused: ................ no.

nothing cultural.

just what their mothers named em.

hope my response solved your problem.

Re: Black names
 

I cant say nothing. My people name their kids Jesus, and then call their kids "Mami" and "Papi." I have no clue.

If you want your kid to kick azz on the D-Line, you should name him Demetrius. No one is scared of anyone named Tristan.

"Tristan, put your Barney back in the mini-van now, or Mommy will have to
give you a time-out."

Re: Black names
 

It's been a long time, I know...but back by no demand at all...






Levon"

Levon wears his war wound like a crown
He calls his child Jesus
'Cause he likes the name
And he sends him to the finest school in town

Levon, Levon likes his money
He makes a lot they say
Spend his days counting
In a garage by the motorway

He was born a pauper to a pawn on a Christmas day
When the New York Times said God is dead
And the war's begun
Alvin Tostig has a son today

And he shall be Levon
And he shall be a good man
And he shall be Levon
In tradition with the family plan
And he shall be Levon
And he shall be a good man
He shall be Levon

Levon sells cartoon balloons in town
His family business thrives
Jesus blows up balloons all day
Sits on the porch swing watching them fly

And Jesus, he wants to go to Venus
Leaving Levon far behind
Take a balloon and go sailing
While Levon, Levon slowly dies

Re: Black names
 

So JaMarcus for example would be a combination of Janice and Marcus. Then LaDanian would be a combination of Larry and ehhh Danian... :-D

Re: Black names
 

Origins of Levon....

Here's a real obscure reference that I have been unable to decipher. The song "Levon" from Elton John's Madman Across the Water album has the following lyrics:

He was born a pauper to a pawn on a Christmas Day,
When the New York Times said God is dead,
And the war's begun
Alvin Tostig has a son today.

OK, who the hell is Alvin Tostig? My best guess is that he is some British icon of stability and normality, or maybe some member of Parliament. Please enlighten this poor uneducated colonist.

— Matthew Mitchell


--------------

You're making things waaaaaay too tough on yourself. Your answer is within the song. Alvin Tostig is, in fact, Levon's father. To put it another way, Levon is the son that Alvin Tostig had that day. The next line, which you didn't quote, is, "And he shall be Levon." Put together, it says, "Alvin Tostig has a son today, and he shall be Levon." (Which, to extend it to the rest of the song, would make Alvin Tostig "Jesus'" grandfather.)

But at The Straight Dope we can't just spend one lousy paragraph to answer a question. So I kept digging. Or, more precisely, I contacted a member of the Teeming Millions who I knew to be a huge Elton John fan. He's a peaceful, honest type of guy and led me to some background information on the song.

According to Gus Dudgeon, who produced Madman Across the Water and wrote an essay containing this information to accompany the remastered version, the name "Levon" was inspired by Levon Helm, drummer, lead singer, and founder of The Band, a group from the 60s and 70s. The Band was apparently Elton John's and Bernie Taupin's favorite group in those days. (Taupin is the guy who writes or co-writes a lot of Elton John's songs and who wrote the lyrics for "Levon.")

Tracing the name "Alvin Tostig" is fairly straightforward, but with a bit of a twist. Taupin has said the name was fictitious. But Taupin was from Wessex and there was a historical "Tostig," who was the Earl of Wessex back in the 1040s. So perhaps Taupin pulled the name out of history without realizing it.

Anyway, there's your answer plus a bit more. Not quite as interesting as a pompatus of love, but what is?

— David

Re: Black names
 

More likely a combination of Laverne and Danian, watch out!

Re: Black names
 

FWIW, I have a friend from my childhood LeShon. Great guy, he's a West Point grad now. He says people are often surprised he's not black when they meet him after hearing his name beforehand.

Re: Black names
 

I got your answer for you. Check this out... This article spells it all out for you.
...Among other things, a strong affinity for French-sounding names is quite obvious with the articles L', Le, and La used in abundance. Also very popular are the prefixes Sha, She, Shi, Ja, Je, Ka, Da, and De; and the suffixes isha, esha, ika, ius, ante, and ita. We also note the prediliction for mid-word capitalization (examples: LaQunda, LucQuente, D'Livero, AuTashea, DeLisha, NeClea) and the rising trend toward hyphenation (Fa-Trenna, K-Rob, R-Kal)...

more on that in the actual article.

Name of the Year: But the Comma, Colon, Semicolon and Ellipsis Remain Very Much Underused

On a personal note, when I was living on a Medical School campus in the early 80's, I found out that medical students who were in their OB rotation were often asked by poor expectant mothers what to name their children. They were notorious for giving these unsuspecting women the obscure latin names for diseases that sounded quite lofty and appealing. (for instance Varicella for a girls name, aka Chicken Pox).

I keep expecting to see ViAgra, Cialis and LeVitra show up in the next kindergarten class.