Does what we are named affect who we are?

I read a article years ago in a British newspaper about a study which suggested that kids with unusual names (they gave as an example "Octavius") tended to get picked on at school and in some cases their confidence suffered in later life; but on the other hand it is well known that some kids, when picked on, just get tougher so maybe it was a load of baloney.

I am sure, however, that your idea that names that sound like qualities somehow make their bearers take on those qualities, e.g. a Conner might become someone who cons people, is a silly notion. You could probably find people called Conner who are thieves, but it wouldn't prove anything. You could probably find an equal number who became bishops.

I think how we feel about our name affects who we become moreso than the name itself.

I remember a Mr. Bishop becoming archbishop..

Indeed. Cultural and local influences matter as well. It is a source of merriment to British people (males, usually under a certain age, 30 or so) that many American people are called Wank, (and Wanker!)* and apparently suffer no great ill-effects from that. Some become prominent in business, law, etc, as a Google search will show. Whether they masturbate more than usual I am not aware. I do not know if their name causes immigration officers to smile when they arrive in BrE speaking countries. I do believe that the W word has crossed the Atlantic to a certain extent lately.

* A character in the "Mork And Mindy" TV series was called Oliver Wanker.

comiconomenclaturistical cognomens r us

I remember a state worker whose name was "Dicker", he was the STD investigator for the Health Dept.

I had a plumber once named Joe Head

Here is a study about that:

The Causes and Consequences of Distinctively Black Names

In the book Freakanomics Levitt discusses this and it's worth the read. Here is an essay on the same subject by him:

A Roshanda by Any Other Name
How do babies with super-black names fare?

well my last name is Mann and when i was in school people would make fun of me and i would come home crying almost everyday. and i did really bad in school bt now im home schooled and people dont make fun of me and i have all A's yay. i have a friend named chris cox yup great name. have another friend with the last name hohenberger.

Mann?...what's the big deal?

knew a lady once named Anita Mann.


(seriously.)

and she married into it...

kewl

Chiropractor in Wichita, KS: Dr. Bonebreak


True story.

(okay, might be Bonebrake)

Once heard of a guy named William, whose nickname as a kid was "Big Bill". Problem was, he became a doctor, and had a hard time living down his nickname!

I knew of a dentist in London called Mr Pain

One that you can understand, Contrex:

I used to laugh every time I passed by the practice of this kinesiotherapist:

Jean Kulhmal, masseur.

Un kiné qui fait mal au cul... avec sa grosse bite peut-être ? Moi (yo) je préfère les branlettes espagnoles.

La mazophallation, pour les initiés...