Jeremy McIver

1-21-2015
UWRT 1102 E02
Raymond

Names and Culture

Different cultures around the world use names (first/middle/last) to connect people to
their ancestors. Often times, those names are passed down from generation to generation at birth.
I know in African countries people are given long (and unique) names with specific tribal
meanings which have been passed down for generations. Sometimes when you meet a new
person and their name sounds different from a typical one, you may find out that it runs in the
family. This is where the term family name comes from.
My middle name, Hathaway, is actually a family name. I share it with both my father and
grandfather. My father was also named after his father, in that they are both named Leslie
Hathaway McIver, with my father being Leslie, Jr and his father being Leslie, Sr. While it is nice
to have a family name, some parents prefer not to pass it on to their children because it would be
hard having two immediate family members (i.e. the father and son) with the same name. Even
though I have the same middle name as my father and grandfather, my mother still chose to
name me Jeremy because she did not like the fact of having two Leslies in the same house.
Therefore, I do believe it is very common for interracial couples to give their children normal
names because it makes things easier on them. This was definitely the case with me, since I am a
child of an interracial marriage, with an Asian mother and a Black father.