PROPER NAMES NOT PROPER.
ONE of the penny imitators of our weekly Pasquin warns people against assuming the name of Smith after it has been tarnished by Louis Philippe and Mrs. Manning : but what are they to do who already bear the name,—if name that can be called which individual designation is none, as little as the gentile name of the Romans ? A rich man can procure a change of name, or acquire the right to add another to his own—as Mr. Bernal became Mr. Osborne, and Dr. Kay is Mr. Kay Shuttleworth ; but a Smith of moderate means must remain Smith to the end of his days.
"What's in a name ? " asks the love-sick girl ; but men of the world know that there is much in it, although the distribution of names has been peculiarly fortuitous. Some anomalies in the history of names are very fantastical. We have never learned why the Participazio family of Venice—where family surnames first appear in regular use—at one time adopted a practice of al- ternating that name with Badoer, and ultimately adopted the latter, wholly dropping the original name ; nor why the ducal Candiano became Sannto. In England we have had similar ano- malies; one son in a family suddenly appearing with a new name, unexplained.
Names have belonged to families and race from time imme- morial, like some ancient names in Italy—the Giustiniani for in- stance; they have been derived from places, as an endless num- ber of English family surnames (we do not mean territorial
titles,) like Pendlebury, Aston, surnames, Kent, Devonshire, &c. ; from nameless places, as Stiles, Fieldsend; from offices, as Con- stable, Tipataff; from trades, as Butcher, Smith, Taylor • from personal peculiarities, as Longshanks, Strongith'arm. These last have often been burlesque perversions, as a big man gets called Little and a little man Large. Nicknames in early days and "free" were often broad enough, often annoying from mere tri- viality, sometimes indecent. The most philosophic of men can- not like to be called' Rawbone, Shave, Cow, Golightly, Waddle, Body, Peebody, fightbody, Cuckoo, Chin, Sneezum' Potts, Penny, Pinches, Gotobed, Popkins, Bugg, or Chawmuffin ; to say nothing of names which are equivoques or outspoken in- decencies, or names polluted by criminal associations, which must be brazened or slurred over. It must have a bad moral effect to be called by a name which habitually raises a stare of wonder, a suppressed smile of ridicule, or a blush of shame. In France, a man may by custom take the name of the land he Possesses; in some countries, a man may take his wife' S name after his own, and then to drop the half of the joint name is a licence not unused. In this country, John Bull is John Bull to the end of the chapter, unless he can buy the Royal leave to be Called Front-de-Bceuf or some other Norman appellative. We do not see, however, why all relief should be refused to the less wealthy classes, who are the principal sufferers by ridiculous or offensive names. In France, Louis Philippe permitted a poor man to change a name which had been disgraced by one of the at- tempts to assassinate the King. It would be easy to pass a gene- ral law,.by which, under proper checks against trivial or improper changes--such as due notice and a moderate fee—persons bear- ing objectionable names might alter them, and record the change at the lieneral Register Office.
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