# I Don't Like this Shorthand Way of Using People's Names **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 9, 2020, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318 "2020-06-09T19:50:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/21 "2020-06-09T23:09:37Z")
Gosh, that Trixie and Chad sound like something straight out of 1980’s _The Official Preppy Handbook_. But I thought their names were Sloan and Kyle. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/22 "2020-06-09T23:13:46Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > Possibly misremembering “Stacy”? “Stacy” for a good-looking, popular, desirable girl, especially if sexually active, is a very common usage among the same sort of people who use “Chad” in the way described by **kenobi 65**. No, as **dalej42** says, it is or was local slang for a particular kind of Lincoln Park woman, usually freshly out of college, typically Big 10, perhaps living on daddy’s money, and pretty much all the things dalej42 described at the end of his post. Kinda of a vacuous, superficial party girl kind of character. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/23 "2020-06-09T23:19:54Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > Possibly misremembering “Stacy”? “Stacy” for a good-looking, popular, desirable girl, especially if sexually active, is a very common usage among the same sort of people who use “Chad” in the way described by **kenobi 65**. Stacy? Not the girl for me. But her Mom? She had it going on. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/24 "2020-06-09T23:56:03Z")
Yeah, Karen will likely eventually be displaced by some other character, it’s just luck of the draw this time around. As \*\*Beckdawreck \*\*mentions, there are other names that get pop-cultural associations among some demographics. Which is not to ignore that ocassionally a name \*does \*get debased on a more sustained manner by the association with a character archetype, off the top of my head I am thinking of Guido and of course Lolita. I’d start really worrying when papers start printing headlines about “a bunch of karens creating a disturbance at Kroger’s” > [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > I know some people who were having a baby girl early in 2017. They had picked out the name–well, _she_ had, I guess it was on her baby name list for forever–“Kellyanne.” Early in '17 this name had some bad connotations and she felt under some pressure to pick another name so it would sound like her kid was named after a, well, you know. But on the other hand, she also felt that by the time the kiddo was in school, by the time it mattered, that name would have lost its nasty edge. And her kid was her own person in any case. At least it wasn’t Danaerys 😛 > [@Kimstu](#): > > Gosh, that Trixie and Chad sound like something straight out of 1980’s _The Official Preppy Handbook_. But I thought their names were Sloan and Kyle. Which BTW brings us to the case of “Buffy”, whose name was rescued from ignominy as the archetypal WASP prepette by the Vampire Slayer movie/TV show (but was chosen for the character to begin with precisely because it would be so un-badass). ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/25 "2020-06-10T00:06:35Z")
Yes, “Chad” and “Stacey” seem to be the hot names for hot dudes that the Incels can’t be and the hot chix they can’t have. Does anyone know the backstory for these choices of names? That isn’t obvious as far as I can tell. I don’t recall seeing these names in any similar context until fairly recent years when “Incels” started becoming a thing. And fans of Star Trek TOS will of course remember Herbert. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/26 "2020-06-10T01:22:00Z")
My younger brother is Harry. Well before the Harry Potter phenomenon. He was teased horribly. It’s our maternal Grandfathers name. His middle name is Payton. Which would’ve been cool when he was in highschool. Harry Payton Lastname sounds ok. But Payton Harry Lastname doesn’t work. It was his bad luck. He grew up well. And got over it. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/27 "2020-06-10T01:31:21Z")
This guy named “Adolph” would like a quick word with the O.P. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/28 "2020-06-10T01:54:16Z")
I had a boss named Adolph. He was African American. I don’t think he ever got Hitler cracks that I saw. Maybe because he was a good guy? ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/29 "2020-06-10T02:15:21Z")
I did just realize that anyone growing up with a Karen name is likely to be spared most of the teasing. It’s not really a thing most kids will understand as they’re not really exposed to the concept of a ‘Karen’ until they’re in their late teens and beginning to work retail jobs. Hopefully, by then, most of the childish name calling is over. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/30 "2020-06-10T02:20:55Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > How do you think all those people named after the Egyptian moon goddess feel? There’s a 20-ish woman at a grocery store near me named Isis. I’m sure she’s been asked many times if that’s her real name. There’s also a New Age bookstore in Denver that changed its name to “Goddess Isis” after it was vandalized, and the culprits admitted that its name was the reason why. > **[Goddess Isis Books and Gifts](https://isisbooks.com/)** > > Goddess Isis Books & Gifts. Metaphysical, New Age, magical, Wiccan supplies, books, Tarot decks, Buddhism, Yoga, Herbs, Incense One of the most horrible people I have ever known was named Karen (if you’re wondering if she was the person who, after, she was in a near-fatal car accident, had the newspaper and a TV station do stories about it, and the reporters’ e-mail boxes crashed in their wake, you’re right) but I have also known some very nice people named Karen. I also remember when MAD magazine used “Bruce” as a stock name for gay and/or effeminate men, until they got enough blowback to realize that wasn’t a good idea on any level. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/31 "2020-06-10T02:25:24Z")
NM, dupe ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/32 "2020-06-10T03:15:16Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > I’ve never heard the Karen thing before this year. Just for fun, I looked through Urban Dictionary, and the first use of Karen, as in the “can I see the manager?” type of personality, I see from late 2017. I seem to remember hearing it first either late 2018 or early 2019. (I remember because a friend of mine was getting divorced from a Karen at the time and when the slang hit, it seemed strangely appropriate, given this particular Karen’s personality.) ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/33 "2020-06-10T03:47:28Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > I think Karen thing will be dead by Christmas if not earlier. I doubt it. Karen has been used exactly as it is now for at least four years on Twitter. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/34 "2020-06-10T04:51:09Z")
I worked with someone for a few years who’s name is Aaron. I think he was called Aaron a handful of times a day, his name just sort of became A-a-ron. For the few people living under a rock…[A-a-ron](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd7FixvoKBw). ---
**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/35 "2020-06-10T04:54:18Z")
Sigh, will no one think of the Betties? (Bettys?) Biker Betty, Sweaty Betty, Bull-Dyke Betty? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/36 "2020-06-10T05:08:29Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I also remember when MAD magazine used “Bruce” as a stock name for gay and/or effeminate men, until they got enough blowback to realize that wasn’t a good idea on any level. I suspect that use of the name for a gay man was much broader than in MAD, however; my parents regularly used “Bruce” as a stereotypical gay name in the 1960s and 1970s, and neither of them were MAD readers. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/37 "2020-06-10T05:34:58Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I also remember when MAD magazine used “Bruce” as a stock name for gay and/or effeminate men, until they got enough blowback to realize that wasn’t a good idea on any level. How long ago was this? “Bruce” apparently has been a stock name for gay or effeminate men for some time. In the late 1960’s and through 1970’s, Anita Bryant made much news for her very active anti-gay crusade. At some point [she was quoted as saying](https://www.azquotes.com/author/27413-Anita_Bryant): > [@Anita Bryant](#): > > If homosexuality were normal, God would have created Adam and Bruce. ETA: Just saw **kenobi 65** ’s ninja. The timing is about right. Your parents probably got that from Anita Bryant. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/38 "2020-06-10T05:45:14Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > ETA: Just saw **kenobi 65** ’s ninja. The timing is about right. Your parents probably got that from Anita Bryant. Despite their use of the dismissive stereotype, my parents were (and are) both flaming liberals, and didn’t like Bryant. A few minutes of googling doesn’t give me any good answers for when/where “Bruce = gay” originated, but I would be surprised if it was Bryant who coined it. (And, of course, the term that conservative Christians now use dismissively is “God didn’t create Adam and Steve,” since Steve rhymes with Eve.) ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/39 "2020-06-10T10:52:07Z")
Recently I learned about [Kevinism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevinism), which describes the tendency for German-speaking parents to name their kids exotic, unusual first-names. The bolded paragraph below is particularly relevant to the discussion: > [@](#): > > The question as to whether parents of lower socioeconomic status tend more to give their children exotic or Anglo-American names has various answers. This topic has been discussed among German sociologists from completely opposite points of view. However, there is no definitive statistic on the topic so far.[2] On account of the unusual and sudden popularity of the name, the term Kevinism (or Chantalism after the female given name Chantal) for this cliché was first created by the satire-website Uncyclopedia, and was subsequently picked up by journalists and made into a topic of discussion.[3] > > According to a master’s thesis authored at the University of Oldenburg in 2009, certain given names of students can indeed lead to prejudices on the part of teachers.[4] For example, the name Kevin (of Irish origin), given to a German child, indicates to German teachers that such a student is prone to behaviour consistent with an intention to gain more attention, as well as lower scholastic performance, and is also indicative of a lower socioeconomic status. It was not possible to determine whether this also causes a student to be treated less well.[5] Prejudice of this type is understood to be more prevalent amongst teachers in Western Germany. English or otherwise exotic given names are often understood/stigmatised in the old states of Germany to be typical “Ossi”.[6] In fact, English given names in East Germany were particularly popular in the two decades preceding German reunification. There, this trend was also popular amongst the middle class, while the preference for such given names today, particularly in Western Germany, is perceived as a lower class phenomenon.[7] > > According to a 2012 study by Leipzig linguist Gabriele Rodriguez, “Kevinism” given names (in Germany) such as Mandy, Peggy or Kevin have an undeservedly bad reputation. Statistics analysed by her former students at the Leipzig University prove, according to this name expert, that, by now, there are many college and university graduates bearing such names. Amongst German academics with the given name Kevin found in the aforementioned data set from Leipzig University, one could see doctorate-degreed chemists, theologists and Germanists. > > **The word “Alpha-Kevin” (combination of Alpha male and the given name), as being representative of a particularly unintelligent young person, was, for a time, at the top of the list, which was the subject of a 2015 online poll for the Word of the year (Germany) and, particularly, the youth word of the year. However, it was struck from the list of suggestions on account of being discriminatory to people bearing the name Kevin.[8] The phenomenon in Germany, especially during limited periods of time, that particularly popular given names are associated with negative prejudices, at times, to the point of being used as swear words, is not new from a linguistic perspective. In the past, this was the case, as an example, for given names including Horst, Detlef, Uschi and Heini (German short form of Heinrich).[9]** ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2020, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318/40 "2020-06-10T12:00:53Z")
There was a parody of the song “Big Bad John” called “Big Bad Bruce,” maybe that’s were it came from. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-like-this-shorthand-way-of-using-peoples-names/855318.md?page=3)