Kinki University "Kinky" No More

[Siam_Sam]

Marking the end of an era, Kinki University in Osaka, Japan has changed it’s name to Kindai University. The move was aimed at sparing students and faculty some embarrassment.

No word yet from Bukkake U.

[Roderick_Femm]

Too bad, the word has a perfectly respectable and historically significant meaning in Japanese (as explained in the article). Many places in the area include the word in their names. There is even a pop music duo called “KinKi Kids” because they come from that area.

This seems like an example of English language imperialist parochialism to me. “Ooh, kinky, tehee.” People should grow up.

[Giles]

Next they’ll want to change the Japanese place names starting with “Fuku” – Fukuoka, Fukushima, etc.

[CalMeacham]

There’s a parallel from here in Massachusetts. the prep school Governor Dummer Academy, founded in 1763, changed its name in 2006 to “The Governor’s Academy” (although it’s still legally “Governor Dummer Academy”) for reasons that should be altogether obvious:

In December 2005, the Board of Trustees voted to change the name of the Academy to “The Governor’s Academy” amid concerns that the name “Dummer” was deterring prospective students from applying. Legally the name remains “Governor Dummer Academy”, doing business as “The Governor’s Academy”. When founded, the Academy was named “Dummer Charity School”. Subsequently, the name was changed to the “Dummer Academy”, which name it was known by for a century and a half.

The decision to change met with resistance from some students and alumni, and attracted media attention from around the country. Those who promoted the change saw it as one of a number of ways to expand the geographic representation and the overall appeal of the school, especially to those who were not familiar with the school or its history. The name change took effect on July 1, 2006.[1]. In 2010-2011, the Academy set records for admissions inquiries, interviews and applications, thus supporting the decision that the name change would enhance institutional marketing efforts.

The Governor's Academy

I’m sure that all those “Normal Schools” (Institutions of Higher Education that trained teachers) changed their designations to avoid the annoying questions about why they apparently must have thought other schools were “abnormal”.

Normal school

[John_Bredin]

Kinki-Sharyo has built railcars for the American market, prompting the occasional giggle from passengers who notice the builder’s plate.

@ CalMeacham: that builder’s plate is from Massachusetts MBTA. Strictly coincidentally, of course.

[GIGObuster]

Might as well mention an obligatory case of a name change needed:

Beaver College Announces New Name

P H I L A D E L P H I A, Nov 20, 2000

Beaver College, aiming to shed a source of ridicule and boost enrollment, unveiled today a new school name that’s seemingly satire-proof: Arcadia University.

The decision was announced just after midnight at a surprise pajama party for students, who were rounded up from residence halls with less than an hour’s notice.

“Arcadia University reflects our foundation and the kind of learning environment we aim to foster,” President Bette E. Landman said.

Much has changed about the college since it was founded in 1853 as a small women’s college in western Pennsylvania’s Beaver County. For starters, the school is no longer in Beaver — it moved across the state to suburban Philadelphia in 1925.

And then, there were all those jokes.

[Machine_Elf]

Still waiting for the Kickapoo tribe to change their shitty name.

[SpoilerVirgin]

I’ve been wondering about the potential impact of George Mason University naming its law school for Antonin Scalia. More likely to draw in new students, or keep them away? I’m not sure. The fact that Charles Koch’s $10 million donation factored into the decision wouldn’t make it my first choice.

[CalMeacham]

@SpoilerVirgin

I’ve been wondering about the potential impact of George Mason University naming its law school for Antonin Scalia. More likely to draw in new students, or keep them away? I’m not sure. The fact that Charles Koch’s $10 million donation factored into the decision wouldn’t make it my first choice.

Apparently they’ve changed the name again:

After renaming its law school after late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, George Mason University renamed it again after unintentionally sparking a storm of delightfully immature jokes about the resulting acronym, “ASSoL.”

The school first announced it would change the law school’s name to The Antonin Scalia School of Law on March 31 to honor the court’s revered and reviled conservative, who died on Feb. 13 at the age of 79. The Fairfax, Virginia-based school decided to revise the moniker in order to claim $20 million from an anonymous donor who called for the change as part of the deal. Billionaire conservative activist Charles Koch donated another $10 million to the high-caliber law school known for its conservative legal curriculum.

But the school’s Board of Visitors, who approved the initial change, either forgot to eyeball the acronym, or overestimated the maturity of the public.

The jokes and jabs were plentiful, as a Twitter search for #ASSoL or #ASSLaw can show.

The official name is still “The Antonin Scalia School of Law,” but the website and marketing material is now “The Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University,” the Wall Street Journal was first to note.

George Mason Tweaks Scalia Law School Name Over 'ASSoL' Acronym

[glowacks]

I’d heard about this in the past, and wondered why they considered what their name meant in English was relevant at all. I suppose the difference between that and all the “fuku” places is that how it’s actually pronounced is the problem, not what it looks like. It may be hard for people to stifle laughter when announcing that the following speaker is from “Kinky” University, but “from Fukushima” isn’t a problem because no one hears anything naughty.

[Ethilrist]

That’s kinda sad.