# Why are some people bad with names? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 7, 2013, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-bad-with-names/649533 "2013-02-07T00:46:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![FrankJBN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f0a364/32.png) [@FrankJBN](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FrankJBN)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-bad-with-names/649533/21 "2013-02-07T16:17:47Z")
I am bad with names - comversely i am good with faces. I might recognize everybody I’ve ever met, faces stick in my head, but I won’t know their names. A friend of a friend used to nail me on this - whenever I’d see him, he’d geet my with “Don’t know my name do you?”. I knew he was Steve’s cousin, but his name… “People who have trouble with names tend to be shy and less comfortable in social settings.” Not I. i am gregarious and social and enjoy having a room’s entire attention. I am however, bad with names. ---
**Author:** ![Mrs.Cake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/2acd7d/32.png) [@Mrs.Cake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrs.Cake)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-bad-with-names/649533/22 "2013-02-07T17:30:57Z")
I’m good with names and good with faces, but bad at putting them together. For instance, if I am trying to come up with an actor’s name I try to visualize it written, like in a cast list or on a poster, because if I pull up their face first I always lose the name. I don’t know if some may not be job-related - among my other duties is contract and payroll at a place that brings in about 200 seasonal staff for a few weeks every year. I’ve seen and written names several times before I’ve put a face to them. Or in the case of a movie or TV show, I’ll see the face several times before learning the name, so I have a problem syncing the two. ---
**Author:** ![dataguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eada6e/32.png) [@dataguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dataguy)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-bad-with-names/649533/23 "2013-02-07T20:47:19Z")
Yeah, I don’t remember names easily either. But I must ask, is it common to be “good” with names? That is, do most people easily remember people’s names the first time they meet them? ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2013, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-bad-with-names/649533/24 "2013-02-07T22:14:42Z")
I am a heavily visual person. A lot of language stuff is difficult for me. So, I’m watching a show and I can easily recognize an actor from something else. But I rarely remember the actor’s name, the name of the previous character (assuming a long running role), etc. I also note goofs quite easily, but not dialogue that I found interesting and want to retain for later. I, OTOH, am surprised by how most people don’t remember things they see very well. Names are just a subset of language. Somehow this doesn’t affect me doing crosswords all that much. Sometimes I draw a blank on a word, but after putting it aside, I can usually come up with it later. ---
**Author:** ![applebetty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4af34b/32.png) [@applebetty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/applebetty)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-bad-with-names/649533/25 "2013-02-08T00:59:36Z")
I call it my “noun block”. Frequently I am unable to remember the name of a person or object, I can describe many other things, like where I saw them/it, what the circumstances were, what they said, what it looked like; but damned if I can put a label to it/them. Frustrated by this, I started researching. Wiki lists it as [Anomic Aphasia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anomic_aphasia), that is usually caused by damage to the parietal or temporal brain lobes. Now, I’ve had several concussions, most not too bad, but I am sure it’s just my stupid brain not acting right. It gets worse with stress, like social occasions. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-people-bad-with-names/649533.md?page=1)