How I got the name Susan

[mount_oregano]

Obviously, I got the name “Susan” from my parents. But why did they pick it?

Over the years, I pieced together the story. My practical, rational parents always planned ahead — with one superstitious exception. They had four children in all, and they stalwartly believed it was bad luck to think too much about a baby before it was born. They didn’t want to know the sex or anything else ahead of time.

In fact, it was bad luck just to think about possible names.

But laws require babies to be given names promptly. So after every birth, my parents needed to make a fast decision. In my case, after a long labor, they were both frazzled, and they chose the first thing that came to mind. As it happened, “Susan” reached an apogee in popularity that year, bestowed on 47,402 babies. That name came to mind first.

It’s an okay name, from the Hebrew word meaning “lily,” but every time I’m among women my age, at least two of us will be named Susan. I’d prefer something less common. It’s possible to guess my age from my name — much like the babies born today being named Emma, Olivia, Liam, and Noah. Names come and go in fashion.

Writers can hint at a character’s age by picking a popular name from their birth year. Betty, Jennifer, Christopher, and Joshua all had their day. For the United States, the Social Security Agency provides detailed statistics for the names registered each year.

Statistics also prove that it was never in fashion for a boy to be named Sue.

Comments

[cmcmck]

Of course I got to pick my own. :o)

[mount_oregano]

How much thought did you put into it?

[cmcmck]

Quite a lot.

I'd fallen out with my parents big time so I didn't have to consider their wishes but I suspect I might have been a Margaret as it was my grandmothers name, her mother's name and the name of that grandma's only daughter, my aunt, who died young.

The name I eventually chose was that of my Breton great grandmother as it was one I'd always liked and back then it was very unusual although it has become popular since.

[mount_oregano]

And it's a beautiful name. My grandmothers were Rose and Wilhelmina, either of which I would prefer to Sue, but after 66 years, it's too late to change.

When I started writing professionally fifty years ago (!), I considered using my initials, which would have hidden my gender and would have had some advantage in a sexist world (women who write under both female and male names say the "man" has it easier), but I decided on an unequivocal female Sue because I wanted the world to know I was female and doing (I hoped) good work, proving that women were capable. The youthful me had a lot of attitude.

[cmcmck]

My pen name,as you many have noticed, is Marianna Rochester.

My attitude came later- the youthful me was still feeling her way a bit. :o)