Can a Black-Sounding Name Hurt Your Career Prospects?
 

The Name Game

Aug. 20, 2004 — It's the first major decision new parents face, and their choice will stick with their child for a lifetime: what to name the baby. And today simple is out and variety is in, especially for many black Americans.

Many African-American parents say they're returning to their roots by choosing names that sound uniquely black.

For some a unique name has been an asset. For stars like Oprah Winfrey or Shaquille O'Neal or Denzel Washington, a distinctive first name can become a unique, identifiable brand, almost a trademark.

But some ordinary folks say being different is just too difficult.

Tiqua Gator says people just can't seem to get her name right. But she says her real burden runs even deeper. She's concerned about getting a better job, and sees her name as a potential handicap.

"Something that was supposed to separate you from everyone else is now at the same time hindering you," she said.

Gator has come to believe she'd have an easier time lining up a job in her chosen field of marketing if she had a plain name like Jane.

"I think that they feel that they can identify better with a Pam or Amber rather than a Tiqua," she said.


The Résumé Test

And Gator may be on to something. A recent University of Chicago study, "Are Emily and Brendan More Employable than Lakisha and Jamal?" by Marianne Bertrand and Sendhil Mullainathan, found that people with names like Pam or Amber got 50 percent more callbacks for job interviews than applicants with similar résumés and names like Lakisha and Shaniqua.

Even though the study looked at 5,000 résumés, a group of young professionals didn't quite believe the name on top of their résumés could make that big a difference. The skeptics included Carita, an attorney; Tavoria, a law student; Orpheus, an educator; Arsenetta, a statistician; Tremelle, a financial adviser; and Ebony, an M.B.A. student.

http://gsb.uchicago.edu/pdf/bertrand.pdf

20/20 featured this very topic last friday (Aug. 20, 2004). It bothered me that some African-Americans feel that they shouldn't give their children "colorful" names.

I was given a name that until I became an adult I thought I was the only black person with the name. According to my father my name was suggested by some white woman in a hospital elevator:mad: . No real thought was put into my name. And as a result I have what I call the whitest name in America.

Although I don't know when I'll give birth and have to name my child I know for sure that they will not have a Eurocentric name.


Peace, Power & Luv

I saw that special, and it disturbed me. (Well, that's the nice way of saying it.) I have one of those names that lots of Black parents thought was so cool in the '70s; it has -ell(e) as a suffix. Danielle, Chevelle, Ladelle, Donnell, and Cherelle are examples. Does that mean that some HR people automatically toss all of us "ell(e)" names into the reject pile because of their assumptions? Affirmative Action would be the ideal resolution, but these ideas of who can be considered viable candidates need to change also. Just because Kelly is black and has a simpler name does not mean she does a better job than me.

Meanwhile, if I have children, I've already decided on a common first name, but the kids will be called by one of their middle names. It's a trend in my immediate family anyway. So, I could have a son named Robert Marcel or a daughter named Jessica Tahira. (I will not be raising Hennessey or Chablis.) They'll get an explanation on the reasoning in their adult lives.

Ok I'm hollering over here! I would have started doing the pee-wee herman dance and everything if I had heard that, lol!

Te-qu-ila!:D

Just wanted to get in on the conversation
 

This is definitely an interesting topic. One, I must say I've had an experience with. My cousin and I are a year apart, she, one year older than me. One summer we were both home for college and trying to find jobs just for the summer. Well a lady at our church told us to call this company that she knew was hiring. My name is definitely a more mainstream name, whereas my cousin's name would be identified as black. Not ghetto, just black. Kind of how the name "Tomeka" is simply considered a black name. Either way, we both called on the same day, ironically from the same telephone number. They only asked us about our education and if we were looking for summer employment only. Needless to say, I got a call back and she did not. My cousin and I talked about it afterwards, when we found out that I got a call back and she did not. I never really thought more about it after that. Funny thing is four years later, my cousin had a baby girl. She named her, what I would call clearly a white sounding name. I even picked at her about it before she had her. My cousin told me she did it on purpose, so her baby wouldnt be looked over for a job based on name alone. I didnt even know she remembered that event. But I guess you always remember your personal prejudice incidents. So, all that to say this. All the qualifications and intelligence in the world gets you nothing if you cant even get the first interview. Unfair, but true.

I think a better alternative is naming your child a more "racial neutral" name. I will not name my child "marquisha", nor will I name her "Megan".

I will give my children names from the East that have a meaning and sound that I like. For instance, I like Leilah which is Arabic for Black Beauty. I like the sound of it and since the original people in that region were Black and spoke Arabic, I feel that this is a name that is part of our heritage before coming to this country.

The bottom line is that since I am pro-Black, I will give my children names that are related to our history as Black people before we sank into this craziness in the U.S.

It pains me to think that Black people are running out trying to find "white" names in hopes that it will help their children assimilate when that Black person may not even really like the name "Meaghan." I guess that I would be a little more ashamed to explain to my child that I intentionally tried to name her a name that is traditionally given to a group that has been seen historically as superior. I guess I would not want to inadvertently send my child the message that the other folk's ice is colder and you must bow to and try to become that in order to make it in life. Maybe I'm too naive but my approach is to give my child the name that I want and to work to remove the inequalities - basically doing things on my terms, not other folk's terms.

***I would also like to encourage us not to be so quick to correlate the words "Black name" with some name related to alcohol or some other negative connotation. Why is that the automatic assumption that is made? Positivity people!! :) I associate "Black name" with names that are related to our cultural heritage and our cultural heritage has nothing to do with alcohol or any of the other negative things that people associate with being Black.***

Ok, off my soapbox :D
SC

Amen Summerchild.

Why should we-black people, always bow down or assimilate into a society that will never fully allow that to occur?

I've been looking for a job since last August. I have two degrees and a very white name. When I do get that interview, I can tell that they are surprised when they discover that I'm a black female AND I have locks.

I've been told that I need to get a perm; that I won't get a job until I cut my locks. I am so tired of that bs. It may be true, but I am a firm believer of "to thine oneself be true" and "Know thyself". I did the perm/curl thing for a total of 10 years and frankly perms burn and are painful (for me). I felt free when I wore a natural and feel free with my locks.

I wonder if Asian, Latino and Jewish cultures feel the need to give their children Eurocentric names.

To me it's another form of genocide. They've been changing our names since we came over here so they can feel comfortable. I refuse to name my child "Toby" to appease some keeblers (white folks ;) . We need to MAN UP and to thine ownself be true.

Sorry to crash your board, but most Asian families actually DO give their kids European-based names, but also give them names from the culture as well. Usually, the child's middle name is from the old country's culture. First names tend to be more traditional and not "hip", especially for the first generation and immigrants educated in English immersion schools. If you see an Amber, Ashley or Britney Wong, then her parents are probably western-born themselves. You are much more likely to hear Andrea, Katherine, Elizabeth and Jennifer for girls and Edward, Andrew, William, and Michael for boys. You might also hear nicknames such as Billy, Katie and Jenny. That is something I am dead against, as the official name, anyway. I mean, who do you think is going to be taken more seriously? Kitty or Katherine?


-Cynthia

Soror, I don't think people are questioning genuine African names. I think people are questioning buck wild names of the Boomquisha and Quantaquavious ilk.

Oh ok Soror. Thank you for clarifying that for me. :)
Yes, I have no idea why people want to get supercreative with names but I have noticed that it seems that the lower the economic status, the more supercreative the name. I wonder if our people are feeling that this is one gift that they can truly give their child in a world in which they will be able to give so little due to their economic status (and often) limited outlook on possibilities of life.

Do you all think that that might have some merit? Has anyone ever asked a parent who has named their child with a supercreative name why (in a nonhostile way)? I would be extremely interested in understanding the thinking.

Then again, I think, why not? Yes, it sounds ridiculous to me but maybe I'm just being limited in my views of how many syllables a name should have at max. :D

SC

cosign.

My cousin is biracial, and because of the confusion of her youth, she named her children Ebonee, Shakiel, and Tirah. I like the names, but I could scream for how she spelled them!

Here's another article related to names and career success. It doesn't really talk about black names, but it is an interesting article nevertheless.

http://channels.netscape.com/ns/care...&sc=JbdvcndTps

hijack
lol at Keeblers
end hijack

When I was deciding on a name for my daughter, I thought about about this topic. My name is not common, nor is it "Black" sounding. My daughter's first name is common, and her middle name is Swahili (Imani). My ex wanted to name his son the Russian word for King, or ruler.

I think people can be true to their ethnicity and name their child original names. I just wont be naming my chile Alize (b/c you know someone was watching Steve Harvey and thought Lovita Alize was cute), Tequila, Shenehneh, boomshequea, etc.. that is just me..to each his own..but think about your child's future

Sorry for the crash, but I have some related discussion....

My fiance is Mexican, and from what I can tell, the Mexicans in this country (at least the ones I've met through him) tend to stick with Hispanic names. This, however, it easier to do and stay in mainstream culture. Since most Latino cultures speak the Castillian Spanish that originated in Spain, many of the Hispanic names are by default Eurocentric, although in most cases pronouced different here in the US. (My fiance's brother's name is Daniel, however in Spanish it's pronouced like "Danielle", but here in the US he uses the normal DAN-iel).

I am having this same debate though with my neighbor over my daughter's (due Oct. 5th:D :D ) name. We are planning on naming her Mariana Arcadia. So, will having a Hispanic name hurt her chances in the business world? It would be nice for them to repeat the study using White v. Hispanic, Black v. Hispanic, White v. Asian, Black v. Asian, etc...

One other name point to ponder (if you care to...). I feel semi-disadvantaged (for now) being that my name is Jessica. I feel that a potential employer picks up my resume and can immediatly tell that I'm 21. I'm sure I'll feel differently in a few years when all the rest of the 1983 Jessica's and I are at a more desirable hiring age (I know many people feel 21 is still too young/irresponsible to take seriously for a job). And I'm sure it will become an issue again when the Jessica's become to "old" to be a desirable hiring age. How do you feel about naming your baby the "trendy" names that this happens to?