The Big Name Newsletter, Issue #2

Walt Whitman's View of Names; An Interview with Independence; Waking Up to the Age of Personalization

Author

Kaomi Taylor
August 12, 2025

In this issue:

• Meet Independence Raymond: A Young Woman With a Big Name
• Feeling Bombarded? Waking Up in Our Personalized Age
• Do Americans Like Their Names? What We Know
• The Museum of Names’ New Collaboration with the University of Vermont
• Upcoming Events

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I say that nothing is more important than names. Names are magic. A delicate subtle something there is in the right name—an undemonstrable nourishment—that exhilarates the soul...”

- Walt Whitman

A Big Name Interview - the Unfiltered Truth from Independence (Indy) Raymond

“I don’t like when people assume my natural independence is because of my name,” says 23-year-old Independence Raymond. “Am I just trying to uphold a standard for myself because of my name? No, it’s because when I was just starting adult life, I slept in a camper for three years and had no solid roof over my head, and I don’t want to do it again.”

The chief thing Independence Raymond wants you to know about her name is that she defines it, not the other way around. In the Museum’s inaugural guest interview, Indy shares candidly about her name’s history and growing up Independence. To give you a sense just how candidly, this is a young woman who named her younger sister Honesty.

It’s a conundrum: If you claim independence from your name, can you disclaim independence? Read more at the Museum of Names blog.

Waking Up in the Age of Personalization

Over 74% of e-commerce companies have implemented website personalization programs.(Source: Yieldify research, 2020)

Marketers are calling your name, and with good reason. A majority of businesses and consumers alike value the results of a successful “personalized” shopping experience. But what side effects might occur when our names become a neverending tool of commerce?Read our newest blog post, Your Name Is A Wake Word Part 2: On Being Perpetually Lit.

As Walt Whitman asserts in the quote above, names can be both nourishing and exhilarating. They can, for some, also be sources of discomfort or pain. As the Age of Personalization multiplies daily encounters with our own names, will that change our relationships with names - and change us?

Do Americans Like Their Names? The Answer is Mixed

It turns out only 63% of Americans choose to use the name they were assigned at birth, though nearly 2/3 of those who don’t go by a nickname derived from their name. (Jenny, anyone?) Another 11% use initials and 11% use their middle name, while 14% go by another name entirely.

Still, 60% of us love or like our given names, and another 26% feel neutral. Only 5% of Americans have changed their legal names - though another 7% have considered it.

Museum News

The Museum is partnering with the University of Vermont to present an online UVM Olli class on September 9th, 2025! In The Archaeology of Names, we’ll dig into layers of meaning of personal names using information from scientific, psychological, sociological, linguistic, economic and social justice research as well as experiences that participants would like to share. Register through UVM for this a one-hour session, 3-4 pm EST.

COMING UP!

🎟️ Intro to Name Fluency Mini-Workshop (Zoom)
🗓️ August 20, 2025 | 11:00–11:45am ET
🧠 Learn how names shape trust, identity, and belonging
👉 Reserve Your Spot

🎟️ What’s in a Name? An Archaological Approach to Communication, Identity and Belonging (UVM Olli - Online)
🗓️ September 9, 2025 | 3:00–4:00pm ET
🧠 In this online program, led by Kaomi Joy Taylor, founder of the Museum of Names, participants will dig deep into personal names and naming, considering scientific, psychological, sociological, linguistic, economic, and social justice research as well as cultural, familial and other layers of meaning, with a special focus on the roles names play in our lives. Bring your own name stories to share!
👉 Reserve Your Spot

(You’re a Big Name in my book.)

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