Since I mentioned in my last post the fact that my mother and grandmother had the same name, it got me thinking about the whole name thing in my family.  At least on my mother’s side of the family.  Names were a really big deal.  I think that a lot of thought went into what someone was named.  Whether the person appreciated that thought – like me – was questionable, in some cases, but it meant a lot what name you received.  And sometimes there were unintentional consequences to the name you got!

My grandmother was Marion Carney Malone and she married Boyce Wilson Hunter, thereby becoming Marion Malone Hunter.  She was called “Mame” by most.  I don’t know where that came from, but I really liked it.  I think Mame is a very cool name and I also think she probably should have considered asking for that to be her grandmother name.  My grandmother had 3 daughters – Marion Malone (my mother), Amelia Ann, and Sara Caldwell Hunter.  Obviously my mother was named for her mother.  Amelia Ann was named for my grandmother’s sister, Amelia Carney Malone.  Sara got the Caldwell name from her father’s father, James Caldwell Hunter.

Amelia Ann, Sara, Marion and Marion Hunter

As I alluded to, my grandmother did not use “Mame” as her grandmother name.  She was quite a pistol, so it always amuses me that she allowed her grandchildren to come up with her grandmother names instead of telling us what it would be.  Although, I have to say, she did learn by the time the third set of grandchildren came along. J

Mocha!! - Isn't she pretty?

Sara married first and she married Julius Jennings Wade, Jr., also known as Jake.  They had 3 children – James Hunter Wade, which was her grandfather’s name; Julius Jennings Wade III, named for his father and called Jay; and Amelia Ann Wade, named for Sara’s sister and born on Amelia Ann Hunter’s birthday.  Jimmy Wade was the oldest of Marion Hunter’s grandchildren and clearly had been thumped on the head more than once as a baby since he came up with the ridiculous grandmother name “Fomoma”.  I’m pretty sure my grandmother was mortified and probably pretended not to know the Wade children in public when they hollered for her.

My mother married next, of course the great and wonderful William John Moore.  They had 4 children – me; William John Moore, Jr., named for Daddy and called John; Paul Boyce Moore, whose first name provenance is a mystery but whose middle name is from Mother’s Daddy; and George Lee Moore, who was named for our grandmother’s brother George Lee Malone.  Mother was unusually sensitive to the fact that people routinely mistook her for a man when they saw her name, which was spelled Marion.  So she still named me for her, but gave me the feminine spelling of the first name, so that I was Marian Hunter Moore.  I was the second oldest grandchild and was given the honor of picking another grandmother name for our maternal grandmother (our paternal grandmother was already named “Grandma” so I got no choice in that naming) and I chose “Mocha”.  Legend has it that I was trying to say “Mother” and it actually came out “Mow-ker”.  Someone, probably Mother, thought to spell it as “Mocha”, which meant that Mocha was really named “Chocolate”, which, even though it was odd, was pleasant because it was chocolate.  Small wonder that my favorite sweet is chocolate. J  So while Mocha may have also flinched a little at that name, how could she be unhappy being known as chocolate?  So I think she was ok with that and probably actually, if truth be known, flattered.  I’m pretty sure it was her favorite grandmother name.

Then, finally, Amelia Ann got married to Oliver F Roddey (I can’t remember what the “F” is for).  Now, Amelia Ann was called “Mee Ann”, the southernized pronunciation of Amelia Ann.  But she also has this nickname “Meechie”.  I have no idea where “Meechie” comes from, but many people call her Meechie or Meech for short.  My uncle’s nickname is “Bo”, like the President’s dog.  I have no idea where that comes from either.  Anyway, they were pretty unimaginative in naming their children and their names are Oliver Hunter Roddey, otherwise known as Hunter, and Amelia Ann Roddey, otherwise known as Ann.  My grandmother forced them to call her the pedestrian and boring grandmother name of “Grandmother”.

An interesting side note to the grandmother naming – my former mother-in-law had the normal grandmother name “Grandma” from her first two grandchildren.  When grandchild #3 came along, he called her “Bubba”.  I can’t even imagine what it was like to be out with your grandson and have him holler at you “Hey! Bubba!”  J

So family names are huge in my family.  The most desirable family name to have is “Hunter”.  Probably because it’s THE family name, but there are an unfortunately large number of family members who got it.  Some aren’t even actually in the Hunter family, but they liked it so much they stole it!  As an example, my grandmother’s sister Amelia Carney Malone married Harvey May.  Not a Hunter in sight.  But she named one of her sons Hunter.  And he named his son Hunter.  And her other son, Harvey, named one of his daughters Amelia Hunter.  And she got to be called Hunter!  That was another thing that annoyed me.  My cousin Hunter Roddey got to be called Hunter and two of my second cousins got to be called Hunter, but I did not get to be called Hunter.  I think I would have had a much happier life if I could have been called Hunter instead of Marian.  My sister-in-law even suggested that I change my name to Hunter, one night when we were enjoying dinner at an outdoor restaurant in Corsica.  I have to admit that I did think about it.  But, alas, it would have been too difficult to remember now.  Plus Hunter Hall sounds like a dorm.

Family names have been passed down to the next generation as well.  My cousin Jimmy Wade has three daughters named Malone (another family name I would have loved to have), Quinn (his wife’s maiden name), and Carney.  Jay Wade named his daughter Abby, randomly, but his son is Julius Jennings IV.  Amelia named her daughters Sara Ann and Stewart.  The Stewart is because of our Scottish heritage – the Hunters were part of the Royal Stewart clan.  My brother John’s son is William John III.  Paul’s sons are Allen (his wife’s family name) George and Boyce Wilson.  And then my cousin Ann has children named Bo and Ann.  Hunter Roddey has children named Harrison and Caroline and, quite frankly, I have no idea where those names came from!

And then we have the unintentional naming.  I’ve lost count of the number of times that people are taken aback by the fact that my brothers are John, Paul and George.  The inevitable next question is “where’s Ringo?”  My biggest beef growing up was having to be called “Little Marian” so as not to be confused with my mother.  Just one more reason why I should have been called Hunter.  First.  Before Hunter Roddey came on the scene.  I do remember asking one time why no one called my mother “Big Marion”.  That did not go over well.  I also suggested changing my name to Vicky.  That was not well received either.

When I was growing up I was not as big a fan of all the family names.  But as I’ve gotten older I’ve seen how they link a family and make us even more a part of each other.  There’s some pride in having a family name, especially when it’s a well-revered name.  And then sometimes you end up with something silly and ridiculous like “Fomoma”. J

The family (without Mother) - front:  Jake Wade, Jimmy Wade  back: Sara Hunter Wade, Boyce Hunter, Amelia Ann Hunter, Marion "Mocha" Hunter