When Megan and I decided to change our last names from Foster and Madden to O'Madadhain, I decided that, if I were going to go through this legal process anyway, I was going to change my middle name from "Christian" as well. While, in combination with several other factors, this name allowed me to make a great joke about my essential nature, I have for years felt uncomfortable with bearing a name which means "of or pertaining to Christianity" when in fact I have not been a Christian in that sense since I was about 10. (There are tenets of Christianity with which I agree, but I am an agnostic by policy.)
So in the spring of 2001, I started seriously thinking about to what I would change my middle name. This took a while, in part because there were several properties that I wanted such a replacement to possess. I wanted it to mean, or be associated with, something of significance to me, such as a quality that I felt was central to who I was, or a person who had qualities that I admired and identified with. I wanted it to be at least loosely associated with my heritage (which is known to be at least Irish, English, Scots, and German). And I wanted to like the way that it looked and sounded.
I looked at a lot of names; in particular, I read the entirety of Behind The Name, a fairly extensive list of names through history from a number of different cultures. My research caused me to end up with a list of about 15 candidates (if anyone really wants to know what else was on the list, let me know), which I finally whittled down to two: Rhys and Taliesin.
Rhys (pronounced "hrees", with a flipped 'r') is a Welsh name that means "enthusiasm" or "ardor". One of my defining characteristics, and one of the things that I like about myself, is the fact that there are many things--such as learning an interesting new fact or connection, or pulling off a really horrid pun-- that I really enjoy, often to the extent of becoming visibly excited. Hence one reason for my identification with the quote "It's that moment of dawning comprehension I live for." (q.v.)
Rhys is also the name of a fictional character in a series of books by Katherine Kurtz. I admire him for a few reasons: he is a Healer; he spends--and eventually gives--his life in an effort to eliminate a fundamental inequity in his society; and he clearly loves his wife and children very much. The fact that these qualities are central to his self-image is also a part of what I admire in him.
Taliesin (properly pronounced "tall-YES-in", commonly
pronounced (in the US) "tal-EYE-ess-in") is also Welsh, and means
"shining brow". (Yes, given the high incidence of male-pattern baldness
in my family, this may be tempting fate. However, thus far my hairline
is holding steady...and fortunately, one of the nice things about being
tall is that if I do start getting a bald spot, it may be years
before anyone notices. :))
Taliesin is the name of a bard, mage, and generally clever person in Welsh mythology. Welsh mythology, from my brief acquaintance, seems to have an affinity for figures (such as Taliesin) who (a) solve problems through applying their intelligence and (b) sound like a smartass while doing so. Sound familiar?
Together, these two names and their associations represent to me much of that which I am (at least the good parts--and I couldn't find a Welsh name that meant "occasionally inconsiderate and overly abstracted computer game addict", anyway) and that which I aspire to be. (As a bonus, "Rhys" yields the same initial as Megan's middle name.)
Last modified 24 January 2002