Sunday, December 12, 2004

 

Aptronyms

American journalist and radio personality Franklin P. Adams (1881-1960) invented the term aptronym to mean a name that suits the nature or occupation of the bearer. I would have expected aptonym, but the epenthetic r was supposedly influenced by patronym. You get aptronym from patronym by switching the first two letters. There are many lists of aptronyms, but it is sometimes difficult to determine which names on these lists are genuine and which are made up. Here are two genuine aptronyms:



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