What's in a name ?

[Galway Bay]

I have been meaning to do this for a while - what did you call your boat and why ??

Some names seem selfevident like parhaps "peace" but what is the whole story ? Many choose Poiynesian names but to me this is perhaps better suited to sailors who sail these seas or at least can realistically hope to do so.

My own boat is at this time nameless. So this could help me make up my mind. Having replaced 50% of the entire boat in a reconstruction I feel I am entitled to a new name as well !

In my younger days I was "Circus" and a beginner in circus is called a "First of May" because this is by tradition when the circus starts to tour. So when I became a beginner in sailing I used this name for my boat. You can imagine the mayhem on the VHF when my friends tried to call me - yeah yeah "Mayday Mayday where are you?" So that name is history.

I am an Irish speaker and am tempted by some lovely Irish language names eg. "Gabhlan Gaoithe" [ who goes with the wind ] which is the Irish name for the Swift [bird] who circles the globe without landing - even mating in flight.  

Another line of thought leads me into musical circles. My home [ Clare ] is renowned for it's traditional music and I am a small part of this. I made my living as a tradesman and "The Mason's Apron" is a tune that crossed the ocean to Newfoundland and returned and is a great favourite on both sides of the Atlantic.

But this is not just about me. So go on tell us - what did you call yours and why ???

[paul anderson]

What a lovely story Ann, as an old soldier who fought in one of Africa's grubby wars I am in total agreement with your sentiments.

cheers paul.

[Galway Bay]

Thanks Ann / Nev. " Peace " sounds so self-explanatory but I always felt there must be a deeper story.

I worked circus in the USA in '69 - "Peace Circus" [ otherwise Bartok's Circus ]. Performers were a colourful lot mostly East Europeans with some WW2 refugees / escapees. The money was in the concessions - hot dogs, candy floss etc. all in the hands of Florida circus families. I would love to get back some day to Sarasota to swop old stories. The labour was Vietnam Vets. and draft dodgers all living cosily together. Crazy people . Crazy days. 

Every day we moved and pitched tent again [except Sat night], Every morning I took a Mahout's stick and with "Chandra" the mother elephant did all the heavy moving.

Some of the "Big Tops" [they put up the tent] were old sailors ashore. They had the experience of handling ropes and large canvas.

In the Irish language "Aisling" means dream / dreamer and I have seen this used on boats. It is also used as a girls name and is I think a beautiful one.

May you continue to sail in peace for many's the year !!

[Bradley [Brad] Warne]

Well, I too have never named a boat and, after having owned several, I can attest that I have been name-selection challenged. I always thought it was important that the whole family buy in on the name and that just never happened. Now though that I have my dreamboat in the building process my wife has gotten into the naming frame-of-mind. My original proposal was It's 5 O'clock Somewhere. For me it sort of had two meanings. Meaning number one is straightforward, it was a collaborative of two of my favorite song writers (I am learning, even though I have a great builder doing the hard work, that this is all about collaboration) and the lyrics speak to the attitude I like to be in when cruising. Meaning number 2, I just figured out recently I could retire and go cruising. The final kick in the pants I needed for this retirement is sort of covered by the words in the first verse ("I'm gettin' paid by the hour, an' older by the minute. My boss just pushed me over the limit. I'd like to call him somethin', I think I'll just call it a day.") Although it wasn't exactly my boss but those several levels higher that seemed to me to be going in a different direction than I, I must confess that was my original motivation.

 

Anyway as I think someone else in this string of replies noted it's not all about me. The family (mostly my wife, also a Jimmy Buffett fan) likes "It's 5 O'Clock Somewhere" but they are all big fans of the TV series "The Big Bang Theory". For those not familiar, it is principally about the lives four geeky guys (read that Engineer/Science types) and one struggling actress. My wife and I both are Engineers and often referred to by our close friends as "the nerds". So this has led to a new name derived from the show. Sheldon Cooper, the lead actor blurted out the word "Bazinga" in one episode when Sheldon caught up one of his buddies with one of his pranks. Loosely translated Bazinga means gotcha. This is pretty much how I felt about the Ariki 48 collaborative design update by BoatSmith and JWD when I first saw it. Since the word Bazinga caught on the TV researchers have documented it as an original word so, in to me it is fitting that it be applied to our Ariki 48. Besides this being serendipitous find that the whole family likes, it will look fabulous as a graphic, maybe on the asymmetrical spinnaker. We're still deciding but I am leaning toward Bazinga.

[paul anderson]

Bazinga - I like it very much.

[Galway Bay]

Yes names do take some thought if only to avoid - "A boy named Sue"- a cat[amaran] named "Dog" and "Mayday Mayday where are you" - going in a circle here...

[Rogerio Martin]

Good name, have my vote

paul anderson said:

Bazinga - I like it very much.

[andy solywoda]

Ahoy Galway Bay,

     I had an engine failure in a narrow inlet and while waiting for help, had a nice large production catamaran come by.  They were going to help me, then after consultation said, "Oh no, we can't", and proceeded up to the marina restaurant.  The water taxi came after I called and  hooked up and towed us in.  "They must be a boat full of lawyers", he said.  And there it was at the dock, "Courtship".  As I walked by I asked if any lawyers were on board and a lady said, yeah there are a few.

[Galway Bay]

There is a genuine firm of solicitors [lawyers not kerb ladies] in Sligo called "Liar and Fibb". Yeah those are the guy's real names.

I heard a "yottie"  joke .   Guy wants to tie up to the quay ahead of another boat.   "Can I lie ahead of you sir ?"   "You may try but I warn you I a am a member of the legal profession !!" 

Did you really see a boat called "Wet Dream ?"  Deffo. one for the list ...of what not to do.  Although I did call a beachcat  "Cheap Thrills" after the Janis Joplin  album.

[Marty Peters]

We felt like naming our tiki 46 "Never Ending Story" because that what it felt like during the renovations once we realised the enormity of the task ahead.
We finally settled on "Spiral Tribe". Lots of reasons why, my wife is Irish and spirals feature prelifically in the Irish history and culture. The esoteric meaning of spirals resonates strongly with us and i am fascinated on how and why spirals are some of the ealiest forms of art throught the globe, and only recently whilst flipping through either the Plans or the designs book i came across the "how we design"spiral. Maybe subliminal from the jwd team at work there!
Tribe : again we like the ethos of tribes and tribal culture, we started our tribe a few years ago, and hopefully we can live way more sustainable than we have in the past, also the word "Tribe" somehow has a strong solid feeling about it, I like the way it rolls off the tongue.

[Brad Ingram]

I named my tiki after Beto Pandiani. He is a Brazilian who leads expeditions on 21' beach cats. He has sailed a Hobie 21 from Miami to Brazil, around Cape Horn, across the Drake passage, and next year is voyaging to the North Pole on a custom Eagle 21. He is an inspiration to me, and seemed very fit to name my boat after, being a Tiki 21 and all. Beto would probably find my boat luxurious!

[paul anderson]

Nice Brad.

I had the name'' mutiwakki '' as a contender, but am now leaning towards s.v. Warthog. No deep and meaningful reason is a positive for this, unlike mutiwakka I won't get what does it mean etc.

Also warthogs put a smile on my face every time.

[Roger]

Little Cat. Its little and a cat. Some have accused me of being short on ideas, but I insist that its really just a lack of imagination.