View Full Version : What's In a Name
Ed Ekers
03-01-2003, 08:01 AM
I am curious. As I read all the different post on the board I see many of us refer to our yachts by number and some by name. It is the name that I am curious about. How or why does your boat have the name the she is graced with.
In the case of "Pathfinder" she carries her handle respectfully in honor of a past streaking windjammer yawl. The original Pathfinder was a wooden yawl owned by a fellow by the name of Nino Nickoli (sp?). This wonderful boat would often sail out the San Francisco Bay channel before there was a Golden Gate Bridge and race for points up and down the west coast. Often she would carry a young fellow by the name of Ernie. The skipper, Nino, was to become the sailing mentor of Ernie Rideout.
As I have said in other post Ernie has been kind enough to pass on some of his knowledge to me over the years. There are times when I sit and listen to him and can see him reaching back into his eighty years on the water and recalling times of his younger years and crewing for Nino. I suspect that Ernie would try to take it all in from his mentor much the same way I focus on every word that Ernie shares with me.
So it is with a great appreciation and pride that Ariel #77 carries her name and I am sure the original Pathfinder skipper is watching over Ernie and I as we put the Ariel through her paces.
So what's in a name for your yacht? ......ed
Brent
03-02-2003, 09:45 AM
Ed,
Our Ariel came to us as "Dulcinea", named after the whore whom Don Quixote thought was a princess. Like Don Quixote, the former owner saw her potental beyond what the eye could see.
I often refer to her as #66 because I intend on changing her name. When I'm done, the potential will have been revealed, and so a new name will be more suitable than the one she currently sports.
Brent
The Hawaiian name for #76 is Maika'i and is similar to saying "great" or "swell" or maybe "wonderful."
The same letters without the hyphen change the word's meaning and it becomes "to the sea," or "of the sea." It's the more common spelling seen on boats.
mrgnstrn
03-02-2003, 05:47 PM
well, our girl's original name was "Glass Doll", which was very appropriate as it was hull #3, and fiberglass was a new and novel product.
somewhere around 1980 or so, the 3rd owner decided that "Ariel Spirit" was a better moniker. of course, when my wife and i bought her, i was totally set on naming after my wife. after a few months, mostly from pure laziness, and other more pressing needs by the girl. so, i guess that someday, maybe we will properly commision her after my beloved wife, or maybe some other name will spark our fancy.
but even though the names change and are in some cases transitory, the one thing that remains the same through it all is the hull number.
and to some people, (maybe i'm in this bucket) the hull number itself is somewhat of a piece to be proud of. i am sure that #1 and #2 feel pretty lucky to have found their girls.
-"Ariel Spirit"
came with the name of Sun Quest - somewhat obliterated by a monster AutoHelm windvane thru bolted all over the transom. Kind of like an octopus struck by lightning.
Sun Quest ain't bad as names go. But it sounds like a crate of oranges to me. Or a travel company with Hawaiian bus tours. Some boats have great names, like Pathfinder, epitomizing the spirit of adventure. I've decided to submit a new name to 338 when she gets recommisioned.
No doubt I'll make up my own version of Vigor's naming ceremony when that great day arrives. Names keep popping up like Epoxy Roxy and Glassie Lassie. One day she will whisper to me what she wants: >Banana Wind< Just kidding, just kidding.
A suggested new name for Maika'i is "Ol' Yeller." Seems to conform to the hull color . . :cool:
Ed Ekers
03-03-2003, 10:30 AM
I like the ideas about glass. I must admit I never even thought of names like that for our line of boats but it sure works. I have always enjoyed the names of the local Bear Boat fleet. They have used the bear theme often in the naming.
One of my all time favorites was a boat that Ernie raced in the 50's. It was a nineteen foot Acorn called tunami (tuna me). Read it backwards and you get "I'm a nut".
Bill if I am correct is not 338 the boat that Perry Kelly sailed some years ago. If so do you happen to recall the name?
Perry's boat's name was Christina. Changed by one of the next owners to Turn.
Mike Goodwin
03-03-2003, 12:55 PM
When I took possession of #45 she was named " Aqueous Humor" , you know , the sticky fluid in the eyeball !! Well , not being in the eye care field and after I told my wife what it meant , I decided a change was in order .
So when we hauled out to remove the kelp and oyster bed from the bottom , I proceeded to sand topsides for painting and repair . There lurking under layers of faded and oxidized blue paint was "Stormalong" , still not my cup of tea .
The yard owner ,Rob Powell, comes along and says " Good to see you putting Spirit back into that old boat " . Rob said he thought the boat was destined to become part of the 'dead fleet' along the fence at the back of the yard .
Well knowing that Ariel meant spirit and that I wanted a short name to be carved on here transom , the deed was done .
Runner up was Ajax , when a friend pointed out that I was on a cleanser trend ( Spirit's predecessor was a St.Pierre dory named 'Bon Ami').
Now good old #45 is now documented as Spirit .
When cleaning up the transom on 338 and scraping the name off there, you could just make out the words: Costa Mesa. If anybody knows some of the history of 338, I'd like to hear it!
Ariel itself is a fertile source for name ideas.
The dictionary will be the first to tell you that it is a HEB masculine proper name (one of Ezra's henchmen), and to this day a heavy and disagreeable use of this fine word. Surprisingly, it means lioness of God.
Variously it is a water spirit, a shape changer, a rebel angel, the shadow of the wind, and a spirit of the air. One word, aerial, has influenced its meaning a lot.
Ariel is also a petrel of the southern oceans, a brazilian toucan, an arabian stag gazelle, the bright moon of Uranus, and
the australian flying phalanger.
Given all the crooked homegrown carpentry and polyester paste I've dealt with below in 338, there have been times when Twisted Sister seemed a perfect moniker.
MarkCreeker
03-03-2003, 06:22 PM
Commander #202 came to me as Lady J. Although she's in fine company sharing a name with our Treasurer Gene's Ariel, I have no family member (daughter, wife, or dog) to connect the "J" with. I've been planning a renaming ceremony, calling her something with Grace in the name - my grandmother's first name, and my mother and daughter's middle name. Also the condition that allows me to own such a fine boat.
Of course, then she'll be sharing a name with Commander Pete's Commander...(no comment about that company, please).
Ebb, the more I think about it, the more Twisted Sister just sounds right . . .:D
...and sometimes when I imagine taking this baby around the world: Horney Lady comes to mind.
Once worked for a guy who named his Chevy pickup truck, Yellow Avenger.
But I feel humorous names (Liquid Asset), mental states (Erratic Behavior, XTC), and puns (Sea Ya, Aquadesiac) belong on power boats and lasers. Like Mike's Aqueous Humor!! Ariels ask for a more dignified, or is it more poetic, name. Wayward Star, Wanderer, Beyond, Blue Yonder, Escape, Faretheewell, Passing Wind, Spirit.
Or honoring the denizens of the wild: Orca, Ospray, Gull, Tern, Walrus, Coot.
Always liked the downhome fishing boats: Cheryl D, Suzi Q, Mary J.
Doesn't seem to matter a whole lot what might be a lucky name to call your boat. Or maybe it is what's missing in names from this exclusive list: Spray, Islander, Legh II, Les Quatre Vents, Trekka, Dove, Suhali, Joshua, Tuatua,, Ahodori II, Amelia.
Like Data in Next Generation who names his cat Spot, I'll get it just as wrong when 338 gets hers - it's a great responsibility - I don't take it lightly. Spot, sounds good! Maybe I should just shut up more often!
:D
Ed Ekers
03-04-2003, 09:43 AM
Horny guy may be a little more appropriate
There was once a couple of guys on the SF Bay that raced big boats and had vessel named "twisted sisters". The boat was infamous for coming along one of their competitors and have a couple of the female crew open the foul weather jackets to expose their assets. The thought was to distract the other boat. Not only did it distract some but I recall going out of our way to find "Twisted Sisters".....ed
Richard
03-04-2003, 01:14 PM
The Ariel I just purchased came without a name. After much thought I've decided to name her "Althea." The name comes from a poem about love and freedom by the English poet, Richard Lovelace called "To Althea, from Prison." Richard Lovelace just happens to be in my ancestral line as a great great...great uncle. He lived from 1618-1658.
Mike Goodwin
03-04-2003, 05:05 PM
In "The Heat of The Night" , Althea was detective Tibbs' wife .
Brent
03-04-2003, 05:42 PM
Ebb, I have to agree that something dignified and poetic is more fitting on an Ariel than the "cute" names.
A close look at the transom on #66 reveals her first name, "Escape." Perhaps more dignified than other names, but too common in my opinion.
Ketos is Greek for "sea monster". Ketea is the plural. From these we get the Latin Cetus and Cetacea. I think the latter are more common than the former. All are nice names and are on my short list.
Then there is "Becky Ann" (after the wife), "Dorothy Norma" (each by itself or both together--after my grandmothers).
Dreaming up names is a good way to pass the time until the ice thaws...
Tony G
03-04-2003, 08:11 PM
I'm so young that I just might keep Dream Weaver on #113. It's probably the closest thing to a royalty check Gary Wright will see these days!:p
I thought it was cool back in the late 1970's when the really fast big boats here on the Bay were named such things as "Lois Lane" and "Clark Kent." We even have a local Ariel that is named "Lickety Split." :D
It warms the cockles of me heart
just to hear that name again.
Yeah, it's whatever is right for the boat
and makes you feel warm when you say it...
or maybe it's cool. Ayedono. SeaYa.
Mike Goodwin
03-05-2003, 06:00 AM
IF I had a really fast boat , a sled , it would have to be named "Blue Bayou" . I may name my double proa that if I can ever get it finished !
19.5' boat ,14'beam , 36' mast , 800 lbs .
Ed Ekers
03-05-2003, 06:15 AM
Near where we keep Pathfinder there is a large stink pot that my wife gets a chuckle out of every time we pass by. Lisa is an engineer and project manager and we she sees that large stern with "Change Order" with the contractors lic. number under it she just says "how appropriate".
So Mike are you suggesting that instead of Althea, the boat should be called "Detective Tibbs' wife"? Or how about Mrs. Tibbs!
Miz Tibbsea? Naw. In no other langwhich can you have so much fun naming a boat! Using the serial number is definitely a refuge. 338 has one sure new candidate, but it won't be said until launch time just in case.
Change Order. Now there is a perfect example of the hole-in-the-water adage - into which you pour money.
Althea has soul. Like the Ariel.
Pathfinder. Well, you didn't choose: Last of the Mohegans. or, Deerslayer - how come? please, just kidding! J.F.C. did invent a character named: Bumppo; could be useful.
What are you guys? all a bunch of English lit majors?
Need some more fabric samples here!
:cool:
Janice Collins
03-11-2003, 03:09 AM
Tom purchased #91 already named Wayward Star. He was a very superstitious kind of guy and thought it bad luck to change the name. So Wayward Star she was, is, and shall be named.
God knows she shines and the life we led living on her and sailing her off the beaten path all those years, Wayward is quite fitting also.
:cool:
Theis
03-11-2003, 06:18 AM
I guess I have to add my two cents.
I do have an ice boat, an Arrow, factory number 69, and the name of the boat, Bill, is Lickety Split.
My boat, Solksken (pronounced "Sewell Shen") is Swedish for sunshine, fairweather, which, strange as it may sound, is what I like best, both on the water and in life. The boat flag is a white & yellow sun on a blue background - Swedish colors. When I was shopping for a boat back in the '60s, I was really looking for a Swedish Folkbot and almost bought one, when the surveyor gave me a strong note of caution. The Ariel was the second choice.
I haven't seen any others with that name - so it is readily discernable.
The original name was Our Glass, which was sort of neat.
One of my favorite names in the harbor is "Cooler by the Lake".
Scott Galloway
03-12-2003, 11:17 PM
I decided to name my "new in 2001" thirty-six year old Pearson Ariel before I knew that she had two previous names. When I adopted her from the Sea Scouts, her transom was blank. The name that I chose for the boat was Augustine. Augustine is a character in my novel, "The Final Mercy". In that book, Augustine is a white female pigeon and the leader of the West Cliff Flock. Augustine represents the idealized concept of the beloved.
In the paragraph below from that novel, Auggie is also a pigeon. Pigeons provide comic relief in a very serious novel about love, death, mercy, a group of aging California surfers, and a thirty-foot boat designed by Carl Alberg. It is also worthy of note that in real life, a family of pigeons once emerged from a nest built in hull 330's lazarette locker.
The thoughts expressed below are Auggie's own thoughts. They do not reflect the viewpoint of the skipper.
"The leader of the West Cliff flock was a beautiful white bird name Augustine. Auggie had always been attracted to her, not only because of her dazzling white features and demure little orange eyes, but also because they were both named after the same Catholic saint, or perhaps it was because they were both named after Caesar Augustus, or perhaps it was because they were both named after the month in which they were both born, but the why of it was of no matter. Augustine's name and Auggie's name were very much the same, and that gave Auggie a feeling of affinity to Augustine, even though his affection for her was not reciprocated."
Ed Ekers
03-13-2003, 06:01 AM
Scott, Great story. I wondered how you came up with the name Augustine. Your description now has filler in the blanks. After reading the attached paragraph I am pleased to read that the thoughts do not reflect the view of the skipper and would hope the thoughts of Agustine are not directed towards the skipper as well.
and that gave Auggie a feeling of affinity to Augustine, even though his affection for her was not reciprocated."
Scott Galloway
03-13-2003, 12:56 PM
Thanks Ed, but I am not so sure about my affection for my boat being reciprocated at the moment. I rather imagine that Augustine is rather angry with me for taking her out yesterday afternoon under full sail in what proved to be a very ill wind. Blew out her jib I did, but then again, I gave her a well deserved fresh water bath when I came in, and this afternoon I am heading to the sail loft with a pile of tattered Dacron. It was very interesting out there yesterday. I must say that I have never before heard the wind scream that loud in the rigging...and by the way there was once a white pigeon in the flock that hangs out at the cliffside bench at the end of Merced Street.
French
04-02-2003, 09:51 AM
Having been involved with Asian culture for some 30 years with my Martial Art Teaching/Training, I became familar with some of the Taoist Deites ( saints )
Kuan Yin is the name of a Taoist goddess. Sometimes represented by a picture her riding a dragon on a sea of water and clouds. She represents the spirt of Mercy and Compassion, she is the Eastern counterpart to "Mary".
I figured since this was my first boat, I could use as much mercy and compassion as possible while out on the water, so Kuan Yin was a good name...
French
04-02-2003, 09:59 AM
This is Kuan Yin's logo I designed...
Brent
04-03-2003, 03:34 PM
French,
Beautiful logo; I'm impressed.
Love the name too. IMHO, the best names have three qualities:
1) They are feminine;
2) they say something about the owner and his/her lifestyle and/or heritage;
3) they offer some sort of appeasement or tribute to the gods/spirits.
Brent
Lucky Dawg
01-28-2009, 08:01 AM
Searching for a Commander pic between 200 and 227 (thanks for the massive detour WillBe!) I came across this old thread. Fun to read the thinking behind our names.
Lucky Dawg arrived as "Someday" but - yawn - that really didn't do it for me. Originally she was "Restless II". "Lucky Dawg" came to me when I was eyeing Bulldog-red C-74 near Cleveland (she since went to Maine) and I had photoshop-ed my original design for the name on 74's transom. I've mentioned before that the name is a nod to my UGA alma mater and that I am one Lucky Dawg to own such a beautiful yacht - and the lucky part works with my green hull too, I think.
The name isn't feminine, is mildly heritage based - warm memories of my Georgia roots, and doesn't directly pay homage to the sea. However, it hopefully communicates my grateful and giddy grin every single time I step aboard across her coamings.
Great thread!
Awsome picture Kyle!
Here is the story on C-155. Not much of a story, really... 'Mephisto Cat' is actually the name that the boat already had when I ran into it...
When searching for a boat I came across some real winners. -I really do not know what some people are thinking... I especially remember this bright yellow Pearson 26 named 'Penus'... Interesting fellow the owner must have been... Actually, the boat was on a lien sale because he did not pay his bills.
I thought of names I liked for my future boat such as 'Halve Maen' which I really like (After a famous Dutch ship. It means 'Half Moon' in Dutch - Holland was my home for a few years...)
I may now name my dinghy this... Or 'Liquid kitty' to stick with the feline theme... The funny thing is that I really do not care for cats much... They are fine animals, they are just NOT my preferred sort of pet.
I ran into C-155 and upon noticing the name it just felt appropriate. The PO mentioned that he believed that this was the boat's original name, and I liked it, so I left it...
Lucky Dawg
01-28-2009, 09:05 AM
Interesting fellow the owner must have been... Actually, the boat was on a lien sale because he did not pay his bills.
Note to self: Pay on your Penus, or you may lose it. "Ack! My Penus was Repossessed!" :eek: (sorry Bill - don't ban me.)
Dude. Seriously.
----------------
I didn't apply a feline image to it - more that "Mephisto Cat" was along the lines of "That Rico is one Cool Cat!"
Here is Dr. Mephisto from South Park
SkipperJer
01-28-2009, 01:46 PM
It may be the boat was named after somebody's cat. Mephisto is a somewhat common name for a cat, particularly a black one. The name is associated with being devilish which suits the personality of many curious kittens who get into a lot of things. All of which is how T. S. Eliot wrote about Mr. Mistofellees, the conjuring cat in Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, the only work by T. S. Eliot I ever liked in college. In the musical Cats, Mr. Mistofellees is black with white markings and a bit of a central character throughout.
Bill, has T. S. Eliot ever come up on this forum before?
SkipperJer
01-28-2009, 01:48 PM
By the way, my favorite boat name is "Sick Puppy" which was owned by a very wealthy veterinarian.
Jer,
I have also heard this as a common name for a cat... Figures. -The nasty little devils...
The origin of the character is quite old and has been adopted by some prominent literarians in addition to T.S. Eliot; from Marlowe all the way to Goethe.
A wiki-summary:
Mephistopheles (also Mephistophilus, Mephistophilis, Mephostopheles, Mephisto, etc.) is the name used for the demon in the German Faust legend.
In contrast to the devil usually known as Satan, who appears with cloven hooves and horns, Mephistopheles is usually portrayed as more humanoid, often taking the form of a tall man dressed all in black.
The name is associated with the Faust legend of a scholar who wagers his soul against the devil being able to make Faust wish to live, even for a moment, based on the historical Johann Georg Faust.
The name appears in the late 16th century Faust chapbooks. In the 1725 version which was read by Goethe, Mephostophiles is a devil in the form of a greyfriar summoned by Faust in a woods outside Wittenberg.
The name Mephistophiles already appears in the 1527 Praxis Magia Faustiana.
From the chapbook, the name enters Faustian literature and is also used by authors . In the 1616 edition of The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus, Mephostophiles became Mephistophilis.
Too much info, perhaps???
Holy cats! :D
Between the literature and the Latin a while back, I feel like I belong on some other board! :rolleyes:
Ariel 414 came to me as "Spirit Song". (gag!) I lived with it while I got to know her. Perhaps I tend to take these things a little too seriously and kept trying out names on the family that were a bit melodramatic and morose.
- "Phantom" my late Dad flew reconnaissance in F4 Phantoms in Vietnam
- "Sanvean (I Am Your Shadow)" a haunting song by Dead Can Dance
- "Lazy Calm" an incredibly beautiful song by the Cocteau Twins - MUCH better as a song the name for a sail boat!
- "Cygnus" Latin for swan, also the the summertime constellation which features the Northern Cross and X-1, the nearest black hole to our galaxy - especially fitting for a good old boat. :D
Then a few Summers ago, we rented a house on an island here in Casco Bay and spent a whole lot of the time combing a local beach for, you guessed it, sea glass. That was the first name I tried where everyone said "yes!" And so she was christened after her recore and deck job with a six pack of Shipyard Ale. :p
Lucky Dawg
01-28-2009, 07:18 PM
So cool that a yacht and her name (and her rightful owner) find each other... eventually. I'll drink to that!
On the cork wall in my kitchen there is a 8 1/2X11 pic of a Maurice Griffiths' Eventide. It's a rear 3/4 view of a decrepit but not dilapidated white 3 keeler with a folded ladder leaning against her port side. She's against a hedgerow with green grass tickling her belly........ waiting.
On the transom: QUIET REACH.
Griffiths own Eventide was named Kylix, Greek for 'drinking cup'.
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