is Michael. And my name is Kevin.

係 Michael 而我個名就係 Kevin

Names.

「名」

Humans give each other names

人類都會改名

but so do dolphins. They use

海豚都一樣 佢哋會用

whistle sounds and will respond to their whistle name

口哨聲嚟做名 而且唔識嘅海豚

even when produced by a dolphin they don't know.

都會應啲口哨聲咖喎

Personal names, personalized

個人化嘅名將物件個人化

things, signifying that the named thing is capable of

令到每樣有名嘅嘢都可以記載

feeling. That it's worthy of empathy. The United Nations

感覺。係值得嘅同感 聯合國

Convention on the Rights of the Child has declared that every

兒童權利公約訂明每個

human child born on earth has the right

人類出世嘅時候都有改名權

to a name. Every country on earth has ratified the treaty,

幾乎每個國家都批准咗

except for three: South Sudan, the newest country on earth,

除咗 3 個：南蘇丹 全球最新嘅國家

Somalia, which has no central government, and

冇中央政府嘅索馬里

the United States. Why?

同埋美國 你可能會問點解？

Well, some organizations

呃…… 喺美國

inside the United States believe that the US

嘅有啲機構認為美國

shouldn't have to listen to another authority and the treaty prohibits

冇須要聽從其他機構 而且公約係限制咗

the death penalty for children.

兒童嘅 *死刑* ……

It's a moot point now but up until 2005 twenty-two states

呢樣嘢仍然有爭議 但直至 *2005* 年有 *22* 個州

allowed children to be executed

係容許兒童因犯罪

for crimes. The United States follows the treaty now but won't promise to

而被處死刑 美國話佢會跟個公約但係唔保證

always do so. Dunce is

所有時間都係…… 俾人嗌做

a bad name to be called but an even worse name

白癡仔真係慘 但係慘唔過呢個字嘅來源

to be the origin of. Meet Duns

呢個字嘅來源 Duns Scotus

Scotus, born in 1266.

喺 1266 年出世

Popular in his time, later scholars looked down on his teachings as

喺嗰陣時佢好出名 學者話佢嘅教學係

clever but wrong. They were so critical, in fact, they took

醒目嘅但係錯嘅 犀利到將佢個名

Duns and turned his name into a noun meaning

Duns 轉咗做白癡仔嘅統稱

a stupid person - a dunce.

愚蠢嘅人 - Dunce

Perhaps you'd rather have had the longest name

或者你情願要個全世界最長嘅名

ever. A record held by a man born in 1904 whose name was 746 letters

1904 年出世嘅呢個人 個名有成 746 個字母

long. You can listen to someone pronounce the entire name

咁長 你直頭可以去維基百科聽人讀晒

on Wikipedia. What can't

佢出嚟 一個名入面

a name be? Mononymous people only use

唔可以有啲咩？ Mononymous 嘅人係只有

one name. You can name your kid Apple or

一個名 你可以叫自己個仔做「蘋果」或者

North or Moon Unit. You can name your kid

「北」或者「Moon Unit」 你亦可以叫自己個仔做

Football. But not everywhere. Some countries require parents to submit

「足球」。但唔係度度都可以 有啲國家嘅政府

their children's names to the government

會審核咗個細路嘅名

for approval. New Zealand enforces a policy in which names

先至用得 紐西蘭強制咗細路嘅名

must not cause offence to a reasonable person,

唔可以對任何人有冒犯

not be unreasonably long and should not resemble an official title

唔可以太長 亦唔可以有職銜喺入面

or rank. For example, their courts recently forbid a mother

例如法院之前就禁止咗一個媽媽

from naming her child "Sex Fruit."

改佢個仔個名做「性愛水果」

But New Zealand has allowed some unusual names.

但係紐西蘭的確係批過一啲奇怪嘅名

Right now, in New Zealand, there are children living

喺呢一刻紐西蘭係有人叫做

whose names are officially "Violence," "Midnight Chardonnay"

「暴力」、「午夜莎當妮」

and "Number 16 Bus Shelter."

同埋「16 號巴士候車亭」

In 1996 a Swedish couple submitted their child's name

喺 1996 年一對瑞典夫婦提交咗佢哋細路個名

for official approval, "Albin." But in protest of the naming laws in place at

去審批：「阿爾賓」 但係為咗抗議

the time,

當時嘅規定

they spelled Albin like this

佢哋將「阿爾賓」串成咁樣

It wasn't accepted.

最終都係冇被批准

In the United States you can name your kid pretty much anything that doesn't

喺美國你幾乎可以叫你個仔做咩都得

include obscenity,

只要冇冒犯性

numerals or symbols, which means, as Carlton Larson points out,

數字同埋符號 亦即係話正如卡爾頓．拉森所講

you can't name your kid R2-D2.

你係唔可以叫你個仔做「R2-D2」

But you could, say, name your child

但係…… 你都可以叫你個仔做

Adolf Hitler, which Heath and Deborah Campbell

希特拉嘅 Heath 同埋 Deborah Campbell

did in 2006. Adolf Hitler Campbell

喺 2006 年試過 Adolf Hitler Campbell

made headlines in 2009 after a bakery refused to put his name

因為麪包舖唔肯將佢個名寫上蛋糕度

on a cake for his third birthday. Shortly afterwards

而喺 2009 年上咗頭條 冇幾耐

child welfare officials took him and his other controversially named siblings away

兒童福利機構就捉咗佢同其他兄弟姊妹

from their parents and place them in foster care,

離開佢哋嘅父母、安置咗佢哋去寄養

where they remain to this day. His parents are self-identified

到呢一日都仲被寄養緊 佢哋嘅父母自我認同成

Nazis and they live in

納粹人 佢哋住喺

New Jersey, the latter of which makes them New Jerseyans.

新澤西州 咁佢哋就係新澤西州人嘞

If they lived in Kansas they'd be Kansan, if they lived in New York they'd

如果佢哋係住喺堪薩斯州咁佢哋就係堪薩斯州人嘞 如果佢哋係住喺紐約咁佢哋就係

be New Yorkers, if they lived in Utah they'd be

紐約人嘞 如果佢哋係住喺猶他州嘅佢哋就係

Utahns. A name based on where something is from

猶他州人 一個基於佢嚟自邊度嘅名

is called a demonym, which means that even names

喺叫做 Demonym 即係話連名都有名

have names. An endonym is a name given to a place

Endonym 係畀本地人

by those who live there. An exonym is the name given to a place by those

稱呼自己嘅名 Exonym 就係畀外地人

who live elsewhere. But my favorite name for a name

稱呼自己嘅名 但係我最鍾意嘅咧

is an autoantonym. A word that can mean the

就係 Autoantonym 一個可以同自己意思

opposite of its other meaning. For example,

完全相反嘅字 例如

the word "off," which can mean both

"Off" 可以解做

activated and de-activated.

「啟動」同埋「不啟動」

For instance, the alarm went off,

例如： 個唥鐘著咗

so we had to turn it off.

所以我哋要熄咗去

You can track the distribution of your last name across the entire

你可以上網利用呢個 Server 查吓你個姓氏

earth using the public profiler.

喺世界各地嘅分佈

Or visualize the popularity of the US' top

或者圖像化美國歷史以嚟頭 1000 個名

1000 names over time. Studies have shown that your name

嘅人口 有研究發現你個名

may influence your behavior.

可能會影響你嘅行為

The name–letter effect is a phenomenon in which people prefer

「名字字母現象」係指人類鍾意

words, events, other people and places,

字、事件、或者其他人同埋地方

which contain letters similar to the letters inside their own

係佢哋個名包含咗嘅

name. Measuring a person's preference for such letters

人類對有關字母嘅開頭

has been shown to be a good gauge of self-esteem.

係量度自尊嘅好指標

Richard Wiseman's Quirkology is a great read on this topic. He mentions

Richard Wiseman 嘅 Quirkology 有篇關於呢個現象嘅好文章

"alphabetical discrimination." People with last names that begin with the letter

裡面提到「字母歧視」 人類嘅姓氏開頭嘅字母越近 Z

near the end of the alphabet tend to rate themselves

越近 Z 通常都會自我感覺

significantly less successful than people with names that begin with the

冇其他字母開頭近 A 嘅人

letter near the

咁好

beginning of the alphabet. Perhaps because

可能係因為

all their lives they've been put on the bottom

佢哋通常到係人名表度排最後

of lists. Also fascinating is the fact that men and women with

另一項有趣嘅發現就係 男或女有

positive initials, like "A.C.E.,"

正面嘅字母開頭 例如：A.C.E.

"H.U.G." or "J.O.Y."

H.U.G. 或者 J.O.Y.

live 3 to 4.5 years longer

會長命過平均嘅

than average. But men with negative initials, like

3 至 4.5 年 但係男性有負面字母開頭例如

"P.I.G.," "B.U.M." or "D.I.E."

P.I.G.、B.U.M. 或者 D.I.E.

die about three years

會比平均

earlier than average. But interestingly, women with negative initials

早死 3 年 但係出奇地有負面字母開頭嘅女性

don't show much difference. Half of all

就冇大分別 1,712 個姓氏

Americans share the same 1,712

佔咗美國一半人口

last names. 1 percent of Americans have the last name

有 1% 嘅美國人係姓

Smith. In China, 85%

史密斯 100 個姓氏

share the same 100 last names. Two-hundred last names cover 96% of the population

佔咗中國 85% 人口 而 200 個姓氏就佔咗越南

in Vietnam, 40% of which have the same

超過 96% 人口 當中 40% 嘅越南人係姓

last name.

係姓……

This one.

Colleen 呢個稱呼真係好傷人 直頭係分歧階級制度嘅最底層

Name Colleen can hurt people's feelings. It's at the very bottom

嘅最底層 但係諗深層

of Graham's hierarchy of disagreement. And, at the end of the day,

稱呼都係字嚟咖啫 古語有云

names are just words. As the saying goes,

木棍同石頭或者可以打到骨折 但係文字只係語言入面

sticks and stones may break my bones but words are merely the smallest element of

微不足道嘅嘅最細單位

language capable of

根本裝載唔到隔膜 更何況人類骨頭係需要

containing meaning and isolation and, as such, could never directly produce the 4,000

每平方釐米

newtons

4,000 牛頓嘅力去整斷

of force per square centimetre required to break bones.

一如既往

And as always,

感謝收看

thanks for watching.