A hero called Tony
I’ve noticed that names are very different in the UK and USA. One of my lovely beta readers for Boys of Summer pointed out to me that, to her, the name “Tony” sounds lower class and probably Italian. To me it sounds posh British (short for Anthony).
I would like my hero to have a name that sounds both posh and British, so I thought I’d better ask what everyone thinks, to make sure:
1. Does ‘Tony’ sound posh and British to you?
2. Would ‘Alec’ be better?
3. If you don’t like either, can you suggest a different posh-sounding shortening of the name of someone famous for ruling vast tracts of land? (EG Tony is from Marc Anthony and Alec from Alexander the Great.)
June 10th, 2009 in
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Sure, Tony sounds posh and British to me. I just finished watching the DVD The Queen, so I'm thinking of Tony Blair. Alec is fine, too, but I think you go with Tony if you prefer. Just for fun, posh British names that you'd never find in the USA: Rupert, Nigel, Felix, Clive, and Digory (minor character from The Chronicles of Narnia).
Thanks! I think you might be at a greater advantage than many readers, though, because you're so well read (and viewed?). Though it almost seems to be Canadians who have most problems with Tony as a name. I asked about it on my LJ, and there were enough negative reactions towards 'Tony' that I probably am going to go for Alec. *g* Digory's nice, and I could actually see his parents calling him Clive after Clive of India, but it's not a name that I could warm to 🙂 Rupert, unfortunately, reminds me of Rupert the Bear 🙂
I am married to a Tony who is named after the Saint and doesn't have a drop of Italian blood in his veins. In fact, he didn't know Tony was a nickname for Anthony until he was 6 years old. Even so, to American ears, Tony does sound very Italian. Val has a good list of name we Americans think sound very British; I'd add Colin and Cedric, too.
L
*g* My father in law is an Anthony, who is called Tony for short, so for me it's almost the same name, and I have difficulties thinking of them as two separate ones. How does Martin strike you? I've also been thinking of Martin, rather than Alec.
I'm afraid I always read the name Martin as Martian! That's probably just me, though. Too much science fiction in childhood, ha, ha!
*g* I could always call him Martian, after Martianus Capella 🙂 But that might be just that little bit too cruel!