{"id":5,"date":"2018-12-03T17:10:41","date_gmt":"2018-12-03T17:10:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/heber.ie\/?p=5"},"modified":"2018-12-03T17:10:41","modified_gmt":"2018-12-03T17:10:41","slug":"the-name-heber","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/?p=5","title":{"rendered":"The name\u2026 Heber"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A blog about my first name and it&#8217;s significance personally.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As the first post of this site, I think it only fitting that I address a subject that has defined my life perhaps more than anything else. My name. This post will describe the origins of my name andthe ambitions it has led to with a small discussion on the effect of names around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"525\" height=\"394\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/WOHPuY88Ry4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019m not a boy named Sue, but a lad called Heber. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-background has-very-light-gray-background-color\">My father is a great lover of Irish Mythology and Gaeilge so upon my birth I was named <strong>\u00c9ibhear<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>Finn<\/strong> or Heber as itis anglicised. The story I was raised on, to tell the thousands of people I have met commenting on the rarity of my name was of its Irish Lineage. \u00c9ber Finn<a href=\"#_ftn1\">[1]<\/a>was a high king of Ireland from who reigned from 1700BC according to the Annals of the Four Masters.<a href=\"#_ftn2\">[2]<\/a> He was one of the three sons of M\u00edl Esp\u00e1ine who began the Milesian line within Ireland. He once ruled the southern half of Ireland until he grew discontented. So he waged war against his brother \u00c9rim\u00f3n at the battle of Airgetros and was slain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though most ofthose around the world who share my name (including places), take it from the ancestor of the Israelites \u201cEber\u201d. He was the great-grandson of Noah\u2019s sonShem. Notably, he opposed the building of the tower of Babel, so his family retained the original human language Hebrew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"212\" height=\"214\" src=\"http:\/\/heber.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/heber.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heber.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/heber.png 212w, https:\/\/heber.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/heber-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/heber.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/heber-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 212px) 100vw, 212px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Heber from Luke 3:35, in the New Testament is the grandson of Asher. Though the two are often confused with one another. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Writing this, it occurs to me that I have rarely questioned the story that I was told as to the origins of my own name. Perhaps partially from not questioning my own father\u2019s narrative of events as a child, I have never had strong incentive tolearn more until this post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Growing up, my name was regularly misspelt or misread in some of the most awkward situations. From bureacrauts mispronouncing it or newspapers finding a curious need to add an \u201cR\u201d for \u201c<em>Herber<\/em>\u201d.\u00a0 I am generally the first and last \u201cHeber\u201d most people will meet in their lives. So the last few years I have found the best way of describing the correct pronunciation of my as the following. Phoneticallythe most accurate.. though I endevour to avoid the use of this comparison atall costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"806\" height=\"556\" src=\"http:\/\/heber.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/heber-meme.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-7\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heber.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/heber-meme.png 806w, https:\/\/heber.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/heber-meme-300x207.png 300w, https:\/\/heber.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/heber-meme-768x530.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 543px, 580px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The human mind has a curious ability to ignore different sounds with one\u2019s vicinity until it something you <g class=\"gr_ gr_10 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace\" id=\"10\" data-gr-id=\"10\">instincitvely<\/g> look for.. like your name: is uttered. Not having a name like John, Patrick, Joe etc I\u2019ve not had the frequent displeasure about turning my neck around in the middle of a street to find a case of mistaken identity. Inschool one or twice, I mistook the sound of the girls\u2019 name \u00c9mer as my own during roll call.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Aside from not being able to buy a mug or fridge magnet with my name on it, the main problem was highly creative childhood <g class=\"gr_ gr_61 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace\" id=\"61\" data-gr-id=\"61\">name calling<\/g>. Writing this as an adult, my mind has largely brushed over the specifics of the nicknames I had in lieu of my name over the years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They say that the name parents give their child is one of the most defining things parents can to determine the life of a child. That being said, there is no (strictly) scientifically verifiable evidence for that anecdotal theory. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/magazine-26634477\">This article by the BBC<\/a> did look at the issue in greater depth citing somelong term studies done on the issue. Noting the trend for more unusual names asa possible indicator of growing narcisism within society. The research cited does note a racial element of discrimination at play within hiring processes at least within the United States. Yet unusual names can be said to indicate theparents\u2019 value judgement on the idea of \u2018<em>standing out<\/em>\u2019. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.livescience.com\/9841-parents-choosing-unusual-baby-names.html\">Further research<\/a> on the issue reflects the trend of parent\u2019s idea ofthe \u2018right name for the right person\u2019. Meaning that in a world of over seven billion it, behoves savvy parents to create a lifelong predisposition for the child to be\u2026 different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet this discussion is thus far, a western-centric kind of one. For instance within Korea, about one in five people share the surname <a href=\"http:\/\/www.economist.com\/blogs\/economist-explains\/2014\/09\/economist-explains-5\">Kim<\/a> as their surname. Similarly, within China, a country that uses Kanji for their written languages, there are only approximately <a href=\"http:\/\/www.chinadaily.com.cn\/ezine\/2007-07\/20\/content_5441241.htm\">6,000<\/a> different surnames. Japan hasin the region of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sljfaq.org\/afaq\/names-for-people.html\">138,000<\/a> surnames. While the UK has in the region of 200,000 surnames, it stands to reason that there should be a finite number of names according to linguistic and cultural mores. Occasionally one might hear of a court banning parents from naming their children names like\u201cMetallica\u201d, \u201cTelevision\u201d or \u201c@\u201d. Names that, by any reasonable understandingof school yard life would mean a degree of\u2026 challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Still it is a debate that is on going and research will continue.\nConcerning something as personal as one\u2019s name there is little scope of\ncreating \u2018a control\u2019 group within a study as so many socio-economic come into\nplay to during a person\u2019s life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To reiterate, this article\u2019s purpose is to address and describe my own name\u2019s impact on my life thus far. As I have not had an experience akin to the film \u201c<em>Being John Malkovich<\/em>\u201d, I lack anis adequate perspective to judge its impact beyond my subjective account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"525\" height=\"295\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HPeattKV74A?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet there is a lot to gain from particular names in certain contexts undeniably. In political elections, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0261379414000584\">research<\/a> has found an inherent advantage to having one\u2019s name closer to the start of the alphabet. This idea is known as the \u201c<em>Bradley effect<\/em>\u201d that posits that a candidate like \u201cMr Xander Zulu\u201d would have a hard time campaigning against \u201c Mr Adam Agreeable\u201d. At least within political elections there is a clear idea of whatsuccess might be determined by the individual: compared to a value judgement onone form of career being better than another in general. Yet despite theresearch of statisticians on the \u201cBradley effect\u201d, nothing in life is entirelypredetermined. There are a myrid of other factors that always come into play. For Irish politics, not being (debatably) driven to the same level of <g class=\"gr_ gr_184 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear ContextualSpelling\" id=\"184\" data-gr-id=\"184\">individualesque<\/g> \u2018<em>presidential<\/em>\u2019 style politics as in America, the \u201c<em>Bradley effect<\/em>\u201d is not often reported on as in America. Family political dynasties make the biggest impact on names in elections. It would certainly be an interesting area of research to quantify accurately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Having such a unique name within such a small country personally, it has directly led to one particular life ambition: to meet a <g class=\"gr_ gr_8 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del\" id=\"8\" data-gr-id=\"8\">name sake<\/g>. Dave Gorman the talented English comedian, had his first adventure travelling the world to find all of the other people who share his name. For a quick look do check out <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=OxVbYaZK_24\">this video<\/a>. He describes the full episode in short <a href=\"http:\/\/www.davegorman.com\/projects_are_you_dave_gorman.html\">here<\/a>. In essence, his experience compels me to follow in his footsteps. As soon as I have enough time and money for it all\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While I stand little chance of meeting my full namesake. The only other living Heber within Ireland that has come across my radar is a young Dublin photographer. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=bhb6SCiOWcI\">Here he is<\/a> trying out for one of the \u201c<em>best jobs in the world<\/em>\u201d. There are however other <em>\u00c9ibhears<\/em> in Ireland, though I have yet to meet any of them.\u00a0 Eventually, I will meet him and the other people who share my first name across the world. Of particular note are the small towns that are called \u201cHeber\u201d. The largest ofwhich featured in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=0G9RTUIIFBg\">this movie<\/a> in the Mormon heartland of Utah, USA. I get a littlekick of surrealism out of images <a href=\"http:\/\/imgur.com\/tsSxD86\">like this one.<\/a> Though until I eventually go there, or to the others in Arizona, California, Arkansas I won\u2019t be able to play up my name with the local ladies\u2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Oh and eh\u2026 no\u2026 the quest won\u2019t be a manhunt so I could\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=sqcLjcSloXs\">be the only one<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So to conclude this post, like many aspects of growing up, gaining self-respect and self-acceptance is one of those. I may be like a boy named Sue, though I\u2019ve it even harder\u2026 I\u2019m a ginger! <br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\">[1]<\/a> The ancient spelling<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>John O&#8217;Donovan (ed. &amp; trans.),&nbsp;<em>Annala\nRioghachta \u00c9ireann: Annals of the kingdom of Ireland by the Four Masters<\/em>, Dublin, 1848-1851,&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.ucc.ie\/celt\/published\/T100005A\/text005.html\">Vol. 1 pp. 25-35<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A blog about my first name and it&#8217;s significance personally.\u00a0 As the first post of this site, I think it only fitting that I address a subject that has defined my life perhaps more than anything else. My name. This post will describe the origins of my name andthe ambitions it has led to with &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/heber.ie\/?p=5\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;The name\u2026 Heber&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8,"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5\/revisions\/8"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heber.ie\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}