Yourlastname 1 William McAllister Ms.

Hayatt AP English Composition 14 September 2012 The Origin of My Name They say that the best music for one`s ear is the sound of his own name. Indeed, even if a person is extremely ignorant, he knows the spelling of his name for sure. Thus, it is surprising that people do not always care about the meaning of their names, while people`s names are the part of the nation`s history I mean nation as a folk. Scientists have found out that names (personal names of people, related to the category of onomastics - anthroponymy) fully reflect life, beliefs, aspirations, imagination and artistic creativity of the people and their historical contacts. Moreover, almost all the names of different peoples carry the vivid imprint of the corresponding era. Nowadays, we are allowed to change our names if we do not like them, but, to my mind, the name does not adorn the man, but the man the name, while a good name keeps its luster in the dark. I agree with the idea that if a person does not know the history, it will be written by others. My name is William McAllister, and I have conducted a research about its origin for my history not to be written by anyone else. Speaking about my first name, it would be appropriate to mention that it obtains the third rank in the USA`s most popular names and the seventh in England. While in Australia, Denmark and Sweden it is the most popular one. It has become especially popular after a number of rulers have been named William. Four British kings had such names, several rulers of the Netherlands and two German emperors. Their names were spelled as Wilhelm a more common German cognate of William. There is also a number of famous carriers of my name,

Yourlastname 2 including William Shakespeare, William Tell, William Wallace, William Faulkner and many others. I am grateful to my parents for such ability to be proud of these predecessors. Originally, the name William has an Anglo-Saxon origin and comprises two elements: will, meaning willing or desire, and helm, which is treated as protection or helmet. Nowadays, the meaning of the name William is interpreted as a kingdom`s protector or a protector of realm. When I was a little boy, my family used to call me Willy, sometimes it was Billy. Those days I could not be associated with achievements of my famous namesakes, of course. Today, as a grown-up, I realize my willing to prove that there is nothing accidental in our lives. Somebody calls it regularity, others trust in the law of karmic load. Anyway, I feel the need to justify my belonging to this name with its powerful historical load by really worthy deeds in life. My last name originates from the Gaelic Mac Alasdair, interpreted as Son of (Mac) Alexander. It was first introduced in Scotland. Originally, this surname derives from the Greek name Alexander, meaning defender. Of course, it had to pass a number of spelling introversions. Its spelling variations are pretty typical for early Scottish names` records. Later on, it moved on the eastern coasts of the USA and Canada due to the Scottish colonists. For example, according to the official records, the first McAllisters arrived in New England in 1718. Esoterics say that name is a person`s identifier, his main mean of customization and personalization. Astrology and numerology prove the name`s influence on the human`s fate. Maybe, it was the force, implicated in my both first and last names, which helped me to overcome many hardships in my life. I hope to be not simply worthy of my name. I would like to have an opportunity to justify it. That end, I adopted one remarkable statement as a life motto: To make a name which will live beyond the hour, you must do something or say something worth being done or said. (Mathews, 1872) Let us hope that life will be so kind to provide me

Yourlastname 3 enough wisdom, despite my young age, not to fall face in the mud and go through life as an honest and single-minded person.

Yourlastname 4 Works Cited Last name: McAllister. The Internet Surname Database. Available at: http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/McAllister. Accessed on Sept. 14, 2012. Mathews, William. 1872. Getting on in the World; Or, Hints on Success in Life. VII. Originality in Aims and Methods. William. Behind The Name: The Etymology and History of First Names. Available at: http://www.behindthename.com/name/william. Accessed on Sept. 14, 2012.