Who were you going to be? Do you ever wonder what would have changed in your life had you been named something different at birth? Growing up, I’d hear stories of how my name came to be mine, as well as the other names my mom was considering before I was born. This topic has interested me for a while, especially considering my name story, and the ideas of name determinism.

Name determinism is the theory that a person’s name can shape their life path, including jobs and personality. An obvious example would be Usain Bolt, the Olympic sprinter. This “shaping” happens unconsciously, where people naturally gravitate towards things that resemble their name. I tested this theory on my two guinea pigs just for fun.

My black and white guinea pig, who I named Apollo Fitzgerald after the spaceship, is adventurous and reserved, almost like he is in his own universe. On the other hand, my guinea pig Donut Bonaparte, who was once the brunt of being picked on by Apollo, made a dramatic shift in personality and status after his naming. Today, Donut is the conqueror of the cage, the alpha of the pack (or so he thinks), and has a feisty personality.

Could this all be made up in my head? Possibly, but is it fun to participate in? Definitely. And even though I like to take name determinism into account when naming pets, I really don’t know what kind of influence my own name has had on my life.

I was named by my great grandmother. It is a story that has been told to me many times throughout my life. My mother was pregnant with me while my great grandma was in the hospital battling cancer. One day my parents went to visit her, and she told my mom that I was a little girl with black hair, and my name was Katelyn.

My gender was not known at the time, and my great grandma died before I was born. It was like she met me on another plane before I entered the outside world. I was born with a full head of dark curls, and while brown and not black, I see newborn baby photos and my hair was much darker than it is now. From what I’ve heard, it seemed my grandma was certain of who I was before anyone else, and I wonder how she knew.

There is another key memory of my family of my early childhood, in which I was playing alone and talking to someone who wasn’t there. Someone asked who I was talking to, and I said “The lady with the short brown hair”. Without ever seeing my great grandmother, I had described her, and my grandma still tells me this story to this day, and she believes it was her mother playing with me.

While I don’t remember this, my early childhood memories include hearing my name being called by a woman with no one being there. Waking up as a small three or four year old and looking out past my pink princess bed canopy in the early hours of morning light and hearing “Katelyn” being called to me from outside my room’s open door. I’d respond “Mom?” but no one was there, and no one was awake. It may be creepy, but that’s what I remember. Every now and then I will hear my name being called, but from no one. Unfortunately though, it hasn’t happened in years.

What does my name influence about my life? It is a common name in the US, especially in my generation, with many different spelling options. Even though my name story is interesting, I feel like my name isn’t special in terms of determining my life. The name Katelyn is a variation of its Irish origins, Caitlin or Catherine.

Katelyn means “pure”, and I guess I can see how that meaning can translate into my more naive personality. I am more reserved, and even though I have experienced different ways of life it was obvious which were meant for me and which weren’t. When I am not myself or in my “pure” form, such as drinking or around groups of people that I don’t connect with, it can be very draining and weigh on my mental health. Other than that, I’m not sure how my name has influenced my life at all.

While I am very interested in different name meanings and how they shape people’s personality, for example many girls don’t associate with boys with a name that starts with a certain letter (and maybe its the same with guys i’m not sure!), I have a hard time seeing the influence on my own life. What do you think? What does your name mean, and do you think your name would have given you a different life had it been something different?