Say My Name, Say My Name

Do you know what it's like to have people consistently misspell your name? How would you feel if about half the time they misspelled your name for a version that isn't remotely as common?

Brian is a name of Celtic origins believed to mean, "noble" or "high". It's a great name with a 1,000 year old tradition. It was popularized in, like, the 11th Century by King Brian Boru who defended his kingdom in Ireland from Norse invaders. What a guy!

Bryan is a name of illiterate origins often credited as meaning a "variation of Brian."

In the 1970s -- when I was born -- "Brian" was the 8th most common boys name. It hovered in the top 20 until 1991, when it finally slipped down to 30th. But the name is still popular. It has been in the top 100 boys names in the United States for more than 60 years.

"Bryan" on the other hand, is another case. It took over a decade later until the name slipped into the top 100. It's never broken the rank of top 30 names.

Yet, the people at Coffee Bean and Starbucks always -- well at least half the time if not more often -- write "Bryan" on the side of my cup... like I'm drinking someone else's latte.

Ugh.

Oh, but today, I was Brent. (I was tired and must have slurred my speech.)