On an average shift, I probably encounter on average anything from 50-100 people, which means seeing, reading, analysing and NOT reacting to 50-100 passports. Now I suspect most people would think that the most entertaining aspect of this is looking at, and silently critiquing people's passport photos. It isn't. The novelty of that wore off long, long ago. In fact, I barely even notice passport photos anymore (which possibly means I'm not really doing my job properly, but so far I haven't been informed of any terrorist activity caused by my lazy eye). No, to me, the human name is a far, far more interesting source of entertainment, intrigue and ashamedly, humour. But why is it FUNNY?
The inspiration for this particular entry - and the ensuing discussion - came when I checked in a Malaysian woman called Ching Ching Chong. Ching Ching Chong. First and foremost, its hard to even say the name without adopting an unflattering imitation of a generic far eastern accent (one that probably borders on racism). I will readily admit that I found poor old Ching's name amusing. In fact, I even went so far as to print myself a copy of her boarding card, so that I could show others her name and they could share my amusement. Aside from the obvious fact that I probably shouldn't be printing copies of passengers' boarding cards for my own personal amusement as this is a severe breach of company protocol, I've since put some thought into just why Ching Ching Chong is such a hilarious name. The answer I've managed to arrive at is; it isn't really funny at all. At least, no MORE funny than my atypically English/German name is to her. Were I to fly from Malaysia, would my Malaysian equivelent reprint my boarding card and take great delight in sharing the hilarity of my 'silly' name with his friends? In theory, yes.
My point, as well disguised as it currently is, is this: language or more particularly the evolution thereof is a very interesting phenomenon. In truth, evolution in general is fascinating, but as a linguist myself it is language which interests me the most. Its differences are prevolent on any scale. I live 30 miles from London, and the language they speak in certain areas - and to be honest within certain cultures - is all but foreign. Within the United Kingdom alone there are a multitude of regional dialects. In Nottingham 'Duck' is a term of endearment, whilst in Coventry a 'Batch' is a bread roll. Use either of those terms far outside their cities of origin and people will look at you as if you're mad. Or they'll laugh.
So on a global scale - given that we are ALL humans, ALL evolved from the same animals (if you believe in that kind of thing of course) - its truly amazing how much diversity there is in the languages we all speak, how they've evolved to the extent that despite being the same species, we often can't even communicate with other people. The problem then, is that unless we go to lengths to learn a language or dialect, we have a complete lack of understanding of ANY language other than our own. This is why a non Nottingham-er will find it bizarre to be referred to as 'duck'. And its why Ching Ching Chong seems to be a funny name. It is -and I go to the very core of this word's definition - foreign to us.
So, I for one, having thought in a little more depth about people's names and their linguistic origins, will remain interested, entertained, and intrigued by them. I will however endeavour NOT to laugh at them... as funny as they may sound. I hope you had a nice flight Miss Ching. Or is that Miss Chong???
