How Did Your Downs Name Come About? - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

littlemanpoet · 03-12-2006, 05:07 PM

Speaking of distinctly non-ME names...... Obviously, littlemanpoet ain't Middle Earth.

When I first went on-line way back in early 2002, the first thing I did was look for a Tolkien website that promised to be good enough to visit often. It took me about five tries before I happened across The Barrowdowns, and it was a rather quick decision (a couple days) that this was the place I wanted to do my Tolkien conversations. But onto the username. Back then I was more into being a poet than I am now. People change. So I wanted the fact of my poetics in my username. I also didn't want to be mistaken for the female gender which I knew was not unlikely, having a rather androgynous personality. So that got me as far as 'manpoet', but that seemed rather unpromising. Needing one more addition to the name, I wanted to come across as not haughty (how pretentious

), and settle upon the English translation of my given name, which is Greek in origin. I won't make you guess: Paul. So "littlemanpoet" means Paul the poet guy, pretty much. And it worked first time; better yet, nobody else uses anything like it, which was also something I was shooting for. Littlemanpoet. That's me. I still like poetry, but it's not as central to who I am as it once was. (more's the pity?)

Actually, as an aside, Saucepan Man's name does sort of derive (at least in my mind) from Samwise Gamgee carrying around the cooking pans until finally mournfully dumping them in Mordor..... but maybe that's just me .....

03-12-2006, 05:07 PM	#10
littlemanpoet Itinerant Songster Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: The Edge of Faerie Posts: 7,066	Speaking of distinctly non-ME names...... Obviously, littlemanpoet ain't Middle Earth. When I first went on-line way back in early 2002, the first thing I did was look for a Tolkien website that promised to be good enough to visit often. It took me about five tries before I happened across The Barrowdowns, and it was a rather quick decision (a couple days) that this was the place I wanted to do my Tolkien conversations. But onto the username. Back then I was more into being a poet than I am now. People change. So I wanted the fact of my poetics in my username. I also didn't want to be mistaken for the female gender which I knew was not unlikely, having a rather androgynous personality. So that got me as far as 'manpoet', but that seemed rather unpromising. Needing one more addition to the name, I wanted to come across as not haughty (how pretentious ), and settle upon the English translation of my given name, which is Greek in origin. I won't make you guess: Paul. So "littlemanpoet" means Paul the poet guy, pretty much. And it worked first time; better yet, nobody else uses anything like it, which was also something I was shooting for. Littlemanpoet. That's me. I still like poetry, but it's not as central to who I am as it once was. (more's the pity?) Actually, as an aside, Saucepan Man's name does sort of derive (at least in my mind) from Samwise Gamgee carrying around the cooking pans until finally mournfully dumping them in Mordor..... but maybe that's just me .....