2B

Managaing Statement Editor:

Lara Moehlman

Deputy Editors:

Yoshiko Iwai

Brian Kuang 

Photo Editor:

Alexis Rankin

Editor in Chief:

Emma Kinery

Design Staff:

Michelle Phillips

Hannah Myers 

Emily Hardie

Erin Tolar

Emily Koffsky

Managing Editor:

Rebecca Lerner

Copy Editors:

Elizabeth Dokas 

Taylor Grandinetti

Wednesday, November 22, 2017 // The Statement 

Copy that: What’s in a name?

statement

THE MICHIGAN DAILY | NOVEMBER 22, 2017

A

mong the unending items we fact-
check, 
spell-check, 
grammar-

check and style-check at the 
mighty copy desk are the names of 

University of Michigan officials, guest speakers, 
Ann Arbor residents and students. Names are 
easy. It takes a simple Google, LinkedIn or 
MCommunity search to make sure we publish 
people’s names correctly. The Daily’s coverage 
at its core is about the people who fill this 
campus, city and state through their actions, 
opinions and — more explicitly — their quotes. 
My job is to check such names.

But every so often, typos and mix-ups 

compromise the correct identification of our 
subjects.

When you introduce yourself, you start 

by saying your name. Names last longer and 
reflect more of your identity than titles do.

One of my first middle school English 

assignments was to learn the origin stories of 
my name. That night I dove into the deeper 
meanings behind my names using Google and 
the fount of wisdom that is my mom.

My given middle name is Madeline, a hopeful 

moniker bestowed upon me by my mother 
who wanted to give me an out and an option 
for an easier life with an English name. Yes, I 
was named after Ludwig Bemelmans’s small, 
rambunctious redhead Parisian schoolgirl 
who needed an appendectomy. And yes, I own 
several hardcover volumes of the books.

After an evening of light research and 

questioning, I discovered that “So Jung” 
roughly 
means 
“foundation 
light,” 
and 

“Madeline” means “tall tower.” As a cheeky 
sixth-grader, I thought it ingenious to combine 
both meanings into one: lighthouse. Since 
completing that homework assignment, I have 
loved my name. Secretly, I hope it’s a self-

fulfilling prophesy.

However, I firmly believe that living and 

trying to work with a Korean name in this 
diverse American society should not be as 
bothersome as it is. Most second-generation 
children 
of 
Asian 
immigrants 
have 
an 

American first name followed by an Asian 
middle name. Mine reverses the norm.

S-o space capital-J-u-n-g. Two words with 

no dash. I find it eternally frustrating that my 
driver’s license, voting record and Scantron test 
bubbles cannot reflect this fact.

I 
have 
tried 
embracing 
“Madeline.” 

During sophomore year of high school, I 
was sick of teachers, substitutes and coaches 
mispronouncing my name so I introduced 
myself as “Maddie.” The experiment only 
lasted one year.

My mom and I discuss the tradeoffs of 

authenticity, 
convenience, 
identity 
and 

assimilation nearly every time I come home 
from school. But I am stubborn. Could it 
be true that hiring managers or internship 
coordinators have passed me over because 
my résumé seems foreign? I naively pray that 
racism is just a conspiracy.

When strangers, friends or professionals 

decide that “So” or “Kim” suffice for their ease, 
I try to correct them politely, but internally I 
question if they respect me.

Since coming to college, simplicity and 

endearment 
have 
chipped 
away 
at 
my 

stubbornness. When I order food, I use my 
initials “SJ” or “SJK,” and many peers across 
campus affectionately shorten my two-syllable 
name to “Soj.”

To everyone who interacts with other 

people — so, everyone — please take 10 seconds 
to make sure you spell someone’s name right. I 
know they will appreciate it.
ILLUSTRATION BY HANNAH MYERS

BY SO JUNG KIM, DAILY COPY EDITOR

