Pseudonym
A
pseudonym (
Greek pseudo +
-onym:
false name) is a fictitious
name used by an individual as an alternative to his or her true name. In most States, a name assumed for a nonfraudulent purpose is a legal name and usable as the person's true name. The most common example is when a woman assumes her husband's surname without resorting to the formal statutory process (i.e. by petitioning a court; a few states have a statutory provision for recording a new name at marriage.) Note that in some States only the given and sur names form the legal name; middle names are not technically part of the person's legal name. A pseudonym is distinct from an
allonym, which is the name of another actual person, usually historical, assumed by someone in authorship of a work of art; such as when
ghostwriting a book or play, or in
parody, or when using a
front such as by
screenwriters
blacklisted in
Hollywood in the
1950s,
1960s, and
1970s. Someone who is
pseudonymous is someone who is using a pseudonym. The
antonym, or opposite, is
anthroponym, meaning a full
legal name, or some recognisable shortened form of it such as
Fred Smith for
Frederick John Smith, with or without titles (
Dr. and so on).
In some cases, the pseudonym has become the legal name of the person using it.
When used by an
author, a pseudonym is also called a
pen name (or in
French nom de plume.)
Some authors use pseudonyms for a variety of reasons: for example, to experiment with a new genre without the risk of upsetting regular readers. One author may have several pseudonyms depending on the genre. This use of pseudonyms is especially common if the new genre is of a somewhat
risqué nature; such was the case of
Pauline Réage, the pseudonym under which an editorial secretary with a reputation of near-prudery published
Histoire d'O (
Story of O), an
erotic novel of
sadomasochism and
sexual slavery.
Occasionally, a pseudonym is employed to avoid overexposure. Prolific authors for
pulp magazines often had two and sometimes three short stories appearing in one issue of a magazine; the editor would create several fictitious author names so that readers would not realize this.
Some female authors have used male pen names to ensure that their works are taken seriously, such as Mary Ann Evans, who wrote under the pen name
George Eliot.
Popular authors also sometimes use pseudonyms to distinguish different types of writing.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, a famous American writer, used the
aliases "Mark Twain" and "Sieur Louis de Conte." For instance, mathematician Charles Dodgson used
Lewis Carroll for his fantasy fiction.
Science fiction writer
Robert A. Heinlein set his early stories in a single future history; when he wrote stories not in this setting he used pseudonyms to avoid confusing readers. He also wrote stories under pseudonyms so that
John W. Campbell could publish more of his work in his magazine at the same time. These stories were later reprinted under his real name.
In some forms of fiction, the pseudonym adopted is actually the name of the lead character, so as to suggest the book might be an autobiography of some sort. An example of this is the
Nick Carter series of spy novels of the 1960s-80s which featured a number of writers (including
Michael Avallone) credited as Carter. Alternately, a pseudonym could allow additional books to be credited to the original writer of a series, even though that writer is no longer involved. Such was the case with
The Saint adventure series of the 1920s-80s which saw numerous volumes credited to
Leslie Charteris long after the author had retired from writing the series.
Pseudepigraphy, a particular form of pseudonym or pen name, is the technique of adopting the name of well-known figures as the publicly ascribed author on whom the actual writers attempt to pass off their work — typically to attain greater interest or credibility or pious tradition. It was traditionally employed in the
Western world from
Hellenistic times all the way up to the
Middle Ages, particularly in
theology and
scripture. Examples include
Pseudo-Dionysius or, according to liberal scholars, the ascribed
Solomonic authorship of the
Song of Songs.
A pseudonym may also be used to protect the writer, as in the case of
Andy McNab the former SAS soldier famous for his book about a failed
SAS mission titled
Bravo Two Zero. (However, some critics have suggested that the primary motivation here may have been to boost the mystique of the SAS to help market McNab's books.)
Ibn Warraq has been used by dissident Muslim authors.
In many monarchies, the prince starting his
reign chooses his official name (
regnal name) to be used hence, which may differ from his (birth) name till then; sometimes he selects one of his existing names, sometimes a completely different one. The same is true of the newly elected
Pope, where it fits just as well in the monastic tradition of choosing a new religious name when entering orders.
The choice of an existing name may simply be a matter of tradition or intend to honour a specific predecessor, and/or emphasize the hereditary legitimity of succession, or may actually convey a programme or intention.
Pseudonyms are adopted by
resistance fighters,
terrorists and
guerrillas often to make enquiries more difficult, to create and maintain an aura of mystery, and to protect their families from reprisal, although other reasons often may exist. The expression
nom de guerre (
IPA: /nÉ'm dÉ™ gɛɹ/, "name of war") is often used for such pseudonyms, though this expression is rarely, if ever, actually used in French. It is occasionally used as a stylish substitute for
nom de plume.Noms de guerre were frequently adopted by recruits in the
French Foreign Legion as part of the break with their past lives. Pseudonyms used by some members of the
French resistance were integrated into their last names after
World War II; for instance, Jacques Delmas, alias
Chaban, became
Jacques Chaban-Delmas.
Another famous
nom de guerre is
Willy Brandt, adopted in
1934 by a German resistance fighter named
Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm who had fled
Germany for
Norway. After his return to Germany, he had the name
Willy Brandt officially recognised. He later became mayor of
West Berlin,
West German foreign minister and West German chancellor.
Within
Communist parties and
Trotskyist organisations, noms de guerre are usually known as
party names or
cadre names. This took hold because
revolutionaries were often persecuted by
states (and also, in the case of Trotskyists, by pro-Soviet communist parties).
The Three Musketeers used the pseudonyms Athos, Porthos and Aramis instead of their real names, Le Comte de la Fère, M. du Vallon, and Chevalier d'Herblay, respectively.
Some of the more famous noms de guerre include:
*
Carlos the Jackal for
Ilich RamÃrez Sánchez*
Abu Ammar for
Yasser Arafat*
Abu Ala for
Palestinian leader
Ahmed Ali Mohammed Qurei*
Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi possibly for Jordanian terrorist
Ahmad Fadeel al-Nazal al-KhalaylehSome famous party names include:
*
Fahd*
Lenin* Freddie Forest (
Raya Dunayevskaya) and J.R. Johnson (
CLR James).
*
Stalin*
Tito*
Ho Chi MinhThe origin of "nom de guerre"
The assigning and adopting of noms de guerre was a long standing tradition in the French army, it certainly existed before 1651. In 1716 the practice became more formalised and the French army required all regular soldiers to have a nom de guerre. The names could be arrived at through the choice of the soldier, or perhaps the soldier's company captain. Some of the naming practices adopted by particular companies enabled the men to be identifiable as members of their companies, much like a serial number: Practices such as assigning men the names of vegetables (the Company of Casaux of the Régiment de Boulonnois-infantrie, between 1764 to 1768) existed.
These names would be retained by the soldiers when they left service and would often be passed on to their wives and children. It is important to understand the old French practice of assigning Noms de guerre when tracing French family histories.
When used by a radio operator, a pseudonym is a
handle, especially in
Citizens' band radio. Professional names are also common in radio
broadcasting.
For a person using a computer, a pseudonym is a
user name,
login name,
avatar or, sometimes,
screen name, nick or nickname.
In online gaming clans, especially first person shooter games, players often create a "clan name" when joining. Often they add the "clan tag" to their existing nick, but some create a new name altogether. Clan tags have been used both before, and after the indivdual name.
*Hunter{FLP}
*[EW]Bob
See:
Computer Gaming ClansWhen used by an
actor, performer, or model, a pseudonym is a
stage name or
screen name.
Actors — and others in
show business — rarely use a pseudonym to disguise themselves. Actors who are members of a less-privileged ethnic or religious group have often adopted stage names, typically changing their surname or entire name to mask their original background — as has been done in other fields as well. This phenomenon was common in the
United States in the first half of the
twentieth century, as ethnic minorities began to attain a greater role in acting and films, yet social trends had not yet reached the point where such minorities would be accepted with their original non-mainstream identity. Popular Jewish comedian and "Daily Show" host
Jon Stewart was born Jonathan Stewart Leibowitz. When asked why he dropped Leibowitz in a "60 Minutes" interview, Stewart explained that it "sounded too Hollywood".
John Wayne, building a reputation as a tough guy, felt that his given name, Marion Morrison, did not connote the image he sought to assume.
Stan Laurel, born Arthur Stanley Jefferson, was apparently happy to be known as Stan Jefferson until he realised that it had
thirteen letters. Famous poet and singer
Jim Morrison used the pseudonym "Lizard King" and the
anagram Mr. Mojo Risin. Paul McCartney sometimes checked into hotels as Paul Ramon, after which The Ramones named themselves after.
In many cases, a screen name was constructed simply because a studio executive did not like the actor's real name. Creighton Tull Chaney did not succeed until after he adopted the pseudonym
Lon Chaney, Jr., a reference to his famous father
Lon Chaney, Sr. Today, the most common reason for a performer to adopt a pseudonym is that someone else has already achieved fame with that name.
Performing arts guilds (
SAG,
WGA,
AFTRA, etc.) enforce rules on the use of names formerly registered for credits, generally refusing to allow an identical name to be used again.
A special case is the name
Alan Smithee, which was used until 1998 (and is still occasionally used) by directors in the
DGA to remove their name from a film they feel was edited or modified beyond their artistic satisfaction. Many productions over the years have been credited to the name, which is also occasionally used for in-flight versions or telecasts.
In some cases, a stage name is intended to separate the public persona from the private life. But while keeping a real name for private use may help one go unrecognized in public, it can rarely be kept entirely secret and may become an item of gossip in itself.
In the music world, pseudonyms have been used to allow artists to collaborate with artists on other labels while avoiding the need to gain permission from their own labels.
George Harrison, for example, played guitar on
Cream's song "Badge" (which he also co-wrote with
Eric Clapton). He was credited on the recording as "L'Angelo Mysterioso" ("The Mysterious Angel").
Most hip hop artists prefer to use a pseudonym that represents some variation of their name, personality, or interests. Prime examples include
Ol' Dirty Bastard (who was known under at least six aliases),
Diddy (formerly known as Sean Combs, P. Diddy, and Puff Daddy),
Ludacris,
LL Cool J, and
Chingy. See
List of hip hop musicians.
Others in public life have adopted pseudonyms for many reasons. In the late
eighteenth to early
nineteenth centuries, it was established practice for political articles to be signed with pseudonyms, the most famous American example being the pen name
Publius, used by
Alexander Hamilton,
James Madison, and
John Jay, in writing
The Federalist Papers.
Malcolm X, the civil rights campaigner, (born Malcolm Little), adopted the 'X' to represent his unknown African ancestral name. Many Jewish politicians re-adopted Hebrew family names on return to Israel, dropping westernized versions that may have been in the family for generations.
David Ben Gurion, for example, was born David Grün in Poland. He adopted his Hebrew name in 1910, when he published his first article in a zionist journal in
Jerusalem.
Famous pseudonyms of people who were neither authors nor actors include:
*
Le Corbusier, the
architect, was Charles Édouard Jeanneret.
*
Aphex Twin, prolific
IDM artist Richard D. James, who uses up to 11 other different names on various releases.
*
Alan Smithee is a name commonly used by
directors who want to disown their own movie.
*
George Spelvin and
Georgina Spelvin are names used in American theater when the actor playing the part is unknown at printing time, wishes to remain anonymous, or the part is double cast or played by an actor who plays more than one character in the cast.
*
Luther Blissett is a shared pseudonym often used for activist and artistic purposes, especially in the
Italian art scene.
*
David Agnew is used on
BBC programmes where a writer's name cannot be used for contractual reasons.
*
Nicolas Bourbaki was a famous pseudonym for a group of mathematicians.
*
Student was
William Sealey Gosset, discoverer of
Student's t-distribution in
statistics.
*
Hambali is Riduan Isamuddin, the leader of
Jemaah Islamiah, a terrorist group; he was born Encep Nurjaman
On the internet,
pseudonymous remailers utilising
cryptography can be used to achieve persistent
pseudonymity, so that two-way communication can be achieved, and reputations can be established without linking a physical
identity to a pseudonym.
Users on Namespaces such as Wikipedia also often use a pseudonym instead of their birth names.
*
-onym*
A. N. Other*
Anonymity*
John Doe*
List of pseudonyms*
Nickname*
Personally identifiable information*
Pseudonymity*
Secret identity*
Stage name*
Esteban RamÃrez*
An extensive list of pseudonyms*
Another list of pseudonyms*
The U.S. copyright status of pseudonyms
