Episode 83: Names in the Book of Mormon (Brad Wilcox)

Y Religion

BYU Religious Education

Whyreligion, Religiouseducation, Religion & Spirituality, Brighamyoung, Lds, Education, Mormon, Yreligion, Byu, Religion, Yreligionpodcast, Christianity, Churchofjesuschrist

4.8 • 1.7K Ratings

🗓️ 1 July 2023

⏱️ 48 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Lehi, Nephi, Amalickiah, Korihor—These are just a few of the many names readers encounter in the Book of Mormon. Just where did these names come from? Research has shown that individuals have certain naming preferences. If Joseph Smith were making up the Book of Mormon, would its names reflect natural naming preferences and patterns? In this Episode, professor Brad Wilcox takes us into his decade of research on this subject and its fascinating findings.

Publications:

“Book of Mormon Names: A Collection that Defies Expectation“ in Perspectives on Latter-day Saint Names and Naming (Routledge, 2023)

“Comparing Phonemic Patterns in Book of Mormon Personal Names with Fictional and Authentic Sources: An Exploratory Study” (Interpreter, 2019)

“Absence of ‘Joseph Smith’ in the Book of Mormon: Lack of the Name Letter Effect in Nephite, Lamanite, and Jaredite Names (Religious Educator, 2016)

“Identifying Authors by Phonoprints in Their Characters’ Names: An Exploratory Study,” (Names: A Journal of Onomastics, 2013)

“188 Unexplainable Names: Book of Mormon Names No Fiction Writer Would Choose” (Religious Educator, 2011)

Click here to learn more about professor Brad Wilcox

Transcript

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0:00.0	How there, Maya, while you're legit friends, Professor Anthony Sweat here from B.O.U.
0:03.5	Church History and Doctrine, welcome to another great episode of the podcast.
0:08.3	As any one of you listeners know who has ever had a child, there's quite a bit of pressure
0:13.2	that comes when you're going to name a baby.
0:16.8	Do you go traditional, family legacy, or just names that you like?
0:21.3	Do you listen to or ignore what other people are thinking when you give them suggestions?
0:26.1	Do you just go with your gut?
0:27.9	Well, whatever your method, one thing is for sure.
0:31.2	You have a preference for certain types of names over others, and so do I.
0:36.5	Have you ever noticed that?
0:38.0	You hear a certain name and you think, oh, that's a great name.
0:42.0	And when you hear other names you think, I would never name my kid that in a million years.
0:47.0	Well, there's actually a science behind naming kids that reflects our own biases.
0:52.9	There is even a fascinating website called Magic Baby Names
0:57.1	that uses both genealogy and technology to find out the type of names that you probably will like.
1:03.7	Just go on there and type in a name that you're considering,
1:06.7	and it will kick out about 100 similar suggestions.
1:10.4	In writing the intro for this episode, I jumped on there and typed in my youngest son's name, Truman.
1:16.9	When I typed in Truman, Magic Baby Names gave me other suggestions I might like,
1:22.1	such as Eli, which just so happens to be what we named my oldest son.
1:27.0	It also gave me the suggestion of the name Cal,
1:30.0	which happens to be what we named my second son.
	...

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