Among the slew of end-of-decade and end-of-year wrap-up lists, there were several tallies of the most popular names of recent years (as well as predictions for name-trends of the future.) But If you are pondering giving your baby a distinctive name - like, say, Garland or Malcolm - you might want to think again.
隨著2009年的結束，以及21世紀第一個十年落幕，眾多年度及十年盤點紛紛出爐，其中包括幾項對近年來最熱門名字的統計（以及對未來哪些名字會受到青睞的預測）。不過，如果你正考慮給自己的孩子取個特立獨行的名字，比如賈蘭德或馬爾科姆，那我勸你三思而后行。
Not only do kids with unusual names tend to rise to the top of big companies less often than others, but they also are more likely to wind up in jail.
名字特別的孩子不僅更難進入大公司的高層，而且蹲監獄的幾率會大一些。
Names like Michael, David, John, James, Richard, Paul, Edward and Robert are significantly more common among Fortune 1000 CEOs, compared with that same age group in the population as a whole, USA Today reported recently. (Not enough women appear among corporate leaders to assess the relative clout of female names.)
根據《今日美國》報近日公布的一項調查結果，在《財富》1000強企業的首席執行官中，名字為邁克爾、戴維、約翰、詹姆斯、理查德、保羅、愛德華和羅伯特的人所占的比例遠遠高于同一年齡組的總人口中叫這些名字的人所占比例。（由于女性企業家數量過少，關于女性名字的相關調查沒有進行。）
Separately, a scholarly study reported earlier this year showed that juveniles in jail, on probation or otherwise in trouble with the law had an above-average likelihood of having unpopular names - such as Walter, Ernest, Ivan, Kareem, Malcolm, Preston or Garland. The study compared juvenile delinquents' names with those of the population as a whole in a large, populous state. Researchers found youth with common names, such as Michael, Matthew, Christopher, David, Ryan or Brian, were less likely to get in trouble. The research, conducted at Shippensburg University, appeared in Social Science Quarterly.
此外，2010年初的一份學術研究報告顯示，入獄、緩刑和違法的青少年擁有特別名字的幾率超出平均水平，如沃特、厄內斯特、伊萬、凱林姆、馬爾科姆、布萊斯頓或賈蘭德等。研究人員將少年犯的名字與一個人口眾多的美國大州的青少年名字進行對比，發現擁有普通名字的年輕人，如邁克爾、馬修、克里斯托弗、戴維、瑞恩或布萊恩等，犯事的可能性更低。這項研究是由賓州西盆斯貝格大學做出的，報告刊登在《社會科學季刊》上。
Of course, many people with unusual names - Barack, for example, or Oprah - have done fine. A child's name alone doesn't shape his or her life. The Shippensburg study found unusual names were linked with other factors that make life harder for kids, such as a weaker family structure, poverty or low education. Kids with popular names tended to live among higher-income, better-educated populations. For example, the name Allison is usually selected by mothers with 17 or more years of schooling, and bypassed by mothers without a high school diploma.
當然，也有許多獨特的名字，如貝拉克和歐普拉，沒有出現這種問題。孩子的命運不可能光憑名字就能決定。西盆斯貝格大學的研究發現，與眾不同的名字跟其他一些因素存在關聯性，這些因素會讓孩子的日子不好過，如家庭關系緊張、貧窮或受教育程度低等。擁有熱門名字的孩子往往生活在收入較高、教育水平較高的圈子當中。舉例而言，為孩子選擇艾利森這個名字的母親通常受過17年或以上的正規教育，而沒有讀過高中的母親往往跳過這個名字。
Other research has suggested, however, that uncommon names can have a direct impact on kids, embarrassing them in their formative years, the USA Today story says. While parents might want their children to feel special or unique, it may be better to give children names that encourage them to be team players and put ego aside.
不過，《今日美國》的報道說，其他一些研究顯示，特立獨行的名字會給孩子帶來直接影響，讓他們在性格形成過程中因為自己的名字而感到尷尬。雖然父母的本意可能是讓孩子感到特殊和與眾不同，但如果不那么在意個性，給孩子起個普通名字以鼓勵他們融入集體，效果可能會更好。
Also, adults may treat kids with unusual names differently in handing out opportunities; one widely reported experiment found that among 5,000 resumes sent to prospective employers, job applicants with names that suggested an African-American background were less likely to receive interview callbacks.
此外，成年人在提供各種機會時，可能會另眼看待名字特別的孩子。一項被媒體廣為報導的試驗發現，在用人企業收到的5,000份簡歷中，名字像黑人的應聘者得到面試通知的幾率更低。
Jugglers have had animated discussions in the past about baby names. How important do you think a name, especially an unusual one, is in setting someone's course in life? Did you think about the social or career effects of the names you chose for your children?
以往，已有不少人圍繞著該給孩子起什么名字的話題展開過熱烈討論。你覺得名字，尤其是特別的名字，對于一個人的人生會產生多大的影響？你在給孩子起名時，有沒有考慮過名字會給孩子今后的人際關系或職業生涯帶來什么樣的影響？
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（來源：愛詞霸沙龍 編輯：Julie)
