The other day my buddy Jeremy asked me:
Hey Mark -
I’m trying to figure something out. My mother told me that I was named after the famous actor, Jeremy Piven. So that means that I am his namesake. A namesake is someone named after someone else. So that means I can say in a sentence, “I am Jeremy Piven’s namesake.” However, Jeremy Piven can’t say that I am his namesake. What is the word that means “opposite of namesake”?
By the way, did you know Jeremy Piven was 71 years old? Me either. Those movie studios sure are good.
Love the new blog!
—
I am your best pal.
http://www.justbecausejeremy.com
I don’t know. I did some research and came up empty. Rich Popper is the best linguist I know, and also the smartest guy I know. When he returns from his sabbatical I’ll ask him. In the meantime, I’m going with ‘Inverse Namesake’, which may not be the best word, it’s a clear communication.
While we’re on the subject, did you know that my inverse namesake is the town of Jackman, Maine? I never lived there, but my parents are from there. There’s not much going on in Jackman lately, but they tend to make a big deal about their more famous residents.
