User talk:Bendono/Archives/2008/February

Changing user name
I've begun a process of changing my user name. I flatter myself that you'd likely recognize my "voice" under any circumstances. Perhaps this becomes a mere formality, but nothing convinces me that you think that way. We'll see .... An alternative name I considered for a time would have been something like yours, a nod to "Bendono" in the contrived user name "Jōō-dono" .... I also considered a nod to "Fg2" in a name like "Jōō-dono2" .... Instead, my user name choice was bland, almost trite, obvious, plain. I didn't feel BOLD enough -- not yet. Maybe in the future?
 * User:Ooperhoofd → User:Tenmei?
 * Current name: Ooperhoofd (talk · contribs · logs · block log)
 * Requested name: Tenmei (other projects?) (rename user)
 * Reason: During the past year, my primary focus has had to do with Japanese era names (nengō). These time-period names were changed periodically, but not regularly -- some lasting only months, and others lasting for decades. I want to adopt one of these Japanese era names as my user name. As it happens, my initial user name, "Ooperhoofd," was a deliberate mis-spelling of the Dutch word for the chief trader on the island of Dejima in Nagasaki harbor. In Japan, the title Opperhoofd had significance during the 300 years in which all but the VOC merchants were excluded from Japan as part of a deliberate, "country-in-chains" policy (sakoku). Now that I'm beginning to feel more comfortable in the Wikipedia environment, I think I can cast aside a user name which serves me less well than it did some months ago. A new vista of perceived opportunities is beginning to open up for me, and I want to mirror something of a nengō-informed approach to a what I'm doing as a Wikipedia editor. In that context, the nengō which means "dawn" seems an attractive alternative, a good step in a constructive direction. "Tenmei" is short ... and, yes, I know that I need to learn to write in shorter sentences. The other users whose opinions I most value will have no difficulty in adapting to this name change -- and, in fact, I flatter myself that they would likely recognize my contributions even if I were identified by an unfamiliar IP-address. My prose has been charitably called "a dense, overly-academic" writing style -- as you can see for yourself here. I wonder if a user name change will help me "find my own voice" -- assuming, of course, that I still have it in me to grow a little bit. --Ooperhoofd (talk) 03:27, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Who knows how this will unfold? --Ooperhoofd (talk) 19:23, 10 February 2008 (UTC)


 * Hello Tenmei. I hope that you enjoy your new name. Let me tell you the history of the name. As is customary for choosing nengō, the name was selected from a passage in a historical Chinese text. In this case, the text was Classic of History (書経) (also quoted in The Great Learning (大學)). More specifically from the first of the King Tai Jia (大甲) chapters. It says: "先王顧諟天之明命..." meaning "The former king kept his eye continually on the bright requirements of Heaven, [and...]." This is continued with a description of reverence, virtue, and prosperity for the lands. From this, the two characters 天 and 明 were selected. Bendono (talk) 03:02, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

Thank you always
What else can I say? You know my language better than I do! I feel terrible with myself. Best regards. Oda Mari (talk) 14:53, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Chinese cash article split
If you are interested, a continuation of a discussion you participated in continues at Talk:Chinese_w%C3%A9n. —  AjaxSmack   04:56, 22 February 2008 (UTC)