deadname
English
Etymology
From dead + name, because the old name is dead (“no longer used”). Attested since at least 2014.
Alternative forms
Noun
deadname (plural deadnames)
- A previous name of a person (especially a transgender person) who has since changed their name.
- 2014, Natalia Moorin, "My Illness Is Not Your Inspiration", Damsel (University of Western Australia), page 21:
- And when people constantly refer to you as your deadname [a name that you previously went by], or use the incorrect pronouns, it really is like getting slapped with a wet fish.
- 2015 May 19, Jane Fae, "Changing your name should be a joyous moment, but for many it’s a nightmare", The Guardian:
- Once you’ve changed your name, accessing the old one can be traumatic: not for nothing is it referred to as “deadname”.
- 2014, Natalia Moorin, "My Illness Is Not Your Inspiration", Damsel (University of Western Australia), page 21:
Verb
deadname (third-person singular simple present deadnam, present participle ed, simple past and past participle deadnamed)
- To refer to someone (especially a transgender person) who has changed names by a previous name.
- 2014 August 13, “The 'transgender tipping point': how and why attitudes are changing”, in The Week UK:
- The press has often been accused of using offensive phrases and terminology when discussing trans people, including the misuse of pronouns, continuous 'deadnaming' – referring to a trans person's previous name – as well as giving a platform to transantagonistic people.
- 2014 November 25, “Sarah Vine criticises lesbian mother Jack Monroe”, in The Independent[1]:
- Gay poverty campaigner Jack Monroe has condemned "homophobic, deadnaming, ignorant" comments made by columnist Sarah Vine about her decision to become a mother in a same sex relationship.
- 2015 June 17, Estevan Mercury[2]:
- Using trans peoples' dead names – names that they were born with which are either wrong through either legal or preferential means – has been and always will be an act of aggression, not just to the person you're deadnaming but to all trans people.
- 2018, Twitter Hateful conduct policy[3]:
- We prohibit targeting individuals with repeated slurs, tropes or other content that intends to dehumanize, degrade or reinforce negative or harmful stereotypes about a protected category. This includes targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals.
Translations
to refer to someone by their previous name
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See also
- dead-naming (“act or instance of naming as the target of a death-curse”)
- misgender
- necronym