Q&A ยท 3:54:04-3:55:03

Captain Coward and naval names that invite comparison

Captain Coward's aggressive reputation and the name Manly Power provide two examples of naval naming humour.

Question

What are good examples of naval nominative determinism?

Short answer

Captain Coward was conspicuously ill-named because he was known for aggressive action, while Captain Manly Power offers another memorable historical name.

Notes

Captain Coward's Falklands reputation supplies an example of a surname at odds with the behaviour associated with its owner. The joke rests on an officer remembered for aggression rather than timidity. Captain Manly Power supplies a second memorable naval name. These anecdotes concern individual reputations and names, without suggesting that names determine an officer's conduct.