You're right about the different social groups, but a reputation for dishonesty is as disastrous to a cleaner's livelihood as it is to a lawyers, and sh/he has rather fewer resources for overcoming the slur.

The 'similar social standing' thing for passports apparently came about because people objected that some groups - and generally groups who have it toughest in other ways too - don't have handy doctors and lawyers and ministers and so on who've known them for three years.

Then my doctors started refusing to sign passport forms because they were being asked for their own passport numbers. (Now like a form asking for a referenced, you can do the form and hand it to the referee who sends it off direct

Emma

If where your characters' surnames (or even your own) originate is important to you, have a look at this website:

http://cetl2.geog.ucl.ac.uk/UCLnames/default.aspx

It also gives you the 'Mosaic' index for the name - in other words, what socio-economic group the majority of people with the name belong to. Most of my family's names are 'Ex-Industrial Legacy' - not surprisingly, or, like my mum's name, Bennett, 'People on Benefits'. My married name, Grundy, is 'Coronation Street'. Now that's REALLY dismissive! Annoying, but still fascinating.

Julie

That's absolutely fascinating! Thank you, Julie. Consider it bookmarked.

Emma

Julie, could you expand on the bit about the "Mosaic" index? I found this website last week, following an article on the BBC News website, and I've played with it a few times (I've been doing genealogical research on my family recently). I hadn't come across anything like you describe; only the geographical spreads for 1881 and 1998, and the statistics/ethnicity of the name (except that the "ethnicity" only seems to relate to a name's use as a forename, not to the surname itself).

The website is often heavily loaded, and sometimes appears not to give accurate results. For example, when I tried just now, it was showing me a blank geographical map for Hazel in 1998. Last week, it was showing me a very specific spread of usage.

Alex

I quite like to take a form of the practice used in restoration comedies, satires and morality tales (including Pilgrim's Progress, for example), where character names were indicative of their personalities. Much more subtle, of course - nothing quite like Christian, Obstinate and Mr. Worldly Wiseman! - and used sparingly, but it works well for some characters. For example, I named a very elusive and dubious character Marcus Flight, and an American M&A venture capitalist Rich Carver.

The other thing is that I'm quite attached to particular names for my own personal reasons. for example, I was very keen to name a character in my current novel Erin, so I did!

Andy

Yes, I like subtle references. The older couple in TMOL that the narrator very much admires are called Theo and Eva.

Emma

Alex

When I found this site, it warned that it's often busy, but I had no trouble the first time I used it, in the middle of the day. I've just repeated a Surname Search and got the blank map, so I assume evenings must be busy! But the other info was still there - click 'Geographical Location' above the map, and the 'Social Demographics' box is on the right. There's a 'Help' link which explains the Mosaic system and a link to the Mosaic website, where you can download the definitions of the social categories. I did - it's 210 pages and there isn't an index, so it's not exactly easy to find what your 'class' supposedly says about you!

Julie

Thanks for that, Julie. I had seen the "Geographical Location" link, but thought it was just one to take me back to the maps.

I downloaded the document you referred to, and looked up my Mosaic index, which said "Metro Multiculture". Apparently I live in Central London in a multicultural neighbourhood, in rented public housing. So when I look out of the window in my house in semi-rural Hampshire, and see trees, the occasional roe deer, squirrels, etc., I must be hallucinating.

From the family research I've done, it's about 100 years since my branch of the Hazel family lived in a city centre; and then it was Aston, not Central London. They probably rented their homes, though.

Alex