First off, I'd like to say that I know nothing about the politics of Northern Ireland. And, I will freely admit to being very ignorant about the early history of the area.
I was simply reading the news story about the killings and am wondering about the origins of his name. At first, I thought it was some sort of Middle Eastern name, but as I gazed at it then I began to wonder.
Lastly, I want to say that I know that we have many very good Authors from the other side of the Atlantic, and I mean no offense what so ever to any of you. Would someone please help my ignorance?
Gwendolyn
Comments
Who?
I thought Azimkar was that prison bad wizards got sent to in the Harry Potter books.
I'm really out of the loop here. Lately I've been getting all my news from old
newspapers (Pennysaver & AHORA mostly) blowing past my house...
Well shit, I guess it really CAN happen here..,
.
The name is Turkish...
...but Cengiz "Patrick" Azimkar came from London and was a British soldier, a Sapper, killed in Ireland. It's not at all clear that he was anything but an ordinary British citizen with at least part-Turkish ancestry somewhere, by which standards I'm Danish, Welsh, and American Indian and my politics are suspect.
Well, of course they are, but probably not much to do with my ancestors, but rather where I grew up, in the San Francisco Bay Area of northern California, where my father worked on a labour paper and my mother was listed as a "Suspected Communist" by the John Birch Society.
Puddin'
-
Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
His father came from Cyprus
See: http://www.cyprus-forum.com/cyprus22809.html
And his Mother from Lancashire, of Irish descent...
His middle name, Patrick, the one he was actually known by, might be a clue.
Oddly enough, the newspaper reports identify him as being Turkish (Cypriot) extraction, but usually fail to mention his mother, which might be a clue as well, both of sexist and crypto-racist attitudes in the press.
Fancy that, and what a surprise! I'm shocked, simply shocked to hear of it.
Puddin'
-
Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
So it's not one of those charming Celtic names?
Oh darn, I was thinking that he was welsh or something. It's a shame; the parents maybe left the Middle East to get away from the insanity and he gets offed by the Irish brand of Red Neckedness. Of course he could have come to the US and been wacked by the white supremacists, the KKK, or some street gang. It just pisses me off.
T people are supposed to be the ones who are 7 times more likely to get killed but I have never been confronted by anyone dangerous. It could be better, because there could be some surprises there; maybe.
Gwendolyn
Well, yes...
His "real name," Patrick, Pat to his friends, is the anglicization of Padraig, "noble," and is sort of Irish now that St Patrick drove out all the snakes. It's actually Latin (Patrician) but the name has been adopted into the Gaelic.
Puddin'
-
Cheers,
Puddin'
A tender heart is an asset to an editor: it helps us be ruthless in a tactful way.
--- The Chicago Manual of Style
The Father's Turkish-Cypriot
Cyprus was controlled by the British from 1878 till 1960. During that period, Britain allowed free movement of people, and there are a number of both Greek-Cypriot and Turkish-Cypriot communities in Britain. The boy turns out to be a relative (in a very distant way - they have large clans) of an acquaintance of mine. I recognised the name, and phoned him up in case I should send flowers, but all he could say was that he must be some kind of relative, but that he didn't know any more.