I usually say "another person with the same name" or "another Ian Fairclough"
Amy
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-----Original Message-----
From: Program for Cooperative Cataloging [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ian Fairclough
Sent: Monday, September 28, 2015 2:46 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [PCCLIST] Writing to people to differentiate them from "namesakes"
Dear PCCLIST readers,
For a while now, I've used the word namesake in correspondence with authors and others for whom a name authority record is to be created. But in a recent discussion during local NACO training, it was pointed out that this term can be misleading. This source http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/namesake
has "someone one that has the same name as another; especially : one who is named after another or for whom another is named".
So, perhaps someone might think I'm inquiring whether they are named for a grandparent, etc. Such, of course, is not the case. But participants in the discussion included staff from Mason's Special Collections & Archives, as well as a reference librarian/subject liaison. Their perspective on the matter gave rise to this new understanding. I can understand confusion arising in situations involving the materials with which they work. They might well indeed be asking someone about a genealogical relationship.
To hopefully avoid this confusion, I have devised the phrase "by someone else with a similar name to yours" for use in correspondence. It seems a little cumbersome, though it works (I think!). I wonder how others are handling such situations.
Please "reply all" to PCCLIST rather than to me individually.
Sincerely - Ian
Ian Fairclough
Cataloging and Metadata Services Librarian George Mason University Libraries [log in to unmask]
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