No, My Last Name is Not Gilligan.

My grandfather’s middle name was Alexander and my grandmother’s maiden name was Oliver. So I bet you can guess what my name would have been, had I been born a boy--yes, Alexander Oliver. However, I am a girl, the second daughter of my parents. Apparently there was a lot of creativity used in coming up with a girl’s name upon my birth, because I am Olivia Alexandra instead of Alexander Oliver. I do feel like my name defines me because it is part of my identity. It is part of what makes me who I am.

I do have a nickname which is “Livvy.” However, really only my family calls me by my nickname, but so do all the people who knew me in elementary school because they heard my parents call me by it. It is funny that I can tell who knew me when by what they call me, “Olivia” or “Livvy."

My last name is a struggle. It’s “Gilleland.” It is Irish and comes from my father’s side. This name causes problems for me because it is hard for everyone to spell and to say. First let’s talk about how to spell it. My mom always tells people that they just have to remember that the vowels are in reverse alphabetical order, but really, all you have to do is put an “e” in the middle of “gill” and “land.” It is always hard whenever anyone asks my last name and then has to write it. I don’t even let them try; I just start spelling it right after I say it. Even when I am doing something normal like shopping, and the cashier asks for my email address (which has my last name in it), I am met with a blank stare after I say it.

There is also the struggle of people attempting to pronounce my last name. The correct ways to say it are “Gil-uh-land” or “Gil-ih-land,” and those are basically the same thing, and so both are acceptable. I do not know why it is so hard for people to pronounce.  It isn’t like my last name is spelled really differently than it’s said, like “Quinoa” is. In case you are thinking, “Isn’t Quinoa pronounced ‘kin-oh-uh’?”  The answer is no; here is a picture for some help: 

Sometimes the attempts of people trying to say my name are actually pretty funny. One of the worst tries I’ve ever heard is “Gilligan” (and I’ve heard it more than once). What happened? Did they just give up after the first four letters? Once when I was at a track meet, the announcer said: “In second place, in the pole vault, Oh-liv-eye-uh Gill-yard.” Apparently the anxiety caused by thinking about saying my last name, made the announcer incapable of pronouncing “Olivia” as well…but the absolute worst I’ve ever heard is “Galileo.” Really? Galileo? That isn’t even remotely close.

Even with the struggles of my last name, I feel like my last name also is part of my identity. I like my unusual name, and I’ve only met one other person with it: a cashier in a store in Virginia who noticed my name when I paid. We’re probably related since nobody else has this name spelled with an “e” in the middle. I have met more than one “Gilliland” though, but not many. I like having a unique last name, because I feel it helps make me be unique as well. However, even with that said, I think I will change my name when I am married (unless, of course, my husband has an extremely strange name) because my last name will no longer define just me, it will define my family. Also it would be nice if he has an easier name to spell and pronounce.

My name is important to me as an individual; however, it is less important when I am part of a team. The time when I am an individual and a part of a whole at the same time is when I am competing in gymnastics. Gymnastics is thought of as an individual sport, and in a way it is. Each gymnast competes separately instead of with a team working together as in football or soccer. So, when I am competing, I am an individual. I compete by myself and receive an individual score and place on the podium. However, gymnastics is also a team sport. Each gymnast’s scores go to a team total which means that the team does actually have to work together, just not in the typical way. When my team wins a competition, it is not about me, it is about the work everyone. However, sometimes this can pose a problem. In gymnastics, there is an individual competition as well as a team competition. Each individual can earn gold, silver, or bronze in an event, and also the team can earn gold, silver, or bronze. So, do you get excited when a teammate does better? It will put you at a disadvantage for the individual competition, but at an advantage for the team competition. This is the dilemma everyone has to face. Which is more important? Look at the benefits of team sports here.