<p>Well, I am Muslim and I am proud of my name, but it is a little infamous in the U.S ... </p>
<p>Now my close friends will of course eventually know my real name, but would you advise that I change my name to something a little more 'common' in class/hangouts/clubs/public etc.?</p>
<p>Of course my Facebook name will remain to be my original name, so everyone who adds me will know.</p>
<p>Do you have a shorten version of the name you like? While my name is more common (Elizabeth) some might call me Liz.
I personally think you should be called what you are most comfortable with. If you want to be called your real name, then introduce yourself that way. People will learn it.</p>
<p>Nicknames are awesome. Some girl from Pakistan had the initials ABC and we called her Aye BC or Alphabet. If I could go back in time I would give myself a nickname. Do it!!! Don’t change your name for real, but get a nickname if you wanna be super cool.</p>
<p>If you are talking about Osama it shouldn’t be an issue there are many people with that name in the US</p>
<p>if my last name was obama id change it too</p>
<p>to what? romney?</p>
<p>My mom works with man from Iran. His name is Mohamed, but he goes by Moe and uses that as his business name.</p>
<p>I go by my middle name and my college uses it in place of my first name. Although, my legal documents say my legal first name.</p>
<p>I’m considering going to legally change my name because my dad and I have the same name. It has become a huge problem with all of my legal work because I always get mistaken for my father…</p>
<p>If you’re not comfortable with your name, then change it to something you do like. Your name is what your parents gave you, not something you asked for. You don’t have to be proud of your birth name if it actually makes you uncomfortable, don’t pretend to like it to just to make other people happy. Make yourself happy and change it.</p>
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<p>Thing is I’m not gonna take up a “nickname” (I don’t like the ones associated with my name), I’m gonna pick a whole different name (if I will). I’m just a bit worried about how people will react after they start finding out my real name.</p>
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<p>… Well I’m not pretending to like it on collegeconfidential now am I? I AM proud of my name, but as I said I would just rather publicly be known as something else so as to avoid any complications. I mean who likes to be different (especially on an infamous basis)?! </p>
<p>Long story short: how would you react if you find out this new acquaintance of yours has a real name that was different then from what he introduced himself as?</p>
<p>I don’t know, I think I would just laugh. Maybe ask him why doesn’t he use his real name, maybe just laugh. It’s not my business, he might have a personal reason. I haven’t encounter any one like this so I don’t know how I would react but honestly I think I would just find it funny and tell him not worry about it.</p>
<p>If you’re proud of your name, then use it.</p>
<p>I don’t understand why you would introduce yourself as something else but be proud of your name and continue to use it on Facebook.</p>
<p>I agree with adopting a nickname if you don’t want to go by your actual name (though it sounds like you do). Someone mentioned Osama, you could get people to call you “O”. (I knew a guy who went by O.)</p>
<p>I don’t think people will get confused by your name being “infamous” in the US. They’ll obviously know that you are a different person than the person you’re thinking of.</p>
<p>If you want a nickname, go by Ozzy.</p>
<p>I mean, if you’re going to use your real name on facebook, then I don’t really see the point in even going by a different game.</p>
<p>If you change it, change it everywhere. Once a name is changed, it is permanent. As you move through life, more and more people will know you by your new name. Your family will probably have more feelings bout this than anyone else.</p>
<p>Some of the names from the Middle East associated with people you do not want to be associated with seem to be fairly common names. Do you plan to change both names or just one?</p>
<p>Changing names is done in this country. Celebrities change their names to sound better as do broadcasters. Just think carefully before you make the leap. Americans have short memories for most things.</p>
<p>Our local sportscaster’s name is Gerry Sandusky. That is a name I would not want.</p>
<p>I don’t think there is any need for you to change your name. This is college. You most certainly won’t have any complications. You don’t need a nickname either. If you are really proud of your name, why would you worry about shortening it?</p>
<p>If your name is Osama, consider going by “Sam.”</p>
<p>I don’t think there is anything wrong with changing your name if you happen to have the name of a person like Osama or Saddam or Arafat or something and people are always making an issue of it. Who needs the headache? If my name was Adolf or my last name was Hitler, you can bet I’d change it pretty quickly.</p>
<p>It doesn’t mean you’re turning your back on your country or your culture, assuming this name is a common one in your culture.</p>
<p>Many far east Asians have two first names, an Asian one and an American one. This is so common among Chinese, Taiwanese, etc. immigrants on my campus that it doesn’t make anybody bat an eye. I’ve met a lot of Chinese guys who are named Xiang in China but Alan or something when they’re in America. Like how Gandalf was called Gandalf by men and halflings but Mithrandir by elves. :-D</p>
<p>People might be a little turned off if they find out you pretty much lied to them about your name, and they’ll wonder what else you’ve made up and told them.
You can always introduce yourself like, “Hey, my name is _<strong><em>, but you can call me </em></strong><strong><em>" or ", but my friends call me </em></strong>” Generally a nickname would be better than an entirely different name. Or going by your middle name if you have one.</p>
<p>This is no big deal. People won’t feel betrayed. Lots of people simplify their names, some legally, some just in common practice. If you do the latter, in class or with friends, you can just say, “People call me ___.” </p>
<p>Romney’s full name is Willard Mitt Romney. Only Rev. Al Sharpton calls him Willard. Dr Martin Luther King, jr was born Michael Luther King. You get the idea.</p>
<p>the name is oz, Dr. Oz</p>
<p>spectastic hahhahah. </p>
<p>Well there is an obvious contradictory in opinion here! Some are saying they would find it a bit weird and some are saying it’s completely normal. TomServo I know about the whole Asian name changing thing, I’ve seen an episode on Russel Peters asking an Asian couple their names, and after they replied, he was like “okay, now tell me your Asian names”. It was really funny haha, here it is actually (warning; it’s HALAAAARIOUS): [Russell</a> Peters: Tap Sum Bong - Video](<a href=“http://www.metacafe.com/watch/640609/russell_peters_tap_sum_bong/]Russell”>http://www.metacafe.com/watch/640609/russell_peters_tap_sum_bong/)</p>
<p>And the reason I’m keeping my name the same on Facebook is because people on THIS side of the world would just all start commenting “what since when did you change your name!” etc. Ehhh, I think I should stop caring what people think and just do what I want, I guess. </p>
<p>MyPaperBleedsInk you gave a great suggestion, and that is to introduce my real name but then tell them to call me something else. I even did this here in the middle east (because my name is SO common, so I had to have a name to differentiate me from the other Muhammads haha). ALTHOUGH, I was just called my last name, which is cool and all but I wanted a more ‘western’ name in the states. So introducing my first name then going all call me Max or Matt or Mark would just be weird. </p>
<p>Hmmmm :/</p>