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Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

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Re: Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

#21

Post by ghaff »

Tarsul wrote: post #16
ghaff wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Baby name wizard has Alexa peaking in the 1990s when combined with various other related names. [1] The specific Alexa variant peaked in 2015 but that's in the context of the related names as a whole declining precipitously, albeit not to pre-80s levels. I must admit that a reason for the popularity spike doesn't pop to mind but presumably there's some pop culture thing I'm not thinking of. [1] https://www.babynamewi…

well maybe there could've been an uptick but Amazon ruined it (or maybe even amazon was responsible for the uptick in 2015?). I know from Germany that short, phonetically nice sounding names are "in" and I'd guess it's similar in the US. Alexa does sound nice, actually. Probably why Amazon took it, even.

I assume there are also distinctiveness considerations. I'm guessing the "ex" phoneme is natural to pronounce but not super-common in English. And 3 syllables is probably a good compromise between distinctiveness and being too long.

Re: Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

#23

Post by cadence- »

MarkLowenstein wrote: post #17

It's certainly become an inconvenient name to utter around our house, due to the responses it elicits from our countertops. So my daughter came up with the idea of referring to the device as "Amelia" whenever we talk about her. It has worked brilliantly and I suggest that everyone adopt the same convention.

We use the name Lexi instead.

Re: Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

#24

Post by xwdv »

dyingkneepad wrote: post #20
CameronNemo wrote: post #3

Amazon has ruined the name Amazon. A word that used to command respect and awe now connotates shipping waste and overworked warehouse laborers.

Not really. If I say "she is an Amazon!" you will think I'm saying she's a female warrior instead of a megacorporation.

Nope, I think of those people wearing the little blue jackets that say Amazon on them packing up boxes or running around grocery stores fetching shopping items.

Re: Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

#26

Post by echelon »

afavour wrote: post #18
mentos wrote: post #8

Funny coincidence I was just wondering this a few weeks ago when reading a Tinder bio of a girl named Alexa who had something to the effect of 'heard all the Alexa jokes for a lifetime thanks' Made me wonder if there is a class action lawsuit where all of the Alexa's could sue Amazon for psychological distress or something.

I know an Alexa and she says the same. I'll admit I hadn't thought about it before but it does sound like an incredibly annoying thing to have dropped on you from on high: constant jokes, if anyone addresses you in an Amazon-enabled home all kind of crap gets triggered... I can see why people are infuriated by it.

It's like "Karen", but in this case the blame for misuse lies on a single company rather than a meme.

We shouldn't abuse people's names by using them for products, gross generalizations, etc. It's poor taste, and it frequently hurts people unintentionally.

Imagine your own name being used as a term for ridicule or poking fun. It's not a good feeling.

Re: Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

#27

Post by kwhitefoot »

dyingkneepad wrote: post #20
CameronNemo wrote: post #3

Amazon has ruined the name Amazon. A word that used to command respect and awe now connotates shipping waste and overworked warehouse laborers.

Not really. If I say "she is an Amazon!" you will think I'm saying she's a female warrior instead of a megacorporation.

It would be interesting to know what proportion of the population of which countries would think which.

Re: Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

#28

Post by williw »

echelon wrote: post #26
afavour wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know an Alexa and she says the same. I'll admit I hadn't thought about it before but it does sound like an incredibly annoying thing to have dropped on you from on high: constant jokes, if anyone addresses you in an Amazon-enabled home all kind of crap gets triggered... I can see why people are infuriated by it.

It's like "Karen", but in this case the blame for misuse lies on a single company rather than a meme. We shouldn't abuse people's names by using them for products, gross generalizations, etc. It's poor taste, and it frequently hurts people unintentionally. Imagine your own name being used as a term for ridicule or poking fun. It's not a good feeling.

Thoughts go to all the Pete out there

Re: Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

#29

Post by justtocomment »

cadence- wrote: post #23
MarkLowenstein wrote: post #17

It's certainly become an inconvenient name to utter around our house, due to the responses it elicits from our countertops. So my daughter came up with the idea of referring to the device as "Amelia" whenever we talk about her. It has worked brilliantly and I suggest that everyone adopt the same convention.

We use the name Lexi instead.

It's interesting how we twist our behaviour to accomodate the technology and not the other way around.

What worked great for us was not buying the thing in the first place.

Re: Has Amazon Ruined the Name Alexa?

#30

Post by NullPrefix »

MarkLowenstein wrote: post #17

It's certainly become an inconvenient name to utter around our house, due to the responses it elicits from our countertops. So my daughter came up with the idea of referring to the device as "Amelia" whenever we talk about her. It has worked brilliantly and I suggest that everyone adopt the same convention.

Or you could just throw away those listening devices.
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