The following essay was my essay supplement for Dartmouth, a part of my college application.

Dartmouth College- Every name tells a story: Tell us about your name- any name: first, middle, last, nickname- and its origin.

A name is a name. Is a name. Is. A name is. A name. Just this past week my economics class watched a documentary that explored the rationale behind children’s names. In this day and age, parents want nothing less than success for their children, and they name them accordingly. However, countless studies have proven that the perceived positive or negative connotations of a name have virtually nothing to do with the future of the named. And how could it? The idea of living up to a name is cliché and outdated. So that’s just it. A name is merely a word.

Unless of course, it isn’t. Names take a whole new meaning once an infant starts to truly live his or her life. Humans’ personalities and beliefs develop right alongside the meaning of their name, or, more appropriately, what their name ends up meaning to them. My name is my first link to my family. One story is that I was named after my great grandmother, my father’s beloved grandmother who had an immense impact on him. While my name obviously means a lot to my father, it is even closer to my mother’s heart. She grew up as an Air Force brat in India, moving around and changing languages, environments, and most dramatically friends almost annually. When she reached high school her father decided that the whole family needed to settle in one place and, as this story goes, it was in Chandigarh that my mother met her first true best friend also named Amrit. Amrit was my mother’s “other-half” during her formative high school years, the consummate best friend, and they spent every moment at each other’s side. I consider myself lucky that my parents chose me as the first child and daughter in the family to be my mother’s “other-half” as proven by my name.

Even so, a name could still be flimsy, just a pretty memento of memories and people past. Thankfully, mine isn’t. Especially not once you delve into its history. In many religions from the South Asian subcontinent, Amrit is the ambrosial food and nectar of the gods. This could suggest that my name is nothing more than an equivalent to an endearing nickname like sweetheart or honey. However, the linguistics of the word reveal much more. In yet another story, an overly enthusiastic substitute teacher for my Latin class once deviated from the lesson to explore the etymology of my name, to my great embarrassment. Amrit, as it turns out, is a combination of two Sanskrit words- mrit meaning death and a meaning without. Simply put Amrit is, and thus I am, “without death:” immortal. Obviously, my parents did not choose this name hoping to instill the power of eternal life. Rather, they hoped for immortal qualities and spirit. I am a reckless optimist, forever and always believing in the good inside of people. Over the years, I have developed a high level of intrinsic motivation and am thus immortal to most detractors in the way of my goals. Although literality was not entirely at play in my name, its influence cannot be denied in my personality.

Yes, a name can be a name and merely a name. A representation of trend or aesthetic, an identity summed up in a pretty but almost pointless word during a child’s infancy. In other cases can develop, right alongside the named, and take on the characteristics that its origins lend itself too. I am lucky to have quite a few stories to my name and as I’ve learned them over the years I’ve been able to find qualities in myself that align with my name. It isn’t exactly living up to Amrit, rather Amrit becoming me.