Welcome to European Tribune. It's gone a bit quiet around here these days, but it's still going.
Display:
Is Mary Robinson the only Irish politician you consistently refer to by first name? I don't remember you talking about "Brian" or "Bertie".

En un viejo país ineficiente, algo así como España entre dos guerras civiles, poseer una casa y poca hacienda y memoria ninguna. -- Gil de Biedma
by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Thu Oct 22nd, 2009 at 09:38:04 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Irish politics/society is extremely informal and it is not uncommon to refer to senior personages by their first names without being in the least impolite.  For a foreign audience I generally use both simply because they might not know who I'm talking about but in this case the context was pretty clear.  Use of a first name only does not imply affection/familiarity, although of course it can!

notes from no w here
by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot male dotty communists) on Thu Oct 22nd, 2009 at 09:43:42 AM EST
[ Parent ]
It's not about being impolite but about referring to men by their last name and women by their first name...

En un viejo país ineficiente, algo así como España entre dos guerras civiles, poseer una casa y poca hacienda y memoria ninguna. -- Gil de Biedma
by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Thu Oct 22nd, 2009 at 09:59:24 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Ahern is commonly referred to a as Bertie in Ireland though sometimes in a deprecatory way by snobs to reference his North side anorak wearing image.  Generally  I don't think its a male/female thing and used more where the context is clear.  You would rarely use Brian for Cowen as there is lots of scope for confusion with Lehihan given that they seem to be joined at the hip these days.

notes from no w here
by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot male dotty communists) on Thu Oct 22nd, 2009 at 10:10:01 AM EST
[ Parent ]
I don't think Ahern was referred to here on ET as Bertie in other than a deprecatory manner, though not for the reason you state.

I'm curious because I have observed this phenomenon about male/female first/last names in many contexts for a long time in various countries...

En un viejo país ineficiente, algo así como España entre dos guerras civiles, poseer una casa y poca hacienda y memoria ninguna. -- Gil de Biedma

by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Thu Oct 22nd, 2009 at 10:16:12 AM EST
[ Parent ]
  No: he also consistently refers to Mary Magdalene (Dublin Central) as "Mary".

"In such an environment it is not surprising that the ills of technology should seem curable only through the application of more technology..." John W Aldridge
by proximity1 on Thu Oct 22nd, 2009 at 10:27:38 AM EST
[ Parent ]
You mean Mary Lou?

notes from no w here
by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot male dotty communists) on Thu Oct 22nd, 2009 at 11:00:48 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Display:

Occasional Series