Everybody has a name… A name that they hear called hour after hour, day after day. Although most people keep the same name throughout their lives, many elect to change their name formally or informally.
One such student is sophomore Echo Dayton. Dayton used to go by Eliza before changing her colloquial name to Echo in seventh grade. The change was unplanned and largely spontaneous. “My friends started calling me Echo because a lot of the time if I’m with a group of friends and zone out, I’ll just repeat whatever other people around me are saying. They started calling me Echo as a nickname, and it just stuck,” she said.
Now, Dayton still considers Echo to be more of a nickname, but one that is widely used. It is the name she uses at home, school, and in most other spaces, and it has become important to her. “I like that there’s a story with it. It’s just fun to know that they [my friends] recognize my habits and then picked a fun name out of it,” Dayton said.

Dayton also appreciates that Echo is something unique to her, given the name is fairly unconventional, and that it simply sounds cool. She considers names to be an integral part of one’s identity. “It’s what people call you all the time. If you hear somebody’s name, then that’s the first thing that pops in your head. It carries a lot of weight with how people think about you,” she said.
More than anything, the name change was fun and enjoyable for Dayton. After her friends started calling her Echo, she embraced the new name and made things more official, telling her family and others in her life. Although this is not the case for everyone, she felt well-supported in making the change. Everyone, especially her parents, made a good effort to respect Dayton’s choice and quickly transitioned to using Echo. This helped in making her experience overwhelmingly positive.
Still, Dayton believes that the culture of naming in society should be more malleable. She explained that exploring new names can be fun, and changing one’s name because something else sounds fun to try is perfectly valid. She also recognized that many people change their names for gender reasons, which can be more challenging. Dayton offered her general advice: “If it’s something that you’re considering that would help you feel better with your identity, obviously go for it. But also, if you just want to spice up your life a little bit and you’re thinking that it would be fun to change your name or get a nickname, go out and experiment. It’s fun to pick a new part of your identity.”
So, for those considering changing their name, take it from Dayton; it can be a very rewarding experience. Trying different names or nicknames in comfortable social settings is an easy, low-stakes way to explore the potential of this ever-important part of personal identity.