Thursday, August 19, 2010

wordsmithery: homophonic nomenclative substitution

Language is a fluid construct. Wordsmithery is predicated on this assumption. Sometimes the Wordsmith can think about how words are formed. Other times, he/she can think about how they sound.

I've been working on this concept for a while. We'll call it an invention, but really, it's an institution. I am talking about homophonic nomenclative substitution.

Homophonic nomencaltive substitution involves the creation of true-sounding replacements for first and last names. The names, proper nouns, are substituted for common nouns. Punctuation and contractions are allowed. However, slang, ebonics, and 1337/internet speak are frowned upon.

Ideally, the replacement phrase makes some sense. It should, in all circumstances, sound something like the original name. Some are bigger stretches than others.

Some clear patterns emerge as you do this, which are interesting to note.

Here are some of my substitutions (please feel free to challenge any):

Derek Jeter = Doo-rag heater.
William Adams = Will yam add hums?
Kurt Russel = incur truss sill
Skeeter Valentine = Sick? Eat her fowl in time.
Jerry Seinfeld = jury's infield
Billy Crystal = bleak risk hill
John Kennedy = Junk can add heaps.
Leonardo DiCaprio = lean art ode copper yo

This either gets very addictive or very irksome. I'm eager to see comments.

13 comments:

  1. Ah, you know my thoughts on this. I love playing with words like this (some say too much), which is why everything I write is always caught up on stupid, "clever" phrases and wordsmithery - see any of the following movies on youtube: Babyface Crackers, Brutus and Judas: A Pretty Girl, or Beene's Got the Greens (search jfighterpilot on youtube).

    I definitely encourage more of these entries and will try to think of my own, starting with:

    Abraham Lincoln = Apron handling corn

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  2. Daniel is too clever for me.

    Jimi Hendrix=Gimme men itch
    Dana Carvey=Gain a Barbie

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  3. I want to do Mick Jagger, but it seems too easy....

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  4. Mike Tyson = My cake icing
    Kenny Rogers = Canned heat injures

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  5. Daniel Polito - Day in yell pole eat toe

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  6. Steven Seagal - Stead vin cigar haha thats a bad one but this is quite interesting and amusing

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  7. Cave-in Bake Won- who is it?

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  8. Sounds to me like Mr. Kevin Bacon to me...fuckin Tremors

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  9. neal patrick harris- seal hatrick spare us

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  10. Stevie Wonder = Steep Pee Yonder
    David Duchovny = Gays Did Puke On Me
    Criss Angel = Cyst and Gel
    John Madden = Bong Straddlin'

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  11. harvey keitel - hearty dyke tail...alllllright

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  12. Holy shit at Daniel Polito. That cracked me up so hard.

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  13. A stunning display of homophonic nomenclative substitution (where do you come up with this crap Josh? - I love it):

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLd22ha_-VU

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