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By Traci Travis
The Battalion
et names such as
"Koo Koo," "Pokey",
'Goobie" and "Sweet
Petutie" will decorate
many lace-covered cards
this Valentine's Day. But
even the bare-butted Cupid
must question these odd terms
of affection.
Kathleen Ferrara, assistant
professor of linguistics, said,
"Pet names are bonding signals
or private ways of
communicating. It shows
intimacy between two people."
Kelly Vaughan has been calling
his girlfriend Megan Zeitler
"Bawbby" since the first night
they met.
Zeitler, a sophomore business
administration major, said
whenever her boyfriend calls
her "Bawbby" it makes her
think back to when they first
met.
"It's special because it's so
random," Zeitler said. "I know
it's just for me. It's not like
'Sweetie.'"
Names such as "Sweetie" and
"Honey," however, are not as
ordinary as they seem.
"Universally, the 'e' sound at
the end of words such as 'Cutie'
and 'Sweetie' reminds us of
smallness," Ferrara said.
"Smallness can then be related
to dearness, thus making it a
term of affection."
A study in "Human
Communication Research,"
which involved 100 romantically
involved couples, said that for
both sexes, loving, commitment
and closeness were associated
with a number of reported
idioms, or pet names, that
showed affection.
According to the study, males
are the inventors of idioms
much more often than females.
Ferrara agrees with this theory.
"Men are very territorial in
nature," she said. "These love
names may be given to women
by their mates simply to show
that the two have special ties
and belong to each other."
Men and women differ in the
way they express themselves,
Ferrara said. Women tend to
augment the size of their mates
with names such as "Big Guy."
On the other hand, men tend to
size women down with their
nicknames.
Kami Cessnun, a junior
speech,:
'vervor-
ne some!
ne posit:
sociology major, said her
boyfriend calls her "Little
Cutie."
"He calls me this because I'm
so small," Cessnun said. "I
usually tell him to shut up, but I
really think it's funny."
There are exceptions to this
male/female naming theory,
however.
Brandi Stavinoha, a junior
accounting major, sometimes
calls her boyfriend "Little
Papoose."
"'Little Papoose' is usually
when he's not feeling well or
looking for some attention,"
Stavinoha said. "It's definitely a
term of endearment."
According to Ferrara, women
tend to be more public with
their terms than men. Women
use terms of affection in order to
build the ego of their mates.
Scott House, a junior
recreation and parks major,
prefers to be private with his pet
names for girlfriend Kim Wilkie.
"I call her Kimmie usually,"
House said. "But when it comes
to sending her cards and
flowers, I like to use a different
name, 'Blue Eyes.' It's more
special that way."
Brittany Nadig, a junior
elementary
education
major, and her
boyfriend Alan
Horn seem to
have no problem
voicing their pet
names in public.
This particular
couple has a wide
variety of unusual
terms of
endearment.
"I call him 'Muffin
Head', 'Pumpkin
Noodle' and 'Pookie
Dookie,'" Nadig said.
"Alan likes to call me
'Britter,' 'Bee' and
'Honey bun.'"
Ferrara said
individuals who are
intimate tend to develop
private languages with
each other. Pet names
usually develop from this,
but only a while after
developing a language
unique to themselves.
So this Valentine's Day, step
outside your front door and put
a hand to your ear. You may
just hear the whisper of a subtle
"Snicker Poo Poo" come sweetly
drifting by.
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