What were they thinking?

[crsutton]

Well, I can reference a certain "empire" that named a whole class of warships after flowers.....I can't imagine the "Amaranthus" striking a whole lot of fear into the hearts of the enemy.

[bigred]

Hey LST, here's your buddy...

[terje439]

ORIGINAL: Gunner98

I think we're a lot more sensitive to names today - ACRONYMS are the killer though. Can't think of one at the moment but I know the Cdn Army Comd has a Maj review all ACRONYMS to make sure that they are not offensive in either French or English. I remember several years ago sitting around a table with about 10 guys for a couple hours working out the name for a new course: A good English name would translate to the ACRONYM COCK or something in French, a good French name would equal GAG or something in English. A nightmare. [:D]
B

Honda learned about this when they released what is now known as Honda Jazz/Honda Fit.
The original name was Honda Fitta. All good, right? Well, in Norwegian that means "Honda pu**y"...


Terje

[Mynok]

I suspect Manlove was an Anglicization of Manlowe. Even more confident knowing what areas the name appears numerous in.

[wdolson]

Zuikaku means Fortunate Crane (sometimes translated as "Happy Crane")
Shokaku means Flying Crane

Bill

[Feinder]

HMS Cockchafer - "... as the 5th RN ship to carry this name."

I guess whatever it is, it's contagious.

-F-

[Gunner98]

ORIGINAL: crsutton

Well, I can reference a certain "empire" that named a whole class of warships after flowers.....I can't imagine the "Amaranthus" striking a whole lot of fear into the hearts of the enemy.

Yes - imagin the terror of being hunted by a flotilla consisting of "Azalea, Buttercup, Coriander, and Geranium"! Well the North American portion of the Empire changed the the names to towns - so being tracked down by "Battleford, Chicoutimi, Moosejaw, and Wetaskiwin" would be much more daunting[:D]

That is one ugly bug[X(]

B

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: crsutton

Well, I can reference a certain "empire" that named a whole class of warships after flowers.....I can't imagine the "Amaranthus" striking a whole lot of fear into the hearts of the enemy.

Warspite1

You may want to ask almost 30,000 U-boat crew if that is true....[;)]

[Gunner98]

ORIGINAL: warspite1


You may want to ask almost 30,000 U-boat crew if that is true....[;)]

Touché - just talking names - not deeds[;)]

Having been a tourist on HMCS Sackville in Halifax - I cannot imagine the guts those guys had facing the North Atlantic winter in a boat that small. Add to the shear misery the stress of ASW work and sinking U-Boats to boot...[&o] That's why I joind the Army[:D]

B

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: Mynok


I suspect Manlove was an Anglicization of Manlowe. Even more confident knowing what areas the name appears numerous in.

Looks to be from French.

See http://www.houseofnames.com/manlove-family-crest

[Smeulders]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: crsutton

Well, I can reference a certain "empire" that named a whole class of warships after flowers.....I can't imagine the "Amaranthus" striking a whole lot of fear into the hearts of the enemy.

Warspite1

You may want to ask almost 30,000 U-boat crew if that is true....[;)]

It's simply a great psychological warfare ploy. Just imagine trying to explain to your superiors that the "Pansy, Buttercup and Wallflower" sunk your ship. Easier to just give up and let yourself get captured.

[Shark7]

ORIGINAL: Nikademus

without resorting to Google, IIRC an old WWI naval tomb...the Insects were designed for specialized riverine warfare in the Middle east. RN efforts there were pretty essential to the Entente victory in Persia. (aka Iran/Iraq area)

I don't think anyone questions the design...rather the names they choose for some boats...and looking at it from today's use of language, they are really um...well lets just say the words have different meanings now. [;)]

[HansBolter]

This thread regarding humorous ship names reminds me of a psaage from Clancy's great "near the end of the Cold War" novel Red Storm Rising.

An American destroyer and a British destroyer were making a mid Atlantic rendevous and the skipper of the HMS Battleaxe came over the con asking the skipper of the USS Ruben James "exactly what is a Ruben James?".........the RJ skippers reply was priceless: "at least it's better than being named after someone's mother in law!"