The processes and patterns of naming form an important social aspect of many cultures, and are particularly relevant to the nature of local and regional identity. The ten papers in this volume derive from a symposium held in Leicester in 1990, and focus on issues of naming and social theory. The volume draws together a wide variety of scholars interested in the development of personal naming, including social historians, local historians, historical geographers, demographers, not to mention anthroponymists and social anthropologists. The papers look at evidence from colonial North America, Viking and Middle English naming, the early modern period in England, and 19th century Sweden. Contributors: Gabriel Lasker, Malcolm Smith, Roger Thompson, Daniel Scott Smith, Cecily Clark, Gillian Fellows-Jensen, Jeremy Boulton, Evelyn Lord, Kevin Schyrer, John Langton and Goran Hoppe.