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A pseudonym (Greek: false name) is a fictitious name used by an individual as an alternative to their legal name (whereas an allonym is the name of another actual person assumed by one person in authorship of a work of art; e.g., when ghostwriting a book or play, or in parody, or when using a front such as by screenwriters blacklisted in Hollywood in the '50s, '60s, and '70s).

In some cases, the pseudonym has become the legal name of the person using it.

Pseudonyms in print

When used by an author, a pseudonym is also called a pen name (or in French nom de plume.)

Some authors use pseudonyms for a variety of reasons; for example, to experiment with a new genre without the risk of upsetting regular readers. One author may have several pseudonyms depending on the genre. This use of pseudonyms is especially common if the new genre is of a somewhat risqué nature; such was the case of Pauline Réage, the pseudonym under which an editorial secretary with a reputation of near-prudery published Histoire d'O (Story of O), an erotic novel of sadomasochism and sexual slavery.

Occasionally, a pseudonym is employed to avoid overexposure. Prolific authors for pulp magazines often had two and sometimes three short stories appearing in one issue of a magazine; the editor would create several fictitious author names so that readers would not realize this.

Popular authors also sometimes use pseudonyms to distinguish different types of writing. For instance, mathematician Charles Dodgson used Lewis Carroll for his fantastic fiction. Science fiction writer Robert Heinlein set his early stories in a single future history; when he wrote stories not in this setting he used pseudonyms to avoid confusing readers. These stories were later reprinted under his real name.

Pseudepigraphy, a particular form of pseudonym or pen name, is the technique of adopting the name of well-known figures as the publicly ascribed author on whom the actual writers attempt to pass off their work — typically to attain greater interest or credibility or pious tradition. It was traditionally employed in the Western world from Hellenistic times all the way up to the Middle Ages, particularly in theology and scripture. Examples include Pseudo-Dionysius and the author of the Book of Enoch, or, according to liberal scholars, the ascribed Solomonic authorship of the Song of Songs.

A pseudonym may also be used to protect the writer, as in the case of Andy McNab the former SAS soldier famous for his book about a failed SAS mission titled Bravo Two Zero. (However, some critics have suggested that the primary motivation here may have been to boost the mystique of the SAS to help market McNab's books.)

Regnal name

In many monarchies, the prince starting his reign chooses his official name (regnal name) to be used hence, which may differ from his (birth) name till then; sometimes he selects one of his existing names, sometimes a completely different one. The same is true of the newly elected Pope, where it fits just as well in the monastic tradition of choosing a new religious name when entering orders.

The choice of an existing name may simply be a matter of tradition or intend to honour a specific predecessor, and/or emphasize the hereditary legitimity of succession, or may actually convey a programme or intention.

Nom de guerre

Pseudonyms are adopted by resistance fighters, terrorists and guerrillas for various reasons: to make enquiries more difficult, to seek and create an aura of mystery, to protect their families from reprisal, etc. The expression nom de guerre ("name of war") is often used for such pseudonyms (though this expression is rarely, if ever, actually used in French). It is occasionally used as a stylish substitute for nom de plume.

Noms de guerre were frequently adopted by recruits in the French Foreign Legion as part of the break with their past lives. Pseudonyms used by some members of the French resistance were integrated into their last names after World War II; for instance, Jacques Delmas, alias Chaban, became Jacques Chaban-Delmas.

Within Communist parties and Trotskyist organisations nom de guerres are usually known as party names. This took hold because revolutionaries were often persecuted by states (and also, in the case of Trotskyists, by pro-Soviet communist parties).

Some of the more famous noms de guerre include:

• Che Guevara
• Carlos the Jackal
• Abu Mazen is the nom de guerre of Mahmoud Abbas, the prime minister of the Palestinian Authority
• Abu Ammar was PLO leader Yasser Arafat's nom de guerre
• Abu Ala is the nom de guerre of Ahmed Qurei

Some famous party names include:

• Fahd
• Lenin
• Freddy Forrest (Raya Dunayevskaya) and Johnston CLR James.

Pseudonyms in entertainment

When used by an actor, performer, or model, a pseudonym is a stage name or screen name.

Actors — and others in show business — rarely use a pseudonym to disguise themselves. Actors who are members of a less-privileged ethnic or religious group have often adopted stage names, typically changing their surname or entire name to mask their original background — as has been done in other fields as well. This phenomenon was common in the United States in the first half of the twentieth century, as ethnic minorities began to attain a greater role in acting and films, yet social trends had not yet reached the point where such minorities would be accepted with their original non-mainstream identity.

John Wayne, building a reputation as a tough guy, felt that his given name, Marion Morrison, did not connote the image he sought to assume. Stan Laurel, born Arthur Stanley Jefferson, was apparently happy to be known as Stan Jefferson until he realised that it had thirteen letters.

In many cases, a screen name was constructed simply because a studio executive did not like the actor's real name. Today, the most common reason for a performer to adopt a pseudonym is that someone else has already achieved fame with that name. Performing arts guilds (SAG, WGA, AFTRA, etc.) enforce rules on the use of names formerly registered for credits, generally refusing to allow an identical name to be used again.

In some cases, a stage name is intended to separate the public persona from the private life. But while keeping a real name for private use may help one go unrecognized in public, it can rarely be kept entirely secret and may become an item of gossip in itself.

Most hip hop artists prefer to use a pseudonym that represents some variation of their name, personality, or interests. Prime examples include Ol' Dirty Bastard (who was known under at least 6 aliases), Ludacris, LL Cool J, and Chingy. See List of hip hop musicians.

Other pseudonyms

Others in public life have adopted pseudonyms for many reasons. In the late eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries, it was established practice for political articles to be signed with pseudonyms, the most famous American example being the pen name Publius, used by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, in writing The Federalist Papers. Malcolm X, the civil rights campaigner, (born Malcolm Little), adopted the 'X' to represent his unknown African ancestral name. Many Jewish politicians re-adopted Hebrew family names on return to Israel, dropping westernized versions that may have been in the family for generations; Golda Meir, for example, was born Golda Mabovitz in Russia, and lived in USA before emigrating to Palestine; she adopted her Hebrew name on becoming a government minister in 1956.

Famous pseudonyms of people who were neither authors nor actors include:

• Le Corbusier, the architect, was Charles Édouard Jeanneret.
• Aphex Twin, prolific techno artist Richard D. James, who uses up to 11 other different names on various releases.
• Alan Smithee is a name commonly used by directors who want to disown their own movie.
• George Spelvin and Georgina Spelvin are names used in American theater when the actor playing the part is unknown at printing time, wishes to remain anonymous, or the part is double cast or played by an actor who plays more than one character in the cast.
• Luther Blissett is a shared pseudonym often used for activist and artistic purposes, especially in the Italian art scene.
• David Agnew is used on BBC programmes where a writer's name cannot be used for contractual reasons.
• Nicolas Bourbaki was a famous pseudonym for a group of mathematicians.
• Student was William Sealey Gosset, discoverer of Student's t-distribution in statistics.
• Hambali is Riduan Isamuddin, the leader of Jemaah Islamiah, a terrorist group; he was born Encep Nurjaman

On the internet, pseudonymous remailers utilising cryptography can be used to achieve persistent pseudonymity, so that two-way communication can be achieved, and reputations can be established without linking a physical identity to a pseudonym.

Users on Namespaces such as Misplaced Pages also often use a pseudonym instead of their birth names.

See also

• -onym
• List of pseudonyms
• A. N. Other
• anonymity
• John Doe
• pseudonymity
• nickname
• secret identity
• stage name

External links

• An extensive list of pseudonyms
• List of pseudonyms
• Another list of pseudonyms
• The U.S. copyright status of pseudonyms

• Pseudonyms
• Semantics