Liv Living Life
People who change their names do so for different reasons. And I’m not talking about the “changing your name when you get married” kind of name change. I’m talking about people who choose to change their name; separate from any event in their life. Some people choose to change their name because they need a new direction in life; others because they’re trying to reconnect with something from their past. Liv Tyler is an example of this.
Liv Tyler’s mother, Bebe Buell, was a well-known model and singer. She, like most mothers, told Liv the story of how she selected her daughter’s name. The name Liv was came from the Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann. I would have to agree that Liv is a great name, and I’m surprised to learn that it hasn’t caught on. According to the BabyName Wizard, the name Liv doesn’t show up on its name tracker charts.
Liv’s first name is interesting, but what is most noteworthy is her last name. At the time of her birth, Liv’s last name was Rundgren because her mother said that her biological father was rock star Todd Rundgren. It was only when she was about nine years old that she learned of her true biological father, rock star Steven Tyler (frontman for the band Aerosmith). Liv is noted to have talked to her mom about the similarity she shared with Tyler’s other daughter Mia and that as a result the truth about Liv’s biological father was revealed.
The secret remained within this small circle until some 5 years later when Liv changed her last name to Tyler, keeping Rundgren as her middle name. It was soon after this that Liv’s career in acting took off. Critics have described Liv Tyler’s acting as “charmingly ingenuous.” I also think it’s interesting that Tyler is not truly Steven’s last name. His last name at birth was Tallarico.
I can’t speak to the significance of Liv’s career taking off soon after taking on her new last name, but I can make some assumptions based on other people I’ve seen. There is something about claiming a name for yourself. Living your life with name given to you by others is fine when that’s working for you, but if it’s not then changing your name can be like staking a claim for the life you want for yourself.
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I’ve always liked Liv Tyler. She definitely strikes me as someone who has taken control of her life in a very positive way. I think she made a pretty smart move claiming the name “Tyler” for herself. She obviously never lost her original self in the process! =)
Mindy
http://www.thesuburbanlife.com
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