Message: "Sal" - Behind the Name

[Opinions] Sal

by Jagoda (-doe)

3/10/2018, 2:06 PM

Every time I see or hear the name Sal, I always think it’s so endearing and I think it would be so surprising and refreshing in the UK. What do you think of Salvatore (SAL-va-tor) “Sal”?

Thanks!

Jagoda
★ Top 25: https://www.behindthename.com/pnl/136993/97278 ★

#Sal

Replies

- Mireio (Anna21) +8

3/10/2018, 6:44 PM

I think Salomon would work better.

- Jagoda (-doe) +6

3/11/2018, 5:08 AM

I honestly read that as Salmon so that might be a problem! I wonder if Solomon “Sal” would work somehow.

- Solveig (cynthiajames) +5

3/11/2018, 10:42 AM

I think so.

I keep hearing Sal in my head and thinking Jewish.

I wonder if I came across it as a nickname when I was reading PG Wodehouse. I might also have been reading Evelyn Waugh, not sure. I know it was in the similar time period, and I know the character was Jewish.

- basilisk (blaaarg) +1

3/11/2018, 11:29 AM

I think Sylvester is commonly used for Sal.

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/11/2018, 2:29 PM

I can’t decide how I feel about Sylvester. I’ll mull it over.

- Jagoda (-doe) +2

3/11/2018, 10:49 AM

I think one of the first times I really paid attention to Sal, it was on one of those guys who do that prank show... Impractical Jokers? And for some reason I assumed it was a Jewish name until I checked online. I've read some Wodehouse and Waugh too so I wonder if we both picked it up from the same place?

- solveig (guest) +1

3/11/2018, 11:21 AM

Perhaps.

There is another book that I'm thinking of, it was a popular historical novel from the 1980s. (I took a class in the early 2000s and a woman was cleaning out her house. She passed on a lot of her books to me, they were all from the 1980s and 1980s. Susan Isaacs & Judith Krantz) and I'm fairly sure there is a character in it named Sal.

I need to remember more details to get the name of the book.

I really need to remember to use my GoodReads account!

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/11/2018, 11:35 AM

Oh that’s definitely not a book I’ll know!

If you do start using your goodreads again, feel free to DM me and we can be friends on there!

- basilisk (blaaarg)

3/10/2018, 6:45 PM

But it is uglier!

- Septapus (Buneary)

3/11/2018, 12:14 PM

From what I've seen, in the US, Sal is usually short for Salvatore. I've also read that it was historically used as a nickname for Sarah.

It's not my style at all. On a girl, it could probably work for Sally (also originally a nickname for Sarah), since nowadays Sally is usually an independent name.

This message was edited 3/11/2018, 12:15 PM

- RDNZL +2

3/11/2018, 11:04 AM

I don't like it for a boy, but we call my niece Sal, on occasion. It works better on girls, IMO.

This message was edited 3/11/2018, 11:55 AM

- Jagoda (-doe) +1

3/11/2018, 11:34 AM

I get that, I don’t think it’s a particularly gendered name so really can go either way!

- RDNZL

3/11/2018, 11:54 AM

FWIW, I don't think it's out of place for a boy, especially a boy living in the UK, I just prefer it for a girl because of personal associations. But yeah, it can go either way, it's definitely unisex.

- Jagoda (-doe) +5

3/11/2018, 5:10 AM

How about...

Sal as a given name? Too insignificant?

- RDNZL

3/11/2018, 11:04 AM

Yeah.

- RoxStar +3

3/11/2018, 8:09 AM

In the US, you would still have the sal as cliched Italian guy's name problem, because really, who actually goes by Salvatore on an everyday basis? It isn't really Salvatore that's the issue, it's Sal, and using Sal all by itself doesn't do anything except most everybody will just assume Salvatore is his name anyhow.

- Jagoda (-doe) +2

3/11/2018, 8:21 AM

I'm not really thinking about the stereotype so much as the fact I don't like Salvatore as much as I like Sal alone.

I think most people here would ask what if anything Sal was short for rather than assume it's short for Salvatore. Even in London we don't have a big enough Italian population for there to be stereotypes, as far as I know.

This message was edited 3/11/2018, 8:23 AM

- Solveig (cynthiajames) +1

3/11/2018, 10:40 AM

And Sal fits in with Alfie, Arlo, etc.

I don't think it would work in the US because it is so stereotypical in many ways. But I think it could fly in the UK.

I will admit that it's hit my list for a cat - along with Sullivan nn Sully. Sal & Sully, perfect names for feline siblings.

This message was edited 3/11/2018, 10:40 AM

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/11/2018, 10:49 AM

Sully and Sal would be great for cat brothers!

- Solveig (cynthiajames) +1

3/11/2018, 10:36 AM

I like Sal quite a lot, it has a fun feeling to it. I'm not sure how I feel about Salvatore / Salvador.

Sal just reminds me of a really nice, friendly salt-of-the-earth guy.

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/11/2018, 10:42 AM

QuoteSal just reminds me of a really nice, friendly salt-of-the-earth guy.

That's exactly the feeling I get from it!

- Fictionfan86110 (guest) +1

3/10/2018, 7:14 PM

I like it well enough to have had it listed within my PNL many years back. Salvatore is alright but I am more inclined to the diminutive. That's definitely because of me not caring for the sound of it as much and the fact that I once knew a Salvatore who I didn't care for for very legitimate reasons.

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/11/2018, 5:09 AM

I prefer Sal to Salvatore too but I’m not sure if it’d work by itself!

- basilisk (blaaarg) +1

3/10/2018, 5:50 PM

I think it's really fun. But Salvatore with a silent E is kind of artificial. Better Salvator or Salvador.

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/11/2018, 5:08 AM

I did think of Salvator and Salvador but they didn’t really sit right with me! I really don’t know if people would pronounce Salvatore with the e here.

- RoxStar +1

3/10/2018, 5:25 PM

Only works on somebody of Italian heritage, and even then it's kind of cliched.

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/11/2018, 5:00 AM

These were my concerns but I do wonder if it’s the same here, since I’ve never encountered a Salvatore in the UK.

- queenv +1

3/10/2018, 2:31 PM

Salvatore was the middle name of my mother's first husband, his first name being John. His parents were both from Italy. He and my mother named their son John Richard, not John Salvatore Jr. My (half) brother's wife once expressed gratitude that his middle name was not Salvatore, as they had decided to name a first son after him, which they eventually did.

Anyway, I know that you're not in the US, but in the US, I think it has been and still is thought of as an Italian name and people would be surprised to see it on anyone not of Italian descent.

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/10/2018, 2:49 PM

Oh it definitely seems very Italian American to me! I'm very Scandinavian / Slavic looking so I have my doubts about how it would work on a kid of mine.

- CN +1

3/10/2018, 2:38 PM

I once wrote a story that had a character named Salathiel nn Sal in it. I do like Sal in a gp kind of way especially with a more unexpected full name.
I'm not really a fan of Salvatore.

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/10/2018, 2:47 PM

Salathiel is fascinating. I'd never be brave enough but thanks for sharing it!

- LillyMargaret (guest) +1

3/10/2018, 2:37 PM

It's typically pronounced sal-va-TOR-ay, which I love. The nn Sal is great too. It makes me think of the character in the book "On the Road" so I get that beatnik vibe from it, haha.

- Jagoda (-doe)

3/10/2018, 2:46 PM

I know the listed pronunciation but I don't think it would fly here even mostly in London. I'd be fine with people using it though, I don't think there's a huge difference.

This message was edited 3/10/2018, 3:02 PM

View Message

Replies