- My mom would call me Carlitos or Elsagav at school
and I'd be like, don't say it like that,
or I would ignore her because am like,
don't call me that in public.
So my full name is actually Carlitos Elsagav Velazquez.
- My name is Maira Ferranti Correa.
- My full name is Elisamuel Vasquez.
- My name is Paola Trusendi.
- My full name is Norberto Briceño.
- Not Carlos, 'cause everyone is always like, oh Carlos,
like if you're latino, they're like, oh Carlos.
I'm like no, es Carlitos,
my real name is Carlitos.
- So my name is Italian, but I come from,
a Swiss-Colombian background.
My mom's Colombian and my dad is Swiss-Italian.
- Elisamuel is a very biblical, Puerto Rican name.
If you're a Puerto Rican or if you're Latino and you hear
that name, you know it's just like,
super, just thick and long.
- My name is from Brazil, Maira is like a native,
Brazilian-origin, kind of name,
and then Ferranti, is my mom's last name,
which has Italian roots,
and then Correa is my dad's last name
and it's from Portugal.
- I was talking to my mom this morning.
- [Voice On Phone] es Pao-la. No es Pah-oh-la.
- Even here coming to California where a lot
of people speak Spanish, when they see my name
or I say it, they'll say, oh Pah-oh-la, am like no, Pao-la,
and they get kinda like, this girl is trying
to pronounce her name in a different pronunciation.
- I usually start by like, well the American way
to say it is, Eli Samuel Vahs-koo-es.
So I really break it down.
- But sometimes I have to tell people my name is, Mah-e-rah
or Maria, to make things easier (laughs).
- In school, no one has ever really said my name right,
except for other Latino kids.
When I was at home, I would always hear it as, Norberto.
- Because I was like, how do I find the middle ground
of how I say it at home, Carlitos,
and how I'm suppose to say it at school.
- Like in the classroom, you're just calling,
all the names out like Bill, Samantha, Steven,
Eh-lee, Eel-ah, Ah-lee, and I just raise my hand.
I'm like it's Eli, that's me
and everyone just starts giggling and laughing.
And that's how my entire life has been.
- I kinda adjusted my name so people could say it right.
- I wish and dream that my name was Eli
for the majority of my life.
- You know I heard Norb, Nor-bee.
- Paw-la, I've heard Pay-oh-la.
- One of my good friends, who I love, she called me Curly
and then, it just was easier 'cause it would be like,
what's your real name, like Carlitos?
Like Carlos, no, uh, Carlitos Car, what Carla?
No, so Curly just stuck.
- And it's just, you know what,
as long as you're referring to me in a respectful way,
I appreciate that.
- Today as an adult, I feel that,
why should I change my name so you can say it instead
of you going through the hassle
of learning how to say my name.
- I decided that I should be really proud of my name
and not really try to give people a way
to just call me whatever they want and I started correcting
and that's how I realized how people will actually,
take the effort to try if you are just like,
hey actually, it's Mah-ee-rah, not whatever they wanna say.
- I kinda took that power back by realizing
that I'm not truly representing myself
and I'm only not representing myself,
I'm kinda disrespecting myself,
and disrespecting who I come from and my family
and my culture through hating my name
or through being frustrated.
- Now, Curly, is just a nickname that stuck,
I accept it, I love it, it's great.
I'm not mad at any of my names though.
If you see me in public, call me Curly, call me Carlitos,
just don't call me Carlos, 'cause that's not my name.
- My great-grandfather, whose named Norberto,
and so my parents when they emigrated to this country,
the first news that they heard from back home was
that the man who raised my father, Norberto, had died.
So I always thought of it as a sign of respect
to always honor your name, it's your name,
it's you, it's who you are.
Other people will call you different names
and that's totally cool, but you know what,
my name is Norberto, your name is unique to who you are
and you should be proud of it.
(upbeat latino music)