January 29, 2018. Over the past 10+ years the matter of boat naming, and in particular boat renaming, has been a matter consistantly brought by website readers. The webmaster defers to the Dolphin24.org. Board, and counsel always advises against providing specific advice to boat owners. But the time has come to consolidate the plethora of important information available on this subject so that readers can make informed decisions.

First - website protocol has, since day 1, baring editorial staff faux pas, always italicizes boat names. There are many historical sources to support this - one summary source is Wikipedia. This matter is generally considered non-controversial.

Second - Naming of sailboats. There are many theories followed in modern times for naming boats. The magazine Sailing World had an article by Gary Jobson some years ago that brings us to modern times - https://www.sailingworld.com/its-more-name. The practice of naming boats after women is timeless - and sailboats are almost always referred to as "she" or "her". In modern times some are referred to as 'it' - rarely if ever is a boat referred to as 'he' or 'his'. One summary source is an article by Ellie Anna at http://boatbuilders.glen-l.com/3534/why-are-boats-named-after-women/

Third - Now the hard part - changing a sailboat name. Google search will provide an endless list of do's and don'ts, rituals, etc. Safe to say that this should not be done casually. Since Dolphin 24s are 'good old boats' you are directed to a Good Old Boat magazine article by John Vigor - click here to go there. Another source, which gets into 'Poseidon and the Ledger of the Deep', is an article originally on Boatsafe.com - but now here https://www.buyrope.co.uk/renaming-your-boat/ (Webmaster Note June 12, 2019 - thanks Phil Fernsby for the heads up on the change in this article's site)

There's really nothing more to say - except Good Luck, Fair Winds, Calm Seas.....

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Phil also sent in a couple of boat naming references

Hi Ron,

You're very welcome!

Here are a couple of other websites that I thought could be useful for your readers:https://10000boatnames.com/ - thousands of boat name ideas and https://catamaranguru.com/education/trivia-a-fun-facts/why-are-boats-named-after-women - article about Why are Boats Named After Women?

Hope you'll find these useful. :)

Best regards,

Phil

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