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Mastodon is a terrible name

I know mastodon joked about not changing their name in their recent changelog but I wish they really did change it. It's long, doesn't exactly roll of the tongue and it's difficult to pronounce in most languages.

End of rant.

Edit: above all I don't think it's a cool name. Can't imagine asking my friends to follow me on Mastodon. They're just gonna think it's something dumb or weird. At least if it had a cool name they would be curious and ask what it's about.

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59 comments
  • It’s long

    Eight letters, and 7~9 segments depending on the language. Compare it with other common brands like Facebook, Coca-Cola and Volkswagen.

    it’s difficult to pronounce in most languages.

    I'm casting doubt on this claim, based on the following:

    • the vowels can be approximated fine in a 5-vowels system, i.e. the most common vowel system out there.
    • it doesn't use any sort of complex onset or coda.
    • even the coda consonants are non-occlusives.

    doesn’t exactly roll of the tongue

    This is subjective. Personally I think that plenty brands there are considerably worse in this aspect. With a notable mention: that phonotactic trainwreck called Threads. (Four consonants in a syllable, two of them exotic [for most languages at least]? No. Just no.)

59 comments