In the comments of How did you name your blog? people are sharing stories about blog and domain naming. Rather than clutter Mark’s comment page, my contribution is right here.
First, Petroglyphs. It’s right up there at the top of every entry page. Every good Sunday school student can tell you that Peter means rock; what they mean to say is that the name is a form of the Greek word petro, which in turn means rock. Glyph is also Greek in origin and refers to a carving, or the act of cutting. A petroglyph, then, is a rock carving, usually ancient… so what better name for a weblog, something that’s not only ephemeral but entirely virtual to boot?
My category names are also explained on each category archive page: they’re taken from quotations about the subject matter. For example, Living mythically is about technology, based on a Marshall McLuhan statement. (Despite what some of you may think given the plethora of posts about her, Sweet compulsion is about music in general, not just Lenni Jabour. But since it’s been a while since I’ve had anything to say on that topic, I’ll point out that I’m going to see her again in a week and a half.)
Finally, the domain. That it’s eponymous is fairly obvious, but the namespace was deliberately chosen. On the surface, it’s a more appropriate area than the generic (and abused) .com, .net and .org. More than that, though, it flaunts the fact that I am proud to be Canadian (and, today in particular, almost as proud not to be American). Using my full name wasn’t my first choice, though–I wanted janes.ca, but it’s being squatted on by a guy who thinks he can make a buck by selling it to Ontario-based Janes Family Foods.
So, there you go. In response to an innocuous question, more than you ever wanted to know about the origins of Petroglyphs.