Dante Alighieri wrote:
Aside from the fact that the historical Dante
Alighieri died 682
years ago, I'm sure that I could change my name legally to Dante
Alighieri if I so desired. As a matter of fact, I don't suppose
there's any way that you could prove that my name /isn't/ legally
Dante Alighieri.
I don't really have a problem with Dante Alighieri, as a famous
character from very old literature. I don't prefer such names, but I
don't think they raise the same kind of issues as 'Saddam Hussein' or
'George Bush'.
I think anyone seeing the name with either not recognize it (if they
are uneducated) or will instantly know that it's just a pseudonym, one
which probably conveys only a little bit of information about you.
(As for me, I don't really know what it's supposed to _mean_, if
anything.)
--Jimbo