Do you ever forget the names of people who you have known for years?

At bonfire night I was introducing my house mate to some friends and going through the names and I got to one girl and just stopped. I've known this girl for years and never had a problem remembering her name but I just couldn't think what it was. She even mouthed it to me but I was thinking "Your name's not Lucy" her name is Suzie.

Again tonight, I went running with a group of friends. I have known them all for years. But there was a girl there (she was at my party last weekend and I had no trouble there) but I couldn't remember her name at all. It was like there was some connection missing between her face and all the names in my brain. In the end (half way round the run) I came to the conclusion that her name was Ruth. Ruth Davies in fact. I know that I know someone called Ruth Davies and so this must be her. I got home and checked Facebook... Her name is Ann.

To quote Bratty ... Is this normal?

Seriously, it has never happened before apart from these 2 occasions. I hope it doesn't get any more frequent than this. I didn't like it at all.

How's your sleeping been? Certainly messes with my memory

you are 28 so its normal I guess, keep forgetting that you are that as my brain keeps telling me you are 17/18

If I get too nervous my memory mucks up, or when severely tired

Over the last few years the frequency at which I am forgetting what word I want to use in a sentence is increasingly alarming, let alone names of people! I swear my instant vocabulary has reduced, if I want to tap into an extended vocabulary I sit there blundering for a few minutes going "it's a negative work, begins with a 'c' or an 'h'...", inevitably the word I'm after is something like "derogatory". If I cannot recall the word I use the next best thing with often sounds clumsy (at least to me), and I'm left pondering for the next few hours.

This is why I tend to call people "mate" - it saves having to remember names

PS. Reading the title, I thought this was going to be a "what's your real name"? type thread. For what it's worth my real name is John Vella

Yes. I can picture their faces but their names escape me.

That's even been with good friends.

It's an age thing For instance, I was talking to a couple of my work colleagues the other day and I forgot the name of one of them We grew up together but not especially close. Perhaps it's a familiarity thing?????

My real name is Alan MacNeish - that's Mac not Mc. Get it right.......

Al

Oh, believe me, this is normal - ever since I hit 30 I have trouble...

...remembering names... remembering faces... why I went into a particular room... where I live... to get dressed...

Sorry, what was the question again?

Nah it's not. It's only an age thing in the sense you forget you did it when you were younger.

Seriously, I can remember forgetting names when I was 17/18, that was of friends as well as when saying goodbye to the lasses in the morning.

I generally don't forget the names of colleagues that I've worked a shift with, but I am forever forgetting the names of colleagues and other people that I encounter in work- even if I see them on a frequent basis.

The most embarrassing time was when I saw that there was a "Matt" on at another station and I couldn't remember for the life of me who he was. Unusually, he visited our station with his partner. I was lying on the couch at the time (slow night) and I therefore saw him kind of upside down. I offered my hand and introduced myself. He replied, "Yes, I know, I've worked a shift with you."

The two examples you quote both pertain to girls. I'm wondering what pattern further data might begin to indicate...

I'm an equal opportunities offender if that helps

Pffffft.

I've been known to forget my own name.

One time I was filling out a form in Barclays and I couldn't remember my name - I had to rig a friend. That wasn't embarrassing at all....

Not sure how that might help

I forget things all the time, especially names because they're so arbitrary. I remember things better if there's logic to it.

There's a couple of names I've been trying to remember for over 20 years. It's very frustrating because I remembered them once, then forgot them again. I now have no way to identify these people in my memory, which is rather sad.