Social observation - “name blindness” in black people

self | June 14, 2025 | Fwdude

[House Atreides]

Never heard of it and DOUBT IT EXISTS. Just IMHO, of course.

[Jonty30]

It is probably not a black thing specifically, but a tribal thing. You want to remember most what is closest to you.

[fwdude]

“Name blindness” does seem to exist as a neurological condition. Look it up.

[fwdude]

It’s not a black thing specifically, but it does appear to affect black at far higher rates proportionally than other non-black races.

[Jonty30]

That’s probably reflects theur level of tribalism. The average person is built to only know 150 people well. The rest cannot be known well. That is right across the human race.

[Theoria]

Sounds like Ron Swanson.

[fwdude]

That’s probably reflects theur level of tribalism.

That’s an interesting point.

[Dr. Sivana]

I lost much of my ability to remember newly met names and faces in my 40s. I use attributes as a memory jog now.

[jimfree]

I kinda have that a lot. Should I identify as black.

[shelterguy]

“”I kinda have that a lot. Should I identify as black.””

I have it but it’s because I am old and names don’t always come easy. That, or I don’t care. Something like that.

[House Atreides]

“Name blindness” does seem to exist as a neurological condition. Look it up.
****************************************************

No, I know it exists, I just doubt that it disproportionally affects black people.

As a point of interest I’ve ALWAYS been bad at remembering names and I’m not black. So I’ve always felt sympathetic whenever I’ve seen someone with an episode of name forgetfulness.

[jimfree]

Yep. Something like that.

[fwdude]

Maybe you misunderstood. I’m not referring to difficulty or inability to remember names of people you just met for the first time. Most people experience that to a high degree. I’m talking about names that are presented to a person in a persistent fashion, such as in a movie, story or novel, names that are an intrinsic part of a story line.

I’m a keen social observer, so forgive me if I seem obsessed with subtle nuances in behavior, but I think it is significant.

I’ll sometimes watch first-time movie reactions on YouTube of movies I really like and think others should see. The white reviewers almost always connect with the characters enough to remember their names. The black reviewers seldom do, even with major characters.

[cgbg]

I am terrible at remembering names—particularly when I don’t care what the name of the person is...

Lol.

[Macoozie]

It’s stupid lazy, rude behavior.
They don’t give a shiiite about anyone but themselves.
I see it all the time.

Pop Culture unite: “Blast from the Past” had it right.

[quantim]

Exactly right, billions of mohammedheads call each other the same name across every conceivable color and size humans have.

[fwdude]

Another commenter characterized it as tribalism, which seems to be much stronger in the black population in general. You don’t see whites calling each other “brother” or “sister,” after all.

[Dr. Sivana]

I’m not referring to difficulty or inability to remember names of people you just met for the first time.

Even after several meetups, I still forget.

It was a real problem last year when I wasn't sure which one was my manager. My attributes trick falls apart when they are all from India.

My wife has stated that she wasn't certain that I could pick her out of a room of tall blonde women.

[shelterguy]

Yup. It is not that I don’t remember your name....it is just that I don’t care.