Taryn - A Confession

I have a confession to make.

Truth be told, I wasn't named TARYN by my parents.
My given (birth) name is actually "Tari Ann".
However, for reasons I don't understand and can't easily explain,
I never really felt comfortable as a "Tari".
Perhaps because, while I was growing up, the only people I knew
who shared my first name, including my father, were boys?
Or maybe it was simply that there were already so many others in
the 1970's with the same name?
Regardless, it just didn't seem to "fit" with who I was, somehow.

At the age of 13, I started wondering what else I might be able to call
myself, someday, when I was old enough to change my name?
I played around with different combinations, but nothing really 'grabbed' me.
Then, on a Saturday afternoon when I was 15, I saw a movie called
"Sinbad & The Eye Of The Tiger," and noticed that the girl playing the role
of 'Dione' was named TARYN POWER.
At that moment, something just clicked for me, and suddenly I realized:
I'd found my new first name!!

It was perfect. Different enough from my given name to warrant the
change, yet not so different as to be an insult to my parents
(as it was *never* my intention to hurt their feelings).
In fact, it was almost like a 'combination' of my first & middle names.

I used the new moniker casually at first, mostly on school papers and with friends.
Then, at age 20, when I was preparing to wed my high school sweetheart,
it seemed like the perfect time to take the plunge and change my first name legally.
(I did it backwards: I kept my last name and changed my FIRST name).
In 1985, it cost me $30.00 and took about 28 days before all the paperwork was
processed. My birth certificate will always read "Tari Ann", of course,
but everything else (Soc. Sec. card, Drivers License, Credit Cards, etc) now says
"TARYN"

Changing my name to Taryn was one of the best things I ever did and
I've never regretted the switch, not even once.
The name just seemed to suit me -- there wasn't even a "breaking in" period.
In fact, I even began to feel like a different person
(suddenly, I wasn't just another "Tari / Teri / Terry / Terri" in the crowd).
Even now, the name Taryn is still unusual and not one you see or hear every day.
I continue to be amazed - this many years later - at the number of people who not
only notice, but also comment and compliment me on it!

The most common inquiries and / or comments I get are:
"I just love your name. What does it mean?"
"What a pretty name! How do you pronounce it?"
In light of this, I thought it might be fun to research the origins of the name
'TARYN' and explore any possible answers to these questions...

Care to join me?