My birth certificate states my first and middle names as James and Peter. I was given the name Peter from my godfather. James came from my father. Or did it?

    My grandparents spoke very little English and, when my father was born, apparently there was a mixup, similar to what happened to the Godfather character from the movie. If you recall, his real name was Vito Andolini. He came from the town of Corleone and so the clerk on Ellis Island mistakenly gave him the last name Corleone.

    Well, it seems that the names Vincent and James sound very similar in Italian. My grandparents wanted to give my father the name Vincent, but the person recording it thought they said James, so that is what he got. I don't know when it happened, but at some point my father added Vincent as his middle name. So, but for a clerical error, I might have been a "Vinny".