History Main / LegacyVesselNaming

* The ''Rouge'' from ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'' has so many ships he evidentially struggles to come up with enough names that fit his ThemeNaming scheme, judging by some of the names resorted to. He also reuses names when a ship is destroyed. The result, five separate vessels have gotten the [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast inspiring]] name of ''Predictably Damaged''. As [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2004-08-23 the comic]] explains a normal human would likely have picked a new name by now, but the Rouge enjoys the irony.

** Interestingly, ''only'' the ''Enterprise'' is directly witnessed to get the "more advanced version of its predecessor, with a letter added" treatment. We never meet another ship with a letter suffix like the Enterprises, and we see many ships with the same name as a past ship but nothing in common design- or number-wise. Even DS9's second ''Defiant'' of the same class as the original gets the same number with no "A." (likely due to [[RealLifeWritesThePlot budgetary/convenience reasons]]: StockFootage can continue to be used and models don't have to be altered.)

** Similar to the RealLife examples below, sometimes ships get renamed so that a legacy name can be reused. The main example is that by tradition, the name HMS ''Nike'' is always given to the lead ship of the most advanced class of battlecruiser in service. When a revolutionary new class of battlecruiser is introduced in the interregnum between the First and Second Manticore-Haven Ward, it is named ''Nike'' since the previous ''Nike'' is scheduled to be decommissioned and sold off. However when hostilities flare up again the old ''Nike'' has to be [[BreakOutTheMuseumPiece bought back into service]] and is renamed ''Hancock Station'', which was where that particular ''Nike'' fought in its first engagement.

** Similar to the RealLife examples below, sometimes ships get renamed so that a legacy name can be reused. The main example is that by tradition, the name HMS ''Nike'' is always given to the lead ship of the most advanced class of battlecruiser in service. When a revolutionary new class of battlecruiser is introduced in the interregnum between the First and Second Manticore-Haven Ward, the ''Nike'' that served in the first war is renamed ''Hancock Station'', which was where that particular ''Nike'' fought in its first engagement, to free up the name for a ship of the latest battlecruiser class.

[[folder:Live Action TV]]
* In one of the ''Series/DoctorWho'' Christmas specials, an intergalactic cruise liner which transports alien tourists to Earth is named ''Titanic'' in honor of one of the most famous vessels in Earth's history. Aside from the Doctor, the only person aware of the name's significance is [[spoiler:the BigBad, who named the vessel and intends for it to crash into London.]]

* ''Series/BabylonFive'' is the fifth and last of the Babylon space stations. The first four blew up or disappeared under mysterious circumstances.
** PlayedWith in the case of the ''White Star'', the CoolStarship that the heroes used for much of the third season. Near the end of the season, it was revealed that she was merely the prototype, with an entire fleet of ships being built and pushed into service, all named ''White Star'' [[NumericalThemeNaming followed by a number.]] Henceforth, the original ship was called ''White Star One''. Only one White Star, the ''Maria'', bucked the tradition due to the Captain being old-fashioned.

* There were actually three starships named ''[=GameStar=]'' in ''Series/RaumschiffGamestar'': the first was trapped in a StableTimeLoop in season one, the second, destroyed during season three finale, and the third, blown up in the "GrandFinale" of the series.

* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': [[spoiler: Before their falling-out, Stan and his twin brother Ford worked on a boat called the ''Stan O' War'' with dreams of adventure on the high seas. In the final episode, the brothers, now reconciled, are doing just that on the ''Star O' War II''.]]

* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin in the Literature/SkylarkSeries of Creator/EEDocSmith: ''The Skylark of Space, Skylark Three, Skylark of Valeron,'' and ''Skylark [=DuQuesne=]'' all refer to a series of spaceships named ''[[CaptainObvious Skylark]]''. Note that ''Skylark Three'' is the ''second'' book, despite referring to the third Skylark.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'''s main setting is aboard the U.S.S. ''Enterprise'' NCC-1701-D, fifth Starfleet ship to bear that name and registry number, following the precedent set in ''Film/StarTrekIVTheVoyageHome''.
* ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'': During the push to Cardassia, after the destruction of the USS ''Defiant'', the USS ''Sao Paulo'' is delivered to [=DS9=] as a replacement. Along with the vessel came a special dispensation from the Chief of Starfleet Operations to change the vessel's name to USS ''Defiant''.

* A TimeTravel in the ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'' episode "Azati Prime" confirms that there have been at least 10 ships named after the original Enterprise: A--J.

** Though a Romulan commander is shocked when Kirk says his vessel is named for the spirit of Enterprise, as opposed to a particular enterprise. To the Romulans that's hubris.

** Likewise, during WWII, the escort carrier CVE-63 USS ''Midway'' (commissioned 23 Oct 43) was renamed ''St. Lo'' on 10 Oct 1944 (while engaged in combat operations) to free up the ''Midway'' name for a new fleet carrier (CV-41). It didn't end well; ''St. Lo'' was sunk by a kamikaze on the 25th of October.
* Professional land speed record hoder Art Arfons named each of his vehicles the ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Monster_(car) Green Monster.]]''

*** The same thing happened in WWII, when the escort carrier USS ''Midway'' was renamed ''Anzio'' to free up the Midway name for the lead ship of a new class of heavy carriers. Note that this happened while ''Midway''/''Anzio'' was engaged in combat operations. It didn't end well...

** Interestingly, ''only'' the ''Enterprise'' is directly witnessed to receive the letter suffix. The ''Enterprise''-E is numbered NCC-1701-E and, like all the others, is obviously a bigger, cooler version of its predecessor, but ships that share similar designs with past ships get all-new names, and ships that share names with past ships get all-new numbers. [=DS9=]'s ''Defiant'' looks and is numbered nothing like TOS's, for example, and the name is most likely only coincidentally the same. Meanwhile, the second [=DS9=] ''Defiant'' gets the same number as the first instead of becoming the ''Defiant''-A (likely so StockFootage can continue to be used.)

** At the end of ''Film/StarTrekIIITheSearchForSpock'' the ''Enterprise'' is destroyed. At the end of ''Film/StarTrekIVTheVoyageHome'' the crew is assigned to a newly built ''Enterprise'', complete with the same registry number with an "''-A''" appended to it, starting a Starfleet tradition for ships named ''Enterprise''.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'''s main setting is aboard the U.S.S. ''Enterprise'' NCC-1701-D, fifth Starfleet ship to bear that name and registry number.

** Interestingly, ''only'' the ''Enterprise'' is directly witnessed to get this. The ''Enterprise''-E is numbered NCC-1701-E and, like all the others, is obviously a bigger, cooler version of its predecessor, but ships that share similar designs with past ships get all-new names, and ships that share names with past ships get all-new numbers. [=DS9=]'s ''Defiant'' looks and is numbered nothing like TOS's, for example, and the name is most likely only coincidentally the same. Meanwhile, the second [=DS9=] ''Defiant'' gets the same number as the first instead of becoming the ''Defiant''-A (likely so StockFootage can continue to be used.)

* ''OnePiece'': The Straw Hat Pirates' original ship ''Going Merry'' is finally destroyed at the end of Enies Lobby arc, and Franky built the ''Thousand Sunny'' as replacement. Then, in the beginning of Thriller Bark arc, Franky reveals a surprise for the crew from the ''Sunny'': the ''Mini Merry II'', essentially ''Merry'' revived as a small motorboat.

'''Picard:''' There are plenty of letters left in the alphabet.

* In the age of sail, ships were often captured from an enemy and then pressed into service. The captured ship then might have more ships named after it, hence British ships being given French names like Guerrière or Téméraire. The country that originally built the captured ship might also keep naming more after it, leading to confusion when ships with identical names were on opposing sides.

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': [[spoiler: Before their falling-out, Stan and his twin brother Ford worked on a boat called the ''Stan O' War'' with dreams of adventure on the high seas. In the final episode, the brothers, now reconciled, are doing just that on the ''Star O' War II''.]]
[[/folder]]

* In ''TopCat and the Beverly Hills Cats'', Benny was given by [[TheButlerDidIt the butler]] a tube named ''Titanic II''.

* One ''ComicBook/{{Iznogoud}}'' story revolves around a sailor whose ship is named ''Shipwreck XXVII''. Iznogoud books a cruise for the Caliph, who embarks on the ''Shipwreck XXVIII'' the next day.

* In one of the ''Series/DoctorWho'' Christmas specials, an intergalactic cruise liner which transports alien tourists to Earth is named ''Titanic'' in honor of one of the most famous vessels in Earth's history. Aside from the doctor, the only person aware of the name's significance is [[spoiler:the BigBad, who named the vessel and intends for it to crash into London.]]

* Chuck Yeager named all of his planes, including the Bell X-1 he broke the sound barrier in, ''Glamorous Glennis'', after his wife.

** Similar to the RealLife examples below, sometimes ships get renamed so that a legacy name can be reused. The main example is that by tradition, the name HMS ''Nike'' is always given to the lead ship of the most advanced class of battlecruiser in service. When a revolutionary new class of battlecruiser is introduced in the interregnum between the First and Second Manticore-Haven Ward, the ''Nike'' that served in the first war is renamed ''Battle of Hancock'', which was where that particular ''Nike'' fought in its first engagement, to free up the name for a ship of the latest battlecruiser class.