I just started working towards my Masters in History and have always been pretty bad with names. I was wondering if any of you would be willing to share any tools or tricks you've come across in your career that have made it easier to remember names and dates?
There's nothing more frustrating in a class sitting there either: a. not answering, or b. saying "I can't remember his name", even though I just read about the person a couple hours previously.
I can't say I was ever good at names and dates particularly, but my method to overcome it is to learn your subject deeply. Not just reading, but take extensive notes, blog about it, explain and teach it, debate other people.
The endless repetition in the context of meaningful discussion drills those important names and dates into one's head. It's less quick than, say, name-date-person flashcards, but you will learn the surface facts in a way that relates them to a deeper historical structure.