[AJames]

Les,

My response was more in light of M13, which is commonly known as the "Great Hercules Cluster". Compared to Omega Centauri and 47 Tucanae, this is almost a piddling little globular, ranking merely as the best those lost northerners has to offer.
Whilst I agree that some minor nebulosity or cluster placed in the backwaters of some constellation is probably totally unnecessary to name it, I think that some object that is visible to the naked-eye in the city or urban skyline should get some recognition. As an educator yourself, names are excellent way to portray significant objects in the sky. Such names should at least descriptive of the object or the constellation in which it lies. While I also agree things like the "Cheerio Nebula" means nothing to me personally. [Actual that particular given name also makes me wince every time I hear it. Not only does it remind me of some grand American corporation production line, whose product nutritional value seems questionable. It also conjures up a "happy" nebula.
The naming of stars is systemic of cultures of the ancient world, the Arabic world in the so-called dark ages. The Top 20 stars should certainly have proper names, perhaps even the first 50 or 100. IIS'ers here can read my discussion on that topic at;

http://homepage.mac.com/andjames/Page208.htm

For example, I have been writing some text on the coming opposition of Mars at the end of the year. The text reads;

"Watch out on 10th October, as Mars will form a flat triangle of stars (upside down in southern latitudes) with Mu and Eta Geminorum, whose proper names are Calx and Propus, that shining at 2.9v and 3.2v magnitude, respectively."

Now I ask you... have important are these stars in the scheme of things? They both sound like some sort of pharmaceutical drugs!

Yet, another is Mebsuta or Epsilon Geminorium, which sounds like an African witch doctor or one of James Bond's evil adversaries.

Later the early observational astronomers discovering the inter- and extra- galactic objects, and began naming some of their own discoveries. Ie. The Crab Nebula. Sadly, southern observers mostly missed out, leaving a naming system unbalanced with the mainly euro-centric astrognoists and observers. The boundary of this division is roughly -30 degrees declination where anything below it becomes some foreign backwaters of the sky.
Yet, several did retain names in the south. The Jewel Box, the Magellanic Clouds, the Southern Pleiades, the Gem Nebula, the (yet another) Great Eta Carina Nebula. Probably these two are in the Top 5 of all the fabulous southern deep-sky objects do not even get a shoe-in!
Nevertheless, I stray... The point is that both Omega Centauri and 47 Tucanae are very bright objects visible to the naked-eye that does come up in conversation all the time. I wish had a dollar for every time I've been asked while show the sky and come across Omega Centauri; "Why is it named that?", then having to go through the story of how Ptolemy thought it was a hazy star, but named it as if it were a star, yadda, yadda, yadda etc.!
Perhaps we should do the exact reverse;
Omega Centauri can come the "Piddling Cluster" and 47 Tuc the "Piffling Cluster."
Those northerners wouldn't know what they are missing out on...

My own personal preferences are;

1) The "Omegacent Cluster" - play on words with omega centauri and the word "magnificent", for Omega Centauri.

2) The "Bode Number Cluster" or "Almighty Cluster" for 47 Tuc, respectively - the former referring to the Bode number designation "47" for the cluster.

On the more radical views, and sticking to the Americanised cereal vein, 47 Tuc could be the "Fruit Loop Cluster' - in honour of that great bird Sam the Toucan. Variations on the similar theme could be say the: "Ramphastos Cluster" (the bird species for Sam), the "Tucan Cluster" - Tucan being the Tupi word, meaning "imitative of its call".



Note : Perhaps my little joke "The Omnipotent Star Cluster" was a bit too clever, especially when compared to M13 mere "greatness."
This little joke just comes to mind...
"Omega Centauri and the so-called "Great Cluster in Hercules", which reminds me of a good basketball team versus a very poor one, something like the Harlem Globetrotters versus a high school team. If they played together, the score-line would always be something like Omega Centauri 100, Messier 13."

Ain't that the truth!

Andrew