The first thing I think of when I hear the name "Racket" is tennis, suggesting the language is but one frequently visited taking-off point in some larger system. That would be okay if it were more obvious how it was meant; for instance, maybe the Racket language is a taking-off point on the way to the other languages PLT Racket supports. One could also talk about parentheses as being like Pong paddles, but that's a stretch.

The second thing I think of is a loud, grating noise, suggesting the language is a pain to read. This may or may not be an accurate description of the Racket language--hello parentheses--but the fact that it's an aversive connotation suggests that the language eschews utility (like Brainf___). Then again, I suppose naming a language after an intentionally obnoxious noise is better than naming it after an unintentional speech impediment (Lisp).

The third thing I think of is organized crime. Now, that's in the same ballpark as "evil mastermind," which was the first thing I thought of when I heard of Scheme (the second thing being blueprints), and indeed that's the association they're shooting for. In the context of that association, there's even a vaguely useful meaning to it; in my mind, small groups and individual masterminds scheme, whereas large organizations and conglomerates racket.

The thing is, if any language deserves to be named after organized crime, I'd say it's either something like C# whose use rather exclusively benefits one closed platform (not that it would name itself that way), or something like Mono which provides one of the few alternatives to such a platform. Trying to equate "organized illegal activity" with education and with multiple-language techniques doesn't make nearly as much sense.

Oh, and finally, "Racket" is eerily close to "Rocket," which is actually sorta positive for me (as my moniker shows). It almost makes me wanna write a parody dialect or something. ^_^

Word Origin & History

racket "loud noise," 1565, said to be imitative. Meaning "dishonest activity" (1785) is perhaps from racquet, via notion of "game," reinforced by rack-rent "extortionate rent" (1591), from rack (1). Racketeer (v. and n.) first recorded 1928.

Dictionary:

rack·et   [rak-it] Show IPA –noun

1. a loud noise or clamor, esp. of a disturbing or confusing kind; din; uproar: The traffic made a terrible racket in the street below.

2. social excitement, gaiety, or dissipation.

3.an organized illegal activity, such as bootlegging or the extortion of money from legitimate business people by threat or violence.

4.a dishonest scheme, trick, business, activity, etc.: the latest weight-reducing racket.

5.Usually, the rackets. organized illegal activities: Some say that the revenue from legalized gambling supports the rackets.

6. Slang. a.an occupation, livelihood, or business. b.an easy or profitable source of livelihood.

–verb (used without object)

7. to make a racket or noise.