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When you go undercover you fully commit to the new identity. If you try to split how you call your colleagues, you risk messing up their names in an important scenario.l, which could lead to problems .when you take a new identity you stick to it completely.

When they are with themselves they still use the names.

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I feel like this is a Zoolander "why male models" moment.

Easier for the audience and I'd assume them. It's been a while but they are strangers put together for that mission right? They wouldn't have known each other's original names. (Two of them knew each other I think.)

That's the point.

If they have to remember to call each by their host name in public and traveler numbers in private, that means that they get a lot of time practicing using traveler numbers out loud to each other.

The more you practice something, the easier it is to do. Because of that frequent practice of using the traveler number, they would become more likely to accidentally use the traveler number in public and raise questions.

If instead they use the traveler number as little as possible, and constantly practice addressing each other by the host names, it reduces the possibility of accidentally using the traveler number in front of non-travelers.

They live their full lives in that host, including times when they might be drunk, injured, or otherwise mentally not at their best, and in any state under any circumstances they must continue to maintain the illusion that they are the hosts or they will risk the success of the entire program (consistent with what Spartyjason said about going undercover in general).

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>Do not use future knowledge for personal gain.

Well this thrown out the window, by what the 1st episode. Meaning these protocols are more like suggestions than rules.

By people, do you mean the travelers? If so why would it matter? Why would calling someone by their future name have any bearing on advancement?

>If they have to remember to call each by their host name in public and traveler numbers in private, that means that they get a lot of time practicing using traveler numbers out loud to each other.

Huh? But why traveler #s? Don't they have real names in the future? Like they would ever answer to what is your name with "4532" I don't think so.

I am talking about an actual name, didn't they have these in the future? How would a human in the present know what a travel number is?

I've been reading some answers and some suggest of using their numbers as name. Like that would ever come up in a public situation.

It seems like a goof in the show.

Wow lmfao

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Was your whole question really supposed to be about their future names?

It looks like everybody understandably took your main question to be what you actually started with, "Why do the travelers keep the names of their host bodies?" plus "I understand when interacting with people from the present. Why keep the ruse amongst themselves?"

The part about future names seemed easy to overlook if you're assuming that all of the questions were supposed to be ways to elaborate on a single topic of the value of sticking only to the host name in all situations.

Forgetting all that and just addressing future names, in season 3, episode 9, "David asks Mac what his real name is, in the future. Mac gives Marcy the side eye for letting David know about the future- maybe there’s still time to give him some memory serum before he dies. But he tells David his name is 3468" (quote from a recap).

There's no reason for Mac to lie, though logically we can't rule it out. Barring any further clues, it does seem like Mac's only future name is this number. I'm not aware of there being any official explanation, but if I had to write the backstory on that, I'd guess travelers would probably be required to abandon their original lives and identities in service of the program because they needed to be ready to become the host identity as much as necessary without distraction or conflict created by clinging to any past names, ties, or habits. Assigning a number instead of a name would be one way of maintaining clear identification without reminding them of their original lives.

The question is pretty straightforward.

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>I'd guess travelers would probably be required to abandon their original
lives and identities in service of the program because they needed to
be ready to become the host identity as much as necessary without
distraction or conflict created by clinging to any past names, ties, or
habits.

Best answer so far. Was this given in the show. If not a misfire for the series.

If your question is why travelers used host names among themselves even when no people from the present were around, it is straightforward.

Otherwise, the fact that everyone was answering the above question instead of what you actually wanted to know proves that your question was not straightforward.

It was, but I guess not for you.

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No, it's not a goof. The first person in this comment thread fully and completely explained it.

100% of respondents thought you were asking why travelers use host names even among themselves when no one else is around.

Was that your question?

It is obvious.

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As far as I remember from watching the show. They all knew each other from being trained together as a team before they were sent back. Also part of their instructions were to continue their host bodies lives with as little disruption as possible to the future such as not having children.

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What show is this about?