The Fashion of Baby Names
 

I couldn't disagree more strongly. Name your child what you think is a nice name and fuck everyone else's opinion.

I used to not like my name, which is unusual. But it's me. People who can't pronounce it or butcher its spelling usually don't listen and just pick a name in the small pool of names they have in their head that sounds somewhat like my name. It's annoying, but it's usually only the first of many annoying things the person will do.

I always find it amazing that people ask you what you plan on naming your child and then criticize the names you're thinking of. What do these people think when you give your child the name they told you was stupid?

Every name is going to pose a problem to someone. Every name can be made into a joke by other kids and if it can't, they'll pick something else.

Who the fuck wants a world filled with a bunch of people who all go by the same 20 names?

TM

oh no!
 

I think a FOX/AI conspiracy is behind his death and Luther Vandross' incapacity. Making room for Ruben, those bastards.

TM

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

And remember, everyone, we need the ordinary to be extraordinary. Without those Roberts and Madisons out there, the Olgas and Jezebels of the world would just be other names.

What I find disappointing is that some formerly interesting names (Zoe, for example) are now being spoiled by overuse. Let's face it, there aren't a lot of kids that can live up to a name like Zoe. Or Sinclair or Cherise.

I believe in screwing up simple names, adding an umlaut or other exotic symbol or naming someone with what is normally a nickname. Making the ordinary unusual. Based on this approach, I decree that henceforth anyone daring to use the name Zoe for their child should make their kid spell it with Greek letters.

G-Qbed


(Editted to catch typo, showing that I read my own messages too much)

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

I hated my unusual name when I was growing up, and now I love it. I've thought about going down to a single name and dropping the last name entirely, but people suggest that lawyer is not a cool enough occupation to accomplish this feat. If only I was a singer or actress....

TdF Stage 1 (spoiler free for stage 2)
 

Yes, but they *do* have naked hippie protesters: a group of anti-Running of the Bulls animal rights activists stripped (with the exception of an occasional pair of plastic bull's horns) to protest the cruelty to the animals (damned Fascist cops kept them off the actual course). Viva Espana!

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

People can't pronounce/spell your name? People are more horribly ignorant than I thought. Fuck, dude, if your name was like Melchior or Laertia something, I could understand, but that's just shameful pig ignorance.

(rethinking theodosia)

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

And what amazes me is that people still disclose what they will name their child before it's too late to change it, given the number of people involved.

But, I agree, it's pretty odd that people would say "that's a bad name" to a parent a month before the child is born, but would never say that a month after the child is born.

I guess the general problem is that everyone is going to have weird associations with certain names that will cause them to say it's a bad name. Would you ever give your child the name of an ex? Or a hated grandparent? Of course, everyone else has exes and hated grandparents, so they bristle when you suggest one of those names.

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

Theodosia is a lovely name. And she'd have two namesake saints, each of whom are martyrs. http://www.catholic.org/saints/stindex.php?lst=T

Another good saint's name is Eulalia. There are not a lot of Eulalia's out there.

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

Ugh. Major peeve of mine as well. "Oh, that's a stupid name" is topped only by "oh, I dated a guy with that name once, and he was a real asshole!" (Hon, d'ya think you'll be able to tell the diff between my newborn son and your ex? Or is that a toughie?)

For this reason we told absolutely no one, except my wife's parents and my sister, the name we had decided to give Sidd, Jr. Most people are judicious enough not to criticize a newborn baby's name after the baby's born and the name is already settled.

Most, but not all -- when I told my father, he immediately made some snotty comment about my kid's name (which is hardly an unusual name, not that that matters), thus confirming that we were right to keep the name a secret, and separately confirming that I was right to move far the hell away from my parents.

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

Sometimes disaster can be averted. Or precipitated. This may be slightly outable, but I have a distant relative by marriage who, after naming a first child "Sierra" announced that she planned to name the imminent second child "Montana." Which inspired the involuntary-reflex comment from a (closer) relative (who later reported to me) "well, you'll be between a rock and a hard place then, won't you?" The prospective parents were understandably not impressed; but, whether due to this or other taunting or other unknown causes, they did in fact not name the child Montana, and instead named it McKenzie.

Not only was that not really an improvement, their last name is Phillips.

BR(walk softly, here there by tygers)C

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

People overestimate their own importance -- they seem to think that if they tell an expectant parent "gee, that's a sucky name" the expectant parent will take that into consideration and avoid the error. Once the kid is born and named, it's too late, and criticizing would just be mean.

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

For names that sound like that, I tend more toward Euphemia.

But Saint's names ROCK, particularly the pre-Norman English ones and the slavic ones. http://www.catholic.org/saints/stindex.php

(Eanswide, Frideswide, Ermenbergia, Ludmilla, Swithun)

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

This is an, um, indispensable source if you're thinking about baby names.

"An online help for parents looking for that distinctive name that says 'I'm a Utah Mormon!'"

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

The only time I have really wanted to speak up about a baby name is when family pals decided, in the spirit of oneness with the Earth, to name their impending little boy "Sunshine." Not only was this kid clearly going to get pounded daily on the playground, but his only possible future occupation would be "Director of Ecstasy Distribution."

I kept my mouth shut however, of course. And so far, he's only dealt pot.

The Fashion of Baby Names
 

Ouch. You can camoflage that a bit, though, as Sunny/Sonny. If the damage isn't already done.

(I've had the "Alisdair" fight a few times.)