January 2011 Moms
FtrMrsC
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MIL's nickname for our baby-Vent
FtrMrsC
member
So we decided to name our baby boy Lukas Veasna. His middle name is my DH's first name. His family is from Cambodia and love to nickname everyone. Apparently the "funny" name she chose translates into "Locust". She didn't tell me, she was speaking Cambodian and he told me what she said. I told her that is not funny since Locusts have negative connotations. She just laughed and thought she was hilarious! When DH and I were alone, I told him that I understand that his mom is upset we didn't pick a Cambodian first name, and that Lukas does sound a little like Locust. However, I told him that I will be really upset if she continues to call him that. Especially after he is born. Anyone else from multi-cultural backgrounds having trouble with names?
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Re: MIL's nickname for our baby-Vent
Ugh. tell me about it.
My mother is Filipina and my father is a midwestern all-American white boy. Well, apparently, the Filipino tradition is rich in nicknaming, and they love sing-songy nicknames that sound silly. Since my name is Claire, they grabbed the first two letters and went with "Cling-cling" as my nickname. And I HATE IT. I always hated it. But no matter how vehemently I argued that that name sounded stupid and meant something dumb in English (sounds like a monkey or a co-dependant person) and no matter how much I refused to answer to that name, it didn't make a difference. ALL of my mother's friends/family called me Cling-cling. I hate it, hate it, hate it.
I am now 30+ years old, and yet there are still a few family relations that, when they see me, exclaim with joy "Oh, Cling-cling! So good to see you!"
shudder. Sorry that your MIL isn't willing to bend to your wishes, but you're learning the hard way that some Southeast Asian traditions are just hard to shake. I say make your DH your ally and have him say that NEITHER of you like the nickname. (If she thinks it's just you, you don't stand a chance. Oh, how I wish parents had backed me up when I tried to explain that I hated the nickname and I wasn't just being stubborn for the sake of cuteness...)
Good luck!
We're not a multi cultural family, but my SIL's decided to share at our couple's baby shower that since our baby's initials are GRM (if you put his last initial in the middle) that his nickname should be germ.
Some people just aren't sensitive! I'm sorry about your MIL. Hopefully it will get better!
Good luck!
Yeah; agree with pp that said you need to have DH back you up- it's the two of you that hate the nickname, because MIL will blow it off as nothing if it's just you.
Not a mulitcultural family either, but my sister did try telling me how my son's name relates to Lucifer... thanks, sis. And BIL had a fairly nasty comment, but if he ever calls my kid Satan, I'll scratch his eyes out.
I'm not from a multicultrural family, but when I told M that we were naming LO Lillian and calling her Lilli she replied "Well I guess we'll have a little lilli licker then."
WTF? Apparently Lilli is a "lesbian" name in my mom's book.