Has anyone insulted YOUR kids' name(s)?

peaceinnature · May 2014

As a spin off of the other thread... Accidentally or otherwise.

I chose a pretty traditional name for DS and have been asked why I would choose such an "ordinary", "common", or "boring" name. I feel like the name suits him and that's all that matters to me, so that's how I respond. But it's hard to refrain from the snappy retorts. One of the moms who said this to me has a DS with a name in the top 30 and asked me why I chose such a common name...

Dr.Loretta · May 2014

All the time, given that DD has a very Irish/Gaelic name that's almost impossible to spell and pronounce.

A mom in my moms' group annoys me on a regular basis, and she was one of the first to slam DD's name. I told her I originally wanted to name DD Ciara, but pronounce it KEE-ra. I knew most people would pronounce it Sierra. Her reply? "So, you just gave her a name no one could pronounce?" Um, yeah, because at least you'll ask me how to pronounce it.

Every so often someone asks me if I made up the name.

plunderb · May 2014

Sure. My in-laws have told me to my face how much they hate it (within the past month, not before he was born). I imagine many other people comment out of my hearing.

I'm ok with that, though. We chose DS's name knowing not everyone would like it, but it means something to us, so *shrug*. We gave him a perfectly ordinary nickname that he can use if he hates the full name later on.

ETA: Though I do admit that I hate it when people say that DD's name is "too ethnic." But the phrase "too ethnic" makes me feel a little stabby in most circumstances, so it's not exclusive to her name.

chapstix7 · May 2014

Yes. When I told a co-worker I was naming DS Elijah she stared at me and said, "I hate it." She then proceeded to sing some song she made up to make fun.

bumpuser9353653 · May 2014

Yep. Had a co-worker ask me DD' s name and got "wow, such *different* names being used these days" with a clearly distasteful look.
I was peeved when she first said it, but I'm over it. Some people just don't have tact.

Ladymouse · May 2014

In response to Alexander: "Well... That's an awfully big name for a little boy..." With a clear "you've lost your marbles" tone of voice. This coming from a man whose name is the worst youneek spelling of Denzel.

My step-grandfather-in-law started cracking all sorts of Buffy jokes when he found out we call him Xander. Doesn't bother us (we are Whedon fans, though that's not where we got the name.)

HopingforChange · May 2014

With a DD named Belle, we are routinely met with funny faces and Disney references. A lot of people clearly want it to be a nn for Isabelle too. I love it (and Disney), though, so that's what matters.

LadyXaverian · May 2014

Not IRL. On this board, DD's name (both given and nick name) is either loved or hated, it seems. IRL, I get a ton of compliments, which I didn't expect. I totally expected to be given the stink-eye for giving her an "old lady" name, but people are receptive to it. To my face, at least.

evaazalea · May 2014

My kids have fairly 'boring' dated names so, no. When we were contemplating Olive for DD we didn't tell anyone because I knew the reaction. Had I gotten my way and was allowed to use more unusual names (my favorites are Caius and Azalea) I don't know that I would have cared about the reactions. When I named DS Tyler I actually got confused looks from those that knew I preferred more unusual names.

le bebe xo · May 2014

jenniferb123006 said:

With DD1 people are generally tired of her name and nn on this board, but it is a family name so I don't care (she's Mary Adeline nn Addie). With DD2, we have gotten a lot of "Martha? Well that's nice. You don't hear that much anymore." Obviously they don't like it, but Martha Rose suits her and again it's a family name. With DD3, my MIL HATES her name. She actually told DH that "everyone" agrees that it's a "black name." That incredibly racist remark made me realize how truly ignorant she is, so no harm done. Plus again her name has family significance and we love it. Her name is Anastasia BTW.

Anastasia is gorgeous!

queenbone · May 2014

DS2 has a unisex name so I can tell that lots of people don't like it because it is too feminine in their opinion. Before he was born we told our best friends that his name would probably be Francis, and I think he thought we were joking and asked if we were going to call him Psycho. I guess that is from the movie Stripes. Once he realized we weren't joking I could tell he was mortified that he'd put his foot in his mouth.

That's the only thing that I can remember that has been said to me about any of their names. Most people are smart enough to not insult me to my face.

nearly_klo · May 2014

I had a rude woman tell me she wouldn't use Norah and would only call her Eleanor. It is her name, I love it, so that bit doesn't fuss me - it was the attitude and tone that made me roll my eyes and walk away.

KISSIES · May 2014

We had mentioned Savannah Kate as a girl's name last pregnancy that ended up twin boys. So now that we are pregnant again. Our family has all let it be known they don't care for the name. Most of all though is my grandmother that screams how much she hates it and will call her samantha, sarah or the lastest s.k. she thinks the name is a southern slave name. I told her if that ends up her name and you can't call her by her name then she won't be visiting you that it's just rude to not call a child by their name.

Needless to say we are having a girl! DH really wants Savannah my mother and grandmother pronounce it different and say it in a manner u know they hate it. They have ruined the name for me and now undecided.

ho11yday · May 2014

With DS1, I have been told it is a boring name, that it is a lawyer's name, and that it is pretentious. Middle name is DH's MN and FN is something we both loved, even if it is common. With DS2, we really don't get much comments other than the obvious references to Forrest Gump.

I overheard a conversation at work where one of my staff told another member that the same name I chose for DS1's FN was very white. Not offended. I laughed, because I don't think I was intended to hear it nor because there was any malice there. (I also don't think she knew what I named my son.)

ricekez · May 2014

DH had someone tell him "You know that's a black person name, right?" about DS1's name. This was after DS was born and already named. DH was so astounded by that comment that all he could say was "no, it's a Latin name actually." DS1 is Dominic. Whomever said this to DH must be very Midwestern and never met all the little Italian American Dominics on the east coast. . .

Skeemer · May 2014

People actually ask me if my son is name after Jude Law. :-/ Um...no.

Jude seems to be a name people either really love or they really hate it. There's not much in between. So yeah, I've had my fair share of looks & "Ohhh...okay..." from people.

catahoulatte · May 2014

Yep, people have told me that Gabriel is "too girly" and that it seems "too ethnic" for us.

8-|

As long as the criticisms were a "personal choice", and not something to actually consider (wrong spelling, sounding awful with out last name, etc.) then I don't care. If we had chosen, say "Gaebreeul" because it's more euneek and people had told us it would suck to have to spell that out all the time, that's something I would have taken into consideration.

NerdyLucy · May 2014

No kids yet, and I don't discuss my name list with people outside of the internet and DH, but I do expect that it may eventually happen.

I feel like I live in the made-up/misspelled name capitol of the world. I'll have a daughter named Margaret and then someone with a daughter named Braeleighahnica will tell me it's an ugly name or something.

I'm prepared.

==N== · May 2014

In general people like ds's name though it doesn't go over big here.

With dd I get a lot of "oh that's different..." Then some ask if I made it up. But it gets a ton of love here.

MandMLeona · May 2014

When my dad first heard we'd named DD1 Anastasia he made jokes about it being because I'd wished I could have had anesthesia for her birth. (I had an almost painless, unplanned, unassisted birth at home.) With DD2 my mom was less than thrilled with Genevieve. I told her it was after my honorary grandmother and she asked if I was sure.

Now that we're expecting a third girl we get suggestions like Erin...about as far from the first two as you can get. I guess that's commentary in itself.

We knew they wouldn't like our choices and told them immediately they could just use Anna and Genna. So it just goes to show waiting until after the baby's born doesn't guarantee that family will like the name.

Unknown · May 2014

This content has been removed.

NerdyLucy · May 2014

SweetC80 said:

My husband has told me he didn't like my name because it was too common. Which I find very funny because 1. my name is awesome 2. his name is waaaaay more common then my name is. My name isn't currently in the top 1000 and DH's name has been top 20 for the past 25 years

Now I'm curious about your name. I'm trying to imagine a name that currently isn't top 1000, yet your husband thinks is too common.

youenjoymyself · May 2014

My daughter has the most common women's name of all time. And that's what she goes by. People ask why she doesn't go by her first and middle name. Cause that's not her name.

CiderWench · May 2014

We heard marijuana jokes from family for the entire first year of MJ's life.

The interwebz hates anything -aden, but I've only heard positive things about it in real life.

One of my best girlfriends and her daughters flat out told me Eliza Poppy was the ugliest name ever. In fact, if asked, they still don't like it but say they have "gotten used to it." Last week, while visiting, the same girlfriend said she just expected she would hate whatever name we chose for this baby. I told her to brace herself because we are naming the baby Matilda. I got the response from her that I expected. It doesn't bother me because the naming culture in her community (she is a Mennonite) is very trendy, non-traditional, guppy type names.

capulet · May 2014

DD's name is my mom's last name, an unusual but definitely feminine-sounding Italian surname. When she was about a week and a half old, we introduced her to a distinguished woman in her profession whom I was looking forward to meeting for the first time. We told her DD's name and the origin, and her immediate response was, "That won't do," and she came up with a more familiar-sounding nickname to call her. I wasn't really offended and it makes for a good family story, but that was bold.

Pepper6 · May 2014

We haven't gotten any outright dislike of her name, people either love it or say "oh, that's nice, what made you pick that", which tells me they don't particularly care for it. I don't mind, not everyone likes every name, and that's a good thing otherwise every child would have a top 10 name.

brownmouse · May 2014

We got a lot of negative opinion IRL (and on here) about DD'S name before she was born. I took people's opinions, but it didn't sway my love for the name, and didn't stop me from using it. Since then, I've rarely heard anything negative about her name, and have honestly have had a lot of people tell me they really like it. I'm firmly in the camp that each parent should be allowed to give their child the name they love, even if it gets negative reviews from others. As long as you own it, and don't get upset, the opinions of others should not matter to you.

I guess this stance does open me up to the "but what about Nevaeh? Or Jaxson?" Honestly, names like those, grate on my nerves and make me cringe. I would never use them for my own children. But who am I to say that you can't either? If you love those names, then by all means, use them. Just have a thick skin when inevitably, someone hates them.

They same goes for "boring" common names. I would never name my daughter Emma because it's too common and not my style, but should I be able to tell someone that they shouldn't use it either? No. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. As long as no one is preventing you from using a name, then only you can let opinions affect how you view a name for your child. Own it, or don't use it. If someone doesn't like a name you've chosen for your child, understand that everyone has different taste and move on.

JaysonandKristin · May 2014

Every single thread about my kids' names include some form of "I'd feel sorry if I met a kid with that name in my child's class."

thegoodpotato · May 2014

Never had a bad comment about either of my kids names.

With Marnie we got a lot of, "oh, wow, I haven't heard that name in forever!" That could be good or bad, but it was always said with a smile, so I'm assuming they were positive comments.

With Amanda, we got a lot of people saying they love that she has a nice, normal name.

Tikvahc · May 2014

On here I know that most people are sick to death of my girls names, but IRL most people love the girls names even if they have heard them before.
But honestly we probably get that respone because in our large extended family, in our circle of friends and in our church nobody has either of the names, so to us they never seem that popular

LadyXaverian · May 2014

CityBee said:

Overall we have had really positive reaction to DD's name. We have had a couple of people give an obviously negative reaction. Honestly though, in general, the type of people who react negatively to her name don't really surprise me and I wouldn't expect them to "get" her name. Many of the people that love her name are people that I respect and have similar taste with. Does that make sense?

I love your daughter's name. It was on my long-list for a while.

LadyXaverian · May 2014

nearly_klo said:

I had a rude woman tell me she wouldn't use Norah and would only call her Eleanor. It is her name, I love it, so that bit doesn't fuss me - it was the attitude and tone that made me roll my eyes and walk away.

My DD has the name name/nn but spelled differently: Elinor/Nora. Everyone wants to spell it with an "h", though.

Most people call her by Nora but my FIL likes to call her Elinor sometimes because it was his mother's name.

TheWop · May 2014

The only bad thing (and it's not really bad at all) people have said about it is "Oh, you don't hear that too often anymore." Doesn't bother me at all. It makes me smile bigger! DD's name might be "dated", but that's perfectly fine with me!

Her name is Renee BTW.

JuniperGaze · May 2014

One specific co-worker has gone on and on about how much she dislikes the name we've chosen, Gemma. She says it sounds like Grandma... I told her I didn't much care for her name either. Most people like it and some have to wrap their minds around it before deciding. My mom hates the middle name we've chosen, Starling, but she would have never said anything if I didn't ask her and I expected her reaction. Most people just roll their eyes, but it has significance to us!

kimmycup · May 2014

I've been told "Wow, that's an old name" or "haven't heard that name before", but mainly people tell me it's a really beautiful name (to my face, at least).

Ladymouse · May 2014

Just wanted to note - I regularly ask how people came by a name. It doesn't reflect on how much I like the name.

diamondduck13 · May 2014

I've only heard people say that DD's name is pretty or some general complement like that. From their lack of inflection, I can tell some who have said that were actually thinking it is boring. It's regularly called boring on this site

I honestly feel very good about the fact that it seems the worst thing people have thought/written about the name is that it's boring. It's familiar, feminine, pronounceable, and spellable, very important considerations for DH and I

Oh, and John Hughes scripted Bender to call it a fat girl's name to needle the popular girl. But if Hughes actually thought it was a fat girl's name, he would not have used it for the popular girl. It bothers me more it's the popular girl character name then that Bender said it's a fat girl name. Because if she's anything like her parents, DD is going to be the geeky, brainy girl

MagFranklin13 · May 2014

I have a Phoebe and people who don't care for it like to pretend its impossible to pronounce and make me say it 10 times "Fifi" "Bebe" but overall it's been well received

Tikvahc · May 2014

@bromios‌ thank you!!! They were our first choices, we tried to consider other names but in the end we went with what we liked best and I don't regret it at all

Isabella and Francesca had been my choices since I was a kid, they're also family names (grandmothers)

BillieB123 · May 2014

My son was named after my husband's Grandfather. It's an Italian name and most people have a difficult time pronouncing it. You would think after telling them that it's not made up and that it runs in the family people would be respectful - NOPE! I don't care, we love the name and it suits him well.

mikrinikki · May 2014

This is exactly why I have been nervous to tell anyone the name. We chose Kiara (kee air a) as a spin on my Mom's name Kyriakoula. Are most of you waiting to tell or does it really make that big of a difference in the opinions once they are born and named?

Want a personalized experience?

Has anyone insulted YOUR kids' name(s)?

Re: Has anyone insulted YOUR kids' name(s)?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards