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Will our child be mocked if his initials are "OJ"? (Reference to OJ Simpson)

kikimeemeekikimeemee member
edited September 2014 in Baby Names
I'm not sure if I am being overly concerned or not with this one so I'd like your thoughts, please!


Hubby & I are having our first baby in November (gender unknown) and one of the boy names we like starts with an "O" and the middle name would start with "J". We are using my husband's first name for baby's middle name, so the J is a definite. We've had SUCH a hard time with boy names and finally may have found one with this O-name, but the initials "OJ" leave a bad taste in my mouth. It reminds me of OJ Simpson, and I wonder if people who hear the name will think the same. I know a couple of my husband's weirdo friends will jump to that reference, but then again, one of them has the initials BJ. "Blow yob" if you will.


Our last name is not the letter J, so baby would essentially be "OC" more often than OJ, I would think.

Let me know your thoughts!

Will our child be mocked if his initials are "OJ"? (Reference to OJ Simpson) 168 votes

OJ reminds me of OJ Simpson, too. Ditch it!
5% 10 votes
The OJ Simpson case is long enough ago that references may be infrequent.
79% 134 votes
Split in the middle -- it may be grounds for teasing/might not (Can't decide)
7% 12 votes
Special snowflake -- I have my own answer and may leave a comment below
7% 12 votes
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Re: Will our child be mocked if his initials are "OJ"? (Reference to OJ Simpson)

  • sundaesprinklessundaesprinkles member
    I think that the Oj Simpson reference will be lost on your child's generation, but more importantly the J is the middle initial, not the last initial. How many classmates/friends will know his middle initial? I think you're over thinking it.
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  • draeraydraeray member
    All of the above. It's a non-issue.

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  • BethanyAnn27BethanyAnn27 member
    We were planning on Oliver James for a boys name for a while...but this was all I could think about.  We changed to Oliver Steven (Steven is a family name, so it worked better anyways!).  My husband didn't think too many people would connect the initials to OJ Simpson, but I was pretty worried about it.  At the end of the day, if we hadn't come up with a more meaningful middle name, we would have stayed with Oliver James despite the initial.  I did vote to "ditch it" because it was a strong factor in my case, but you need to go with what makes you comfortable and the name that you love. 

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  • sasq09sasq09 member
    Non issue imo. First and middle initials are almost never used alone. Even do, kids won't know and orange juice is the first thought.
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  • Ballerina0917Ballerina0917 member
    Def a non issue. Like PP have said, initials are almost always either just first & last, or first/middle/last, so I think you'd have a total of zero issues. 
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  • 4N6s4N6s member
    As a kid I think he would get teased in reference to orange juice more than Simpson... I don't think it's a big deal.
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  • kikimeemeekikimeemee member
    4N6s said:

    As a kid I think he would get teased in reference to orange juice more than Simpson... I don't think it's a big deal.

    Phew -- that's not so bad. Who doesn't love a bit a orange juice in his/her life? :-)


    I think I'm more worried abt what people will say to me versus my kid (since the youngins don't know much about OJ Simp). Time to get comfortable with unwanted parenting comments!

    No, we have no plans to call the kid OJ.

    Thank you, everyone! :-D
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  • jorkz821jorkz821 member
    My DD's first name-middle name initials are OJ. No one has commented, at least not to my face... Like pp said, middle name initials don't really matter - how many people know your kid's mn, right?
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  • actinup23actinup23 member
    I wouldn't call him OJ, but I don't think having those initials is a big deal.








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  • BeansjjoBeansjjo member
    I thought orange juice :p
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  • Wish4BabyMWish4BabyM member
    I think of orange juice not OJ Simpson:/ but I don't think kids will pick up on that.. I think your fine

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  • macchiattomacchiatto member
    Don't do it!
    IME, adults can be worse and more annoying teasers about things like names than kids can, especially the uncle types who think they're funny. So IMO you do need to consider what associations other generations will have as well. I got comments/teasing about my own name that were all from men my dad's age and older. It wasn't a really negative association so I didn't mind but it did make me realize you need to think beyond what your child's peers will think of a name.
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  • saham07saham07 member
    macchiatto said:
    Don't do it!
    IME, adults can be worse and more annoying teasers about things like names than kids can, especially the uncle types who think they're funny. So IMO you do need to consider what associations cother generations will have as well. I got comments/teasing about my own name that were all from men my dad's age and older. It wasn't a really negative association so I didn't mind but it did make me realize you need to think beyond what your child's peers will think of a name.

    uncle teasing is from someone that loves you and it is a form of play. This type of teasing toughen your skin up enough to be able to let the childhood teasing, roll off your back. My uncles and brothers dish it out all the time to my kids and they look forward to it and give it right back to them. You can't protect them from everything and when you do, you can do more harm then good in the long run. The initials OJ would not bother me at all.
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  • emmy236emmy236 member
    My initials are ET and that i was born after the movie came out. It was the name my parents wanted so they stuck to their guns. Honestly no one ever picked up on it for the most part.
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  • macchiattomacchiatto member
    edited September 2014
    saham07 said:
    macchiatto said:
    Don't do it!
    IME, adults can be worse and more annoying teasers about things like names than kids can, especially the uncle types who think they're funny. So IMO you do need to consider what associations cother generations will have as well. I got comments/teasing about my own name that were all from men my dad's age and older. It wasn't a really negative association so I didn't mind but it did make me realize you need to think beyond what your child's peers will think of a name.

    uncle teasing is from someone that loves you and it is a form of play. This type of teasing toughen your skin up enough to be able to let the childhood teasing, roll off your back. My uncles and brothers dish it out all the time to my kids and they look forward to it and give it right back to them. You can't protect them from everything and when you do, you can do more harm then good in the long run. The initials OJ would not bother me at all.
    No, I don't think you can or should protect kids from "everything." I said nothing about that. My point was just that I frequently see people say in various posts, "Your child's peers won't know that reference so it doesn't matter." My point is that if you are considering teasing potential, peers are not the only ones to consider.

    And by "uncle types," I also mean family friends, neighbors, etc. Not necessarily people who love you; sometimes just older men who think they're funny and are actually really annoying. :p (And even if I were just talking about uncles, let's face it, some uncles are a-holes; not all have the loving give-and-take joking relationship you're describing in your own family.) There is PLENTY in life that can toughen you up but hearing endless jokes about your name if it lends itself easily to teasing/jokes (from any generation) can get old fast. I don't know that OJ in particular would get endless teasing but I do think, as a general rule, it's something to consider when naming your kid. 
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  • kikimeemeekikimeemee member

    It's definitely the "uncle type/odd adult" that is more of a threat in this case with OJ Simp; I'll agree with that.

     

    On the flipside, I remember being 13 y/o and so excited about my high school the next year (which was all-girls) and my dad's female cousin said, "You're going THERE?  That's Kezzie Lezzie!!  (Kes was short for my school's name and "lezzy" refers to lesbians)   I remember it was the first time I heard an adult mock homosexuality, and I couldn't believe an adult would do that.  And it made me feel very conflicted.  However, it taught me that ignorant idiots come in all shapes, sizes and ages.  Sad memory to think back on...

     

    Anyway, hubs is now worried about the OJ reference, ha.    I do feel better that it's not overwhelmingly a no-no, so we'll see.  

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