Let's talk baby names.

Shazzie116 · May 2010

In light of a knottie posting this gem on my local board (which sparked much discussion of weird and crazy baby names):

...and Meaghan's experience with WORLD'S BEST MOM EVAR this morning, I'm a little curious.

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?

bbyckes · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?
I definitely think so. I used to HATE my name when I was younger. I wanted something like Jennifer or Tiffany. Now, I wouldn't give my name up for the world. Not because it's "uneek", but because it's me.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.
HELL NO! I really dislike when people do this. It's not cool - it's confusing and it makes me think less of the parent.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?
Just look through the "names" chapter in Freakonomics. Take your pic. The names I hate most are the combo names, where they take the first name of the mom and the first name of the dad and create some completely new shitastic name. Like, Troygina (Troy and Gina). Or if people add unnecessary apostrophes, hyphens or extra prefixes to names like, "La, Sha, Ja, Ma, Da'" - all of those suck.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
I have a son, Colden Avery. Names I considered for him were Xavier (pronounced Zavier, not X-Zavier), Addison, Aiden (before it became really popular) and if he were to be a girl: Madlyn (there's a "y"), Arden or Claire. Classic and simple.

AdeleDazeem · May 2010

In Response to Let's talk baby names.:
1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?
I think it does to a certain extent.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.
I used to want to do this... when I was ten. I've now grown up and will pick names for kids that are traditional, but not uber common.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?
My apologies in advance if anyone has these names.
I can't stand the made up names with all the a's, y's, and k's. Example? Kayley, Kayla, Kaylin. UGH.
Don't even get me started on the common boys names. Braeden? Yuckers.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
My fiance love the name Virginia. I love the name Lila. But, clearly, we're going to end up with boys...

laurenclaire1386 · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?

I like my name a lot, but it's also really common. I graduated high school with 42 people in my class, and there were 4 other Laurens. My grandmother and my cousin and sometimes my mom call me Lauren Claire though, and I like that and think it suits me better than just Lauren.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.
Hell to the no. That is the dumbest trend EVAR.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?
Mary Christmas. Christmas is her maiden name, so she didn't marry into it. Her parents knew what they were doing and I think they're mean for doing it.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
Hazel Marie for a girl, after both of my grandmothers
Jackson Adams for a boy. Jackson because FI is really into history and political science and Jackson was his favorite president. Adams is my mom's maiden name (although she kept it when she married my dad), and since she has only sisters, there's no one to carry it after she's gone.

Shazzie116 · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?
I love my name, but I don't think it says anything about me. People assume I'm Irish (I'm not), that's it.
2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.
Please punch me in the face if I ever do.
3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?
A girl on my board in discussion said she knew someone at a summer camp who met a camper named "Y'Majesty". WTF.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
I am fairly traditional. I really like Andrew, James, and Lucas for boys, and Lily, Claire, Emma, and Sarah for girls. I also like a strong first name with perhaps a more unique middle name. I see a lot of Hope, Joy, Grace, Rose-type middle names lately.

JoyTate1 · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person? I think I would be the same regardless of what my name is. I do, however, love the comments I get about it. "Joy? Like the holiday?" Yes, Joy day. It is celebrated monthly and you should buy me a present. "Joy, oh yeah, like the Christmas tree!" I got a lot of "Happy happy Joy Joy" in High school. Oh, and my favorite: "How do you spell that?" It helps me weed out those worth talking to.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher. Oh Hellllll no. I hate that. I don't care if you spell it with a backwards 3, your name is still Jenny. GAH!

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard? My brother in law wanted to name their child Oso if it was a boy. It means Bear I guess. However, their last name is Cherry. a boy named Oso Cherry. Middle School would have sucked! Thank goodness they had a girl.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered? Thing one and thing two.

amylydia23 · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person? I don't think it really gives me a sense of identity but it was really nice having a 3 letter name when my maiden name was 12 letters long

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher. I would NEVER do that to my child.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard? Hmm... that is a tough one, I used to work in daycare for quite some time and I have heard a lot of pretty silly names

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered? Well seeing as my husband informed me that our children's names will start with a C, I have started thinking of C names. We've talked about it and I have more boys names than girls names but we will probably end up with boys anyways.

amylydia23 · May 2010

Oh wait I remember the dumbest name I've ever heard, Shithead (pronounced Shi-th-eed)

Celles · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?

Yes. I love the combination of my first, middle and last name together because they ask and answer a question:

Michelle = Who is like the Lord? / Who is like God?
Louise = Warrior-Maiden
??? = Lion-Hearted

So, God is a brave warrior-woman. Who knew?

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.

No. A thousand times no.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?

FI has a friend whose last name is Angelo. His first name? Michael. Of course.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?

For a girl: Alexis Rose, for my best friend Alexis and sister (whose middle name is Rose). I also like Cady, which means "simple happiness," and Jamie, because it's just pretty. FI prefers Sora, which I'm pretty sure is the name of his D&D character, so... no.

For a boy, I love the classics. James especially, for some reason.

The Mel and Todd Show · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person? It does. I was supposed to be named DinaMarie, but my father heard "Melissa" by the Allman Brothers on the radio on the way to the hospital, and talked my mother into it. I think I'd be a different person if I were DinaMarie instead of Mel.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.

No. A thousand times, no.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?

Sinceer
I just don't get it. If you're going to turn an adjective into a proper noun, why do you have to bollocks up the spelling?

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
My older son is named John, after his father (the ex husband). My FI and decided to let Johnny name his younger brother when he was born, and he chose Michael. Apparently the only time we don't hate traditional things is when it comes to naming our children.

laurenclaire1386 · May 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_lets-talk-baby-names?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:c3f87739-a848-4c12-8705-80b32195cee6Post:f98567a4-4f98-4d9c-ae47-1b392997f6d8">Re: Let's talk baby names.</a>:
[QUOTE]1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person? It does. I was supposed to be named DinaMarie, but my father heard "Melissa" by the Allman Brothers on the radio on the way to the hospital, and talked my mother into it. I think I'd be a different person if I were DinaMarie instead of Mel. [/QUOTE]
I love that story. I wish there was a Lauren song :/

Celles · May 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_lets-talk-baby-names?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:c3f87739-a848-4c12-8705-80b32195cee6Post:f98567a4-4f98-4d9c-ae47-1b392997f6d8">Re: Let's talk baby names.</a>:
[QUOTE]1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person? It does. I was supposed to be named DinaMarie, but my father heard "Melissa" by the Allman Brothers on the radio on the way to the hospital, and talked my mother into it. I think I'd be a different person if I were DinaMarie instead of Mel.
Posted by The Mel and Todd Show[/QUOTE]

That's so funny. I was supposed to be an Elizabeth, but my dad heard The Beatles' "Michelle" on the radio while he and mom were eating dinner the night before they adopted me.

I was born a Jeannette and am so grateful that my parents changed my name. (No offense to any Jeannates out there; it just isn't "me.")

AllenBaker · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?
Yes! My name is Libby and everyone always comments on how it fits me so well. My real name is Elizabeth, and while it's a nice professional stand-by, my nickname is more unique and fits me much better. When people find out that Libby is not my real name, they are often surprised!

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.
Oh...my...god... don't even get me started. You are ASKING for your kid to hate you. Last names are hard enough to spell without having to constantly tell people that Quivynnej spells "Kevin".

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?
I work in a preschool and some of the names are just terrible. Chevy Pickup... that was the most awful. There was also a kid in one of my friend's classes who was named Miles-Davis. Kinda weird.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
We have a few picked out... we love the name Celia/Cecilia for a girl... I always wanted a little boy named James so I could sing him "Sweet Baby James"... yeah, I know I'm a sap.

laurenclaire1386 · May 2010

My mom wanted to name me Sadie and my grandmother talked her out of it by telling her it was a dog name. I have come across about 20 people with dogs named Sadie. Looks like my grandmother was on to something.

snixie · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person? Not really, but I know it means a lot to my mom, so it's important to me in that sense. When I was 10 I tried to change the spelling from 'Sarah' to 'Sara' because it makes so much of a difference and one's obviously waaay cooler than the other. Glad I grew out of that.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher. No. Poor kids.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard? I knew a girl in school named Brittanicus Pride Henton. She went by Brittani. Don't blame her.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered? Margot Ellen and/or Charlotte Aster. Looks like I'm having a girl!

impslave · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?
I never really thought of it much, except when I was younger and I considered using my middle name (which I like better) instead of my first (which I don't really like).

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher. Oh heavens, no.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard? Aquarius. I can only imagine what that poor girl must go through in school.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered? My hypothetical children are named Elizabeth (for Elizabeth I) and John (my father's name). I'm also partial to Eleanor (for Eleanor of Acquitaine and Eleanor Roosevelt) and William (I've always liked it).

fpaemp2011 · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?
I guess it does...I do think it's cool that mom and dad had already picked out Ashley, but right after I was born mom said, "Nope, she's an Emily."

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.
I couldn't do that to my kids. I did however, change the spelling of my name in middle school to "Emmaleigh"...I just wanted to be different...it lasted about halfway through 8th grade...

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?
I know this one has been circulated on e-mail forwards, but FSIL actually had a girl named "La-a" in her 1st grade class this year...the dash isn't silent...

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
FI already has 3 boy names in mind...Paul after his dad, and Jesse and Benjamin after two of his best friends...and I love Naomi Grace and Chloe Faith for girls...

Tinkx123x · May 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_lets-talk-baby-names?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:17Discussion:c3f87739-a848-4c12-8705-80b32195cee6Post:c453d813-981c-4b9c-8be2-667784d7fb5f">Let's talk baby names.</a>:
[QUOTE]In light of a knottie posting this gem on my local board (which sparked much discussion of weird and crazy baby names): <a href="http://tinyurl.com/2ec5t5d" rel="nofollow">http://tinyurl.com/2ec5t5d</a> ...and Meaghan's experience with WORLD'S BEST MOM EVAR this morning, I'm a little curious. 1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person? 2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher. 3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard? 4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
Posted by Shazzie116[/QUOTE]

I LOVE my name (Justina) and I wouldn't change it for the world

I hate traditional names and my son's name is Blayne. I am not into the funky spelling but there is a city in my state spelled Blaine so we decided to change the i to a y.

I hope no one is offended by this but i hate the name naveah...other dumb names: Apple?!?

and like i said my son's name is Blayne. I have also considered baby names: Evalynn and Rowan

The Mel and Todd Show · May 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_lets-talk-baby-names?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:17Discussion:c3f87739-a848-4c12-8705-80b32195cee6Post:334c9f16-8279-4192-8673-8c816c72438f">Re: Let's talk baby names.</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Let's talk baby names. : I love that story. I wish there was a Lauren song :/
Posted by laurenclaire1386[/QUOTE]

A brief affair with Google has taught me that there are many songs with "Lauren" in the title, but the most notable (or at least the most commented upon) is entitled "Lauren and I" and is performed by a group calling themselves Celtic Thunder (I'm reasonably certain I've seen a commercial for these cats on TBS at 4 am). Have a listen:

<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Celtic-Thunder/e/B00197GPFW/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1273249348&sr=8-2-ent">http://www.amazon.com/Celtic-Thunder/e/B00197GPFW/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1273249348&sr=8-2-ent</a>

Becky&Chris · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?

I think it does for everyone to a certain extent, but more so for some than others. For example, my FI's name is Chris (pretty obvious), but I don't know if he'd be a hugely different person if he was named Mike. But if your name is more exotic, I think people associate it with your identity more and you might too.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.

I might put an i instead of a y at the end of a name, or something like that, but some people are completely ridiculous.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?

Gonorrhea, pronounced "Gonoria".. that's just not okay.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?

I always wanted Isabella for a girl, but (I guess because of Twilight?) the name has become really popular, so I'm not sure if I want her to be one of 5 Bellas in her class. Maybe in a couple years it will have died down. I also like James for a boy (after my dad), with the nickname Jamie. FMIL yelled me one day saying unisex names are mean.. but I think she's mean, so there

ETA: So I finish this and hop over to the etiquette board and there is a thread about how Isabella is the new top girl's name.. damnit.

goheels05 · May 2010

haha I feel your pain, Becky. The only song my name is in is a DMX song where he's listing all his "hos".

Becky&Chris · May 2010

haha.. DMX loves his hoes, he did that song "Money, Cash, Hoes" with Jay-Z too. Apparently there are a lot of "friendly" beckys and heels out there making us notorious I guess.

nyrek · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?
~Absolutely...it's spelled different (Keryn as opposed to Karen), which I hated growing up...but it's really become expressive of me and I feel very attached to my name.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.

~Probably not. I hated that my mom did it to me.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?
~Female. Sounds like tamale.

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
Have 3: Devin Kent, Paige Elise, and Christian Michael
We want 2 more: for girls names, we love Stana Marie or Isabelle Lynn.
No boys names picked out yet.

emilyinboston · May 2010

In Response to Re: Let's talk baby names.:
2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher. I couldn't do that to my kids. I did however, change the spelling of my name in middle school to "Emmaleigh"...I just wanted to be different...it lasted about halfway through 8th grade... 3Posted by fpaemp2011[/QUOTE]

My name is Emily too and I use Emmaleigh for silly screennames and log-ins all the time! Whenever my mom writes my name she writes "MLE"

K Byte · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?

I guess, but my name is suuuper common for girls born in the mid-80s (Kristen). I'm kind of glad my parents didn't give me a super ~*~unique~*~*~ name but I feel like they could have thought a bit more out of the norm.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.

Uh no.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?

I can't think of the dumb ones I've heard in real life but I have a friend on another forum who does recruiting and student admissions for a rather large community college in either Mississippi or Louisiana, and he has a huge list of bad ones. My favorite is he once called a prospective student whose name is Qwat. (It rhymes with "squat..." yeah.)

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
For a girl I like Eve or Diana. For a boy I like Luke or maybe Lukas.

number55 · May 2010

Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person?
Yes, very much so. My name is Mareika, a dutch name, a diminutive form of Mary. It is a dutch name that is supposed to be written Marijke but my parents thought the J would be confusing, it turns out that the 'ei' being against general grammatical rules is the confusing part. I love my name because apparently my mom picked it when she was 15, watching Miss Holland in the Miss Universe contest. My brothers also have odd spellings of their names, which would traditionally would be Joseph and Nicholas. I also have a very very long, complicated, uncommon last name. Teachers hated me growing up!
2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher.
~FI and I have spoken about this. We will likely use less traditional names but use the most common spellings for them.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard?
~I am a teacher, there are no words.
4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered?
For girls: Lauren, Johanna (my mom's name), KatianaFor boys: Konrad, Josiah, Joshua, Tristan

megk8oz · May 2010

1. Does your name really give you a sense of identity and who you are as a person? Not gonna lie, I hate my first name. I always have. I'm the only one of my mom's kids that was given a "fad" name (Even though she swears she didn't use it because it was popular at the time). In 10th grade, there were 11 girls in my class, 5 other girls were also named some variation of "Megan" (I hope they fired whoever put together that class list). It only started to "grow" on me in recent years, as I've been away from school, and away from so many people with the same name.

2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher. No ... I tend to judge people that do that. Severely.

3. What is the dumbest name you've ever heard? I have 3 that tie for first-all girls names: Evanessence (I swear to God. And the mother outright said she was named after the band). Then my old boss had 2 daughters, both badly named: one was Kegga (As in "Kegga beer") and the other was Ma (Pronounced "Emma" ... she never understood why everybody thought her daughter's name was pronounced "Mah" ... I actually like Emma, but "spelling fail".)

4. If you have children or are planning on having children, what names have you considered? It varies daily. Right now girls: Elizabeth, Anya and Marin. Most of the women in my family have some variation of Claire or Clara in their name, and I've debated keeping that going, but I was completely skipped over in the legacy, so I might just let my sisters (Who have it in theirs) carry that out. Boys: Mason, Reid and Logan.

When I was younger, I wanted to name all of my kids after Presidents: Kennedy and Madison for girls, Lincoln and Pierce for boys ... I still kind of like the idea, except Madison is definetly the new "Megan", and I refuse to put a kid through that if I can avoid it.

megk8oz · May 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_lets-talk-baby-names?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:17Discussion:c3f87739-a848-4c12-8705-80b32195cee6Post:421a4354-cdd9-4849-b3cc-52d21b2defcf">Re: Let's talk baby names.</a>:
[QUOTE]My mom wanted to name me Sadie and my grandmother talked her out of it by telling her it was a dog name. I have come across about 20 people with dogs named Sadie. Looks like my grandmother was on to something.
Posted by laurenclaire1386[/QUOTE]

Lauren, I was almost "Emily", but bio-dad told my mom "Emily" was a dog name.

... although, I've yet to meet any dogs named Emily, and there was only 2 girls with that name in my entire high school (And they weren't in any of my classes). I tend to hate him even more than usual when I think about this for more than 5 seconds.

AdeleDazeem · May 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_lets-talk-baby-names?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:c3f87739-a848-4c12-8705-80b32195cee6Post:cb02901e-f4d9-4052-a412-ef319e59afc9">Re: Let's talk baby names.</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Let's talk baby names. : My little sister's name is Virginia (as are an aunt and great-aunt). Her best friends call Va Jay Jay. Yes, these are her best friends.
Posted by SarahPLiz[/QUOTE]

I know. I knoooooooooooooooooooooow. This is why I say no.

Shazzie116 · May 2010

H's mom works in a pediatrician's office and she gets all the new baby names. Circa 2001 a set of parents decided it would be a good idea to name their baby girl Monica Schlewinsky.

Shithead is one of my favorites of all time though.

fpaemp2011 · May 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_lets-talk-baby-names?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:c3f87739-a848-4c12-8705-80b32195cee6Post:5e0deb63-3f96-4aab-97ad-785c24669d4b">Re: Let's talk baby names.</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Let's talk baby names. : 2. Would you take a traditional name and spell it funky just so your child can be unique? For instance, Jennifer = Xennypher. I couldn't do that to my kids. I did however, change the spelling of my name in middle school to "Emmaleigh"...I just wanted to be different...it lasted about halfway through 8th grade... 3Posted by fpaemp2011[/QUOTE] [QUOTE] My name is Emily too and I use Emmaleigh for silly screennames and log-ins all the time! Whenever my mom writes my name she writes "MLE"
Posted by emilyinboston[/QUOTE]

My 91-year-old great-grandmother, who I love dearly, has spelled my name "Emiley" or "Emilee" on every birthday and holiday card my entire life. There are 15 great-grandkids and I'm the only one that is misspelled every year. I don't get it, but it's not that big of a deal at all...

Let's talk baby names.

Re: Let's talk baby names.

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