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How common is it...

29 replies

Greensleeves · 06/04/2010 15:15

..for parents to insist that their child's double-barrelled name be spoken in full each time the child is addressed?

It's quite new to me but I seem to be coming across it more and more

I know a Thierry-Leanne, a Freya-Jayne and a Tiana-Louise, all of whomuse the full name rather than just the first

not casting aspersions, just wondering how common it is now

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cheesesarnie · 06/04/2010 15:17

i dont know any(or if i do they only use one name).but i am common.

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megonthemoon · 06/04/2010 15:18

I know of one who is only ever referred to by her double-barrelled name by her parents so we all refer to her by that too as seems wrong to be the ones to start separating it. But oh I hate double barrelled names!!! Just pick one, parents - one is enough and two rarely makes the name prettier and just sounds a bit precious and affected!

Thierry-Leanne? Is that a boy (as per first name) or girl (as per second)?

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Greensleeves · 06/04/2010 15:19

it's a girl

and she is really adorable

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annmar · 06/04/2010 15:37

My name is double barrelled. I have always been known by my full name.
I do not have a middle name, I have one initial.
Why bother to hyphenate a name and then only use half of it?

(In defence of my name, it is relatively common for a double barrelled name and an alternative spelling omits the hyphen to give a none double barrelled name)

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Ineedsomesleep · 06/04/2010 15:38

Am going out this evening with a Jo-anne and she's not at all common

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dizzydixies · 06/04/2010 16:27

I've always been known by my double barrelled name, never one or the other and never a shortening

I have no middle name either and have a hyphen

it is also a common double barrelled name and megonthemoon it was because I was named to honour two people not because my parents couldn't make their minds up

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4andnotout · 06/04/2010 16:30

All mine have double barrelled names and are called by both names 90% of the time, dd3 can't say dd1 & dd2's names so she calls them by the 2nd part of their name! Only dd1 has a middle name.

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seimum · 06/04/2010 16:33

I think if you have given a child a double-barrelled name, you would expect to use all of it - otherwise the child would have two separate names.

I expect that if the double-barrelled name is a bit of a mouthful, then one or both parts could be shortened e.g as in more traditional names such as Mary-Lou, Peggy-Sue etc

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Hulababy · 06/04/2010 16:35

Know of one child with double barrell name and I always use full name.

Know of two adults with double barrell names, one always use full name and other use just first half.

However none are a particular mouth full to say in full.

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thedollshouse · 06/04/2010 16:38

Most people I know just refer to their child by the first half of the name. I did work with someone with a double barrelled name and on the odd occasion when I slipped up and called her by the first half of the name she would put me in my place, she was called Susannah-Marie. Personally I don't like double barrelled names they are too much of a mouthful but thats just my opinion.

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MissJacksonIfYourNasty · 06/04/2010 16:54

at Thierry-Leanne

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MissJacksonIfYourNasty · 06/04/2010 16:55

On a serious note, I have only really known two people who did this. One was Spanish (Maria-Luisa) and one Italian (Anna-Maria).

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mathanxiety · 06/04/2010 21:14

Thierry-Leanne will raise a few Gallic eyebrows if she ever goes to France....

Oldest DD has a French name that's doubled. I knew a good few girls (no boys) with this style of name growing up in Ireland, mostly Marie-X or Marie-Y, and several Anne Marie's (with and without a hyphen) and Anna Maria's.

Some of DCs' friends have Mary X names, with no hyphen, but both names are used (Mary Christine, Mary Clare, etc.), and I know lots of Mary Helen's, Mary Rose's, Mary Kay's who are middle aged. Plus lots of Mary Beth's, Mary Pat's and Mary Jo's from the US.

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SirBoobAlot · 06/04/2010 22:27

I prefer my full name to be used, but will answer to the first part by itself, which is lucky as its what most people tend to opt for. My parents have never been fussed.

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flintski · 06/04/2010 22:37

My dd has a double barrelled first name (though this is the first time i've heard it called that!) We use it in full as well as just using the first name which most of her friends have adopted. It doesn't really bother me how it is used tbh but I do love seeing the full name on school stuff and I really love hearing her full name spoken by other children - it sounds really right!
We only stuck a hyphen in so people were aware the second name was part of the first and wasn't her middle name (if you get my drift )

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Clary · 06/04/2010 23:25

I know an Ellie-Rose. It's NTMT but maybe to distinguish from the many many Ellies?

I also know a Sarah-Jane.

Both of those work I reckon because they are short, especially the second name. It's more problematic if the names are unwieldy, eg Annabella-Madeline or some such.

There are 3 DC with the same first name in Ds2's class so 2 are known by second name as well, but I am pretty sure that's just to make it clear which one is being spoken to.

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legallyblond · 07/04/2010 17:49

I know an Esther-Rose. The full name is always used. (Oh, and I don't think double barrelled first names = common.... the Esther-Rose I know is a Lady Esther-Rose!)

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muminthemiddle · 08/04/2010 10:47

I don't like hyphenated names and I do think they are very chavy, sorry. Also you cannot stop people from calling a child who is say Ella-Mae just Ella it will happen.
thedollshouse Susannah-Marie what a mouthful, I bet she was thankful for that cumbersome name.

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bellissima · 08/04/2010 10:51

I know one little girl where the first two names (not hyphened) were always used when she was a baby, but at about the time that the initials started to be used, ie when Lucy Kate (not real name) became 'L-K', the parents suddenly reverted to plain Lucy. Suspect if it didn't happen then it would certainly happen at nursery/school.

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jellybeans · 08/04/2010 11:15

I don't like hyphenated names, they nearly always end up with just the first bit but each to their own.

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Lovethesea · 08/04/2010 12:57

I know another double first name that got squished together; too unusual to post it but sort of like:

Luca Samuel becoming Lamuel

Matthew Aaron becoming Maaron...

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maryz · 08/04/2010 13:25

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

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mathanxiety · 08/04/2010 17:47

There were a lot of John-Pauls, probably born around the late 70s. And John Pauls (no hyphen) who went by either John or JohnPaul. And then there's the initial thing in Ireland too -- PJ, JP, TJ, MJ, JJ, etc.

at the double-doubling...

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Greensleeves · 08/04/2010 17:49

Oh, I also know a Kaleb-Cody

thing is, the children themselves are so lovely, and the parents - well, what are they saying with a name like this really, other than "I'm overwhelmed with love and pride and excitement and I want to treat my child like the king/queen of the world"

It's not really a social evil, is it?

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brogan2 · 08/04/2010 17:57

I had 2 Sarah-Janes in my class at primary school. I would never have occurred to me to call them Sarah as their name was Sarah-Jane. We also had an Elizabeth-Ann in school and a Mary-Beth.

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