Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Friends awful baby name

737 replies

ThisIcyHare · 01/01/2025 16:26

My best friend is due to have a baby soon, they are having a girl and she has been talking baby names with me, which feels super special. She has got a few very lovely traditional girly names, and a couple of more unusual choices, but not ‘offensive’. They are names I would expect from her. However, she has one absolutely terrible name, that actually just feels very cruel. It would be bad even by American standards and ‘tragedeigh’ names. It’s not that I wouldn’t choose it, it’s just crazy stupid and the child will be ridiculed by peers and adults. Some of her choices are genuinely wonderful, but I’m so worried she will madly choose this one awful name, I can’t say anything can I?!

OP posts:
PrincessHoneysuckle · 01/01/2025 18:06

Serenity? Chastity? I actually really like Serenity if it's that

KimberleyClark · 01/01/2025 18:05

NeedABabelFish · 01/01/2025 18:00

Fidelity?
Fideliteigh?
Truly Scrumptious?
Kumquat?

She’d get so sick of people saying Hi, Fidelity! and thinking they are being funny!

YankSplaining · 01/01/2025 18:04

mathanxiety · 01/01/2025 17:42

Same.
Just because US society has far fewer hangups about class and a lot more willingness to embrace the shiny and new doesn't mean people there are less sophisticated or intelligent. People with all sorts of names that wouldn't pass the 'KC test' or the 'Archbishop test' graduate from the top universities, work for NASA, and even write books.

Show quote history

(points to username) Now we’ve got a Supreme Court justice named Ketanji.

If the name is Verity, OP is massively ignorant about “even by American standards,” because while Verity is 300-something on the UK name charts, it’s not even in the top 1000 for the US. Verity Lambert, born 1935, was also the founding producer of Dr Who.

NetZeroZealot · 01/01/2025 18:04

Brockollee?

(I'm cooking right now now)

NeedToChangeName · 01/01/2025 18:04

ghostfacethriller · 01/01/2025 17:16

I would say something if I was concerned, or at least raise my eyebrows. We have friends that were going to give their child a rather overused, girly name and my DH said something along the lines of, 'It's nice, but I can't imagine say, a surgeon or CEO with a name like that.' They ended up using a lovely, traditional name which they really love.
It's usually best to use a traditional name for babies, one with lots of pet forms - so that they can have a bit of flexibility later. My opinion is coloured by my childhood best friend who has a slightly wacky, made up name that she found hard work growing up.

I think your DH was rude to comment

Lunde · 01/01/2025 18:04

ThisIcyHare · 01/01/2025 17:15

No! It’s not honour, charity, faith. It’s like Integrity.

Show quote history

Is it like Honesty (which is also a flower)?

Is there a cultural aspect? I once went to language school with a a person called "Innocent" which I thought a bit of a burden for a 6' 2 African man. Or names like Kristian/Kristina which would be looked down on in the UK but would be very middle class names in many places in Europe.

Clueless2024 · 01/01/2025 18:03

Sometimes, people "hear" words or names differently.

I wanted to name our DD Hero, after a character in my favorite Shakespeare play. To me, when I hear the name Hero, its beautiful and elegant. DH vetoed, said absolutely NOT. His association with that name (word) is entirely different to mine. To him, Hero, is "superhero", for which a child would get mercilessly bullied for. I get it... So your friends name might not be completely rank, she just might associate it with something else

NetZeroZealot · 01/01/2025 18:03

Persephone?

While we're on the classics.

echt · 01/01/2025 18:02

Perseverance, but pronounced the old way: PerSEVerance.?

Meltedwelly · 01/01/2025 18:01

Alotta Fagina

NetZeroZealot · 01/01/2025 18:01

Jolietta · 01/01/2025 17:59

Antigone?

I also know one of these.

The OP didn't say anything about it being from Greek literature though.

Peachy2005 · 01/01/2025 18:01

Clarity, Honesty, Parsimony, Testimony, Happiness

NeedABabelFish · 01/01/2025 18:00

Fidelity?
Fideliteigh?
Truly Scrumptious?
Kumquat?

Jolietta · 01/01/2025 17:59

Antigone?

Planesmistakenforstars · 01/01/2025 17:59

Morality
Coherence
Solidarity
Mettle
Tenacity

Or just Bumhole?

NetZeroZealot · 01/01/2025 17:59

Cuntery?

I'm being silly now.

Serencwtch · 01/01/2025 17:59

The Collins thesaurus lists synonyms of Integrity including probity & rectitude.

You definitely need to stop her calling her kid Probity or rectitude!!

saveforthat · 01/01/2025 17:59

Purity?

Meltedwelly · 01/01/2025 17:57

Lornacranium · 01/01/2025 17:56

Respect?

.

Sacha Baron Cohen Trump GIF by Stan.
Lornacranium · 01/01/2025 17:56

Respect?

saveforthat · 01/01/2025 17:56

Morality?

Jolietta · 01/01/2025 17:56

EmmaSmiff · 01/01/2025 17:13

Is it Dripfeedia?

I quite like that although the nickname 'Drippy' isn't quite so nice.

saveforthat · 01/01/2025 17:55

If she sees this thread, she will know it's you anyway so you may as well tell us the name.

Meltedwelly · 01/01/2025 17:55

NetZeroZealot · 01/01/2025 17:54

I know several adult women with this name.

Show quote history

Reminds me of a Chubby Brown joke.

SlightlyJaded · 01/01/2025 17:54

Compliment the nicer names a lot.

Is there some way you can lead her from 'Summerleigh-Bailee-D'vine Integrity' towards something with a similar meaning but less literal? So if it was integrity, you could suggest 'Honor' or 'Honora' as a middle name? Or Sade or Erica or one of the names whose origins are the word honorable'?