Should you not use your fav name due to fears of bullying in future?

Search for the name on MN & see what people have said about it before.

You should be proud of the name you give your baby. Anything out of the ordinary gets negative comments from some people, but I bet it's a brilliant name - what is it . . . .?

OP, if you're scared / nervous about mentioning the name here on an anonymous forum because of fear of people's reactions and opinions - just imagine how your poor child will feel EVERY TIME they have to introduce themselves, write that name on their CV, notice the smirk on someone's face or hear the odd comment behind their back. It's not a nice thought, at least to me.

Of course it's really hard to advise whilst not knowing the actual name as it might not be that bad, but your reluctance to share suggests it is.

There are so many nice names out there... Pick something that won't make your child stand out for all the wrong reasons.

Well said, RiverTam.

I don't believe it is as issue at all. My two both have unusual names - other kids just take it in their stride - to them, they are just names they haven't heard before.

We need to know the name :)

I was bullied as a kid, so my thinking is don't give them extra ammunition. Sorry x.

Is it a 'real' name? DD will 99% chance be the only one in her class/ year/ probably even school with her name as it is a bit unusual but if she said it to someone they'd know how to spell it and would know it. If it's a real name kids might take the piss out of (William/ Willy) or just a lesser used name now (Keith/ Nigel) I'd go for it. But if it's unknown I'd keep it as a middle name.

My DD2 has a name which is usually panned here on MN on the basis it's hippy / try hard / bully-bait.

Never been a problem. It is very rare (8 named in the UK in her year of birth) but is a 'real' name (was dead trendy in about 1300.) I love it. We get the odd "how unusual' comment but nothing worse. There's nothing wrong with having different tastes in names. (I'd rather a bit of imagination than picking something in the top 10 names.)

OP if you like I'll share DD2's name with you by pm - it's a bit too identifying to post here!

I just keeping thinking of the song "a boy named Sue"

Tell us the name, we don't know you, and if you were really sure, the comments we make wouldn't bother you. This thread is really pointless without telling us the name, it could be anything from "Fanny" to "Fire Extinguisher"

I think you need to put yourself back into the classroom and imagine your teacher and everyone calling out that name to you, would you be embarrassed or proud of your different name? If you think a name will lead to bullying, then I think its unfair to do that just because you like it and want to make a statement. However if you truly love it and think it will be a positive in your child's life, then people will come around.

I find this interesting because it seems that bullying because of a name is never the fault of the bully, on MN at any rate. It seems that the majority of people think that unusual names are fair game, and I assume that that message is being passed on loud and clear to their DC.

I don't care how yoonique a name is, I would go ballistic if my DD mocked it.

I liked a couple of out there names when I was pregnant. Universally disliked by half the people I mentioned them too, of the remaining half it was a 50/50 mix of "what did you just say?!" bemusement and enthused approval.

We went with a different, but by no means wildly popular, name and I am glad.

"We shouldn't let other peoples reactions stop us doing anything."

Not when we're doing it for ourselves, no. When we're making a decision on behalf of someone unable to consent, the thinking needs to be different.

Rolan Bolan

As I understand it Duncan Jones had a period of being known as Joe. When he was in his teens I think and then reverted to Duncan.

Marc Bolan's real name was Mark Feld and his son was named Rolan Seymour Feld, but now goes by the name Rolan Bolan.

It's different strokes for different folks I suppose and it's easier to live up to something a bit off the wall if you're famous or offspring of someone famous.

It's not the being unusual I'd be wary of, it's the 100% negative responses, that's pretty much unheard of I'd have thought. One of my DCs has a name that while not unusual in itself, is uncommon. Over the years a few people have teased, a fair few have asked what it's short for and an awful lot have liked it. You expect to get a mix of reactions really don't you.

My niece has a yooneek made-up name. She's 14 now and hates it, not because she has been bullied but because it sounds 'chavvy' (to her) and she always has to spell/explain it. It doesn't help that my brother went on to have two other children with a different partner and gave them very ordinary names - think Jack and Emily with an older sister called Destynie.

It's not just bullying that you should think about, if you have told 20 people the name and 19 don't like it, the chances are your child might not like it either.

Zowie Bowie has always been called Duncan Zowie Jones. David Bowie's real name being David Jones.

And op - no, being bullied is not "character building" it is soul destroying. To give your child a name you already have serious doubts about strikes me as being very vain and selfish.

If you can't write it on an anonymous forum because you're afraid of the reaction then don't give it to your child.

^ this

Change your own name to something ridiculous and let your child have one less thing to worry about.

Bullying has caused children to commit suicide, I don't know how you can be so flippant about the subject. It's a nice happy ending story when people say they have been bullied and it made them stronger. That is not always the outcome.

I agree with babykr.

Bullies find weaknesses. Names these days are so yooneek generally an odd one won't raise an eyebrow.

We shouldn't let other peoples reactions stop us doing anything.

I had a lot of negative reactions about DD's name. I called her it anyway. It's been fine- then a celeb called their child it so now it's practically mainstream.

If you've had a number of negative comments already, don't use the name.

You could name change on here and ask for opinions.

If you can't write it on an anonymous forum because you're afraid of the reaction then don't give it to your child.

You're saying that you don't have the strength of character to stand by your idea and decision so how can you expect a child to be lumbered with it?

All credit to those who name their kids flallullah-applepop and hold their heads up with it. It's daft but I can at least admire their tenacity. And their kids will probably grow up being bold and not realising their name is daft because they are seeing their parents model it as normal.

I think children are now used to a unbelievably diverse range of names so just because an adult would it doesn't mean other children would.

I walked past the Reception coat pegs (4-5 year olds) yesterday and was shocked to see Apollo and Zeus among the Lilly and Ellies. The children in those classes will get used to names like that and not blink an eyelid when Ulysses or Olympia joins their year. (I'm not in trendy N London)
There are names that I would avoid (for example the initials BJ) and the fact that you won't say the name makes me think it's a name that you should give a future pet not a child.

"I don't want to share the name because everytime I mention someone says something negative"

Would you like to have a name that people think negative things about every time they hear it?

I don't think unusual names lead to bullying.

But they can lead to teasing, which is a pain in the neck. And, as my 3 "uniquely" named step nephews discovered, it is incredibly boring to have to explain and/or spell your name every single time you give it. They changed theirs when they went to secondary school, by the way. Their mother was heartbroken.

"The whole unusual name leads to bullying is BS!!!! If a child is going to be bullied it will be bullied regardles of whether they're called tom or buzz it will be because their coat is a different colour or because their lunchbox is different to everyone else's or they don't watch the same tv shows as the other kids. If you like a name then use it! I have an "unusual" name and am so glad I was never Chloe.B or Beth.H at school. Give your child the name that you like! They will thank you for it! I have learnt many life lessons through having an "unusual" name, like it is good to be individual and it is ok to do in life what you want to do rather then what society encourages!"

I absolutely agree with that! Kids are very accepting of different names and imo it is much cooler to have an unusual name than to be one of four Harrys/Toms.

Yes, some names are teaseworthy e.g. Fanny, Willy, Poopoohead etc , but just because a name is unusual does not make it teaseworthy.