Yoonique names?

We gave dd an unusual name. She's very much not a lifestyle accessory. I just liked the sound of it It's a nice word.

Anyone who really wants an unusual baby boy name should consider Gary. Only 33 of them born last year

Other very rare names include Barry, Ronald, Nigel, Gerald and Maurice

My DS is called Cosmo. It's an unusual name but not 'yoonique' - it's a name that has a confirmed etymology (from the Greek Kosmos). It also, in my case, reflects my Italian husband's heritage as it's a derivation of the Italian name Cosmo (FIL's) and Cosmo is also the patron saint of doctors (SIL a doctor).

Spelling it Kozmow - now that would be 'yoonique'!

Chaos would make a great name.
I do dislike people altering the spellings of names - Irish has no v so it makes sense for Niamh to be written that way. It's not comparable to spelling Amy as Aimey (and I know an Aimey).

Originally, names had meanings. e.g. 'Susan' was the Hebrew for graceful white lily. So you were using a word that already existed in the language and naming your child after some quality you admired.

Yoonique names often have nothing to do with meaning or association. They're just a combination of sounds that the parent likes. So they sound like nonsense words. Meaningless. And some people have tin ears.

Or there are words that have never been used as names but sound nice, which can be dodgy when the namer has no idea of the associations others will have. I always thought Diphtheria would be a lovely name for a girl.

Our choices for DC 3 were Corbin and Cleo. We now have a rabbit called Corbin and DD4 called Cleo. We hadn't quite clicked that it was unusual it was the one we both agreed on with nice meaning.
We can never get things with her name on and it s pretty irritating when people Call her Chloe constantly or spell it Clio when they do I smile and say were named her it because that's where she was conceived!

I can remember when Chelsea and Brooks (or Brooke) were considered odd. Now they're quite popular in all walks of life.

Paul was coined by Jesus, wasn't it

Only if you believe in a mythical being such as Jesus, of course
In any event, all names were thought up by someone, somewhere, at some time in history.

I wonder what we would all be called if we didn't have names that had been dreamed up by someone?

I am not a fan of unique or creative names, partly because of personal taste and partly because it makes me think that the parents are using the child as a kind of lifestyle accessory rather than a person in their own right.

I agree with this - and it's not mitigated at all if the parents are vey posh as opposed to (I don't like the word, but as a shorthand) "chavvy" - the kid still needs to function in today's world so heaping on the eccentricity isn't doing him/her favours.

Well, I'd think that would actually be exactly the point. The person who first though of the names Abigail or Adam were being unique at the time. The fact that these are now popular names is because someone thought of them in the first place and other people liked them - albeit hundreds or thousands of years ago

(Spelling variations are another matter entirely, of course).

Perhaps I've missed the difference between unique and 'yoonique'

The earliest recorded use of Abigail is about 1040 BC, so I doubt anyone can possibly say how it came to be used then, or before then.

Paul was coined by Jesus, wasn't it?

That's not the point of yoonique names though, is it Evans? They don't want another child with the same name!

For instance, my name probably wouldn't have appeared in a 'Book of Names' back in the 50s, but I expect it would now.

So how do you think any name came about in the first place, Sparkly and Fizrim. How can a book of names come to be, if no-one had ever thought of names to call their children?

Who thought of the names Abigail, or Paul, in the first place, just as examples?

I am not a fan of unique or creative names, partly because of personal taste and partly because it makes me think that the parents are using the child as a kind of lifestyle accessory rather than a person in their own right. More concerned about how cool they think they look as parents.

I think there's a big difference between a genuinely "unique" name, and a weird-spelling yoonique name!
To me a unique name, is a name that is not often heard, but is still obvious it's a name that might appear in a book of names.
In my mind, a "yoonique" name is a "name" that the parents have completely made up there's a kid a DD's play group who is called "Sunbeame"

If I told you, I'd have to kill you. (Curiosity and the cat and all that)

When I was born in the late 50s, my Mum invented my name. She still maintains I am the oldest person in Britain with this name. It was a bit tough growing up, as I was teased mercilessly, and no-one could ever spell or pronounce it correctly.

Now, just about every 20th female has this name, different spellings, but the same name.

It's how names come about, isn't it? Someone, somewhere, had to think of a name, any name in the first place, for it to become popular and commonplace.

I suppose its because we value autheticity and a new spelling of a name my cheapen the foundation of it, with the name representing that child. If it is totally made up I suppose it would be gen unique. A very difficult thing to do because, certain sounds, words all stem or represent something. e.g if I was to call my child Bantao, sort of sounds like bantowel; yes the banning of towels :/. I'm still searching for names so difficult.

BinaryFinary I absolutely love that you think there are "associated norms, tastes and values" with being well educated. This says it all! The mantra of the middle classes. And yes you're right, I think MN - or certainly this particular thread - is the voice of that.

*now quite popular

I was born in the 80's to hippy parents and had a very unusual name which is not quite popular.

I LOVED having an unusual name and am now slightly gutted at having to share it .

Mary I have a 2yr old Niamh, I will hang my head in shame too