Thoughts on having a really rare name?

Unusual names are fine so long as they're not spelt weirdly.
Also when written down (as in School register) they're easy enough to read.

I have one daughter with a super rare name, and one with a super common name.

Can’t say it’s bothered either of them.

I was fairly unusual growing up, and tbh never met many since, but it’s an obvious name, unlike my elder dds.

I love both of yours.

Also my DS middle name is Jett, everyone thought that was a weird name 😂😂😂

Oops.. Should have read your last post before I wrote mine!

If they didn't like their name they could always go by Aria or Ollie as a nickname rather than Ariadne or Olan.

Oh and I've never heard of Olan but it is very similar to Alan which is a totally normal name, so it works fine!

Some rare names don't always stay rare...
My names Naomi, I have only ever met one.
But apparently it's popular now!
I hate it, people don't say it correctly and let's not start on the spelling 😂😂
And shortening it isn't easy...
Used to get called Nay, but my mum would always tell people not to call it me.
Now it's shorted to Nomes... 😂😂😂
And Nomester 🙈🙈
Oh and check the spellings...
My name spelt backwards is 'Imoan' 🙈🙈🙈

I really like your names too.

We named our son a very rare name (not featured in the lists at all for his year of birth) - however, it is an historical name, a saint's name even. It was quite popular in, oh, about the 1100s 😂 But it has a great meaning, it's easy to spell and it sounds a bit like other names of that era that are more popular (I guess a bit like Olan and Alan?), so people can generally figure out how to spell it.

Admittedly we live abroad so our son's nursery class is full of names I've never heard of from different cultures, but so far I've had no problems at all and lots of compliments on our choice.

That said, just in case HE hates it later, his middle name is James

She was horribly bullied at school for being "two faced"

I would suspect it wasn’t the associations that caused Janus problems with her name

Then 'research' isn't the problem, bullies are the problem. And mispronunciation.

My name is very rarely used but not ‘out there’. I’ve only met a few others in 49 years. I like it. It’s not yooneek, just unusual.

@Pebblespony I loved Ariadne too. If your DP is anything like mine agreed to any name I wanted after watching me give birth!

Mainie I would suspect it wasn’t the associations that caused Janus problems with her name.

It’s what nasty school kids could do by just dropping the J...

Mainie
She was horribly bullied at school for being "two faced"
teenagers pick on ANYTHING

One of my kids has a name that was almost unheard of 25yrs ago and is commons jie in under 5s. No issues

Janus has lovely associations

And contains the word anus.

Important thing with unusual names : please research them before using my colleague Jan hated the fact that her true name was Janus

Sounds as if Jan needed to do her research. Janus has lovely associations -- Roman god of transitions, beginnings, endings, birth, doorways and gateways, looking with two faces towards the present and the past.

Ariadne was in my top 3, I think it is a beautiful name, it just didn't suit our baby when she was born.

I’ve loved the name since I was a child, I think from about 6-7 years old. No idea where I first heard it. It makes me think of spiders.

OP you are naming your DD after Ariadne the Spider from the 1980s children’s programme “Creepy Crawlies”.

Fair play to you, it was a great programme...

Important thing with unusual names : please research them before using
my colleague Jan hated the fact that her true name was Janus

Is Olan Mills photography still going? Sorry that was my immediate thought for your boys name.

I've got a really unusual name - I hated it as a child as I was really shy and found it excruciating when people asked me my name as I'd always have to repeat it/spell it/explain etc. Now I go by an uncommon but 'known' nickname for all but the most official purposes. Now I'm older I quite like that my name is unique but as a child I just didn't want to stand out. I was always disappointed that I couldn't ever buy anything with my name on in gift shops too - much worse than the Starbucks issue IMO

Slightly different but I have an Irish name with Irish spellings and it's a nightmare having to spell it or repeat it any time I'm anywhere abroad. When I lived abroad it drove me nuts and I didn't give my children Irish names because of this.

Funny how different people's experiences can be. I've lived outside Ireland my entire adult life, and have an Irish first and surname, and DS has an unusual Irish first name and both DH and my Irish surnames, and people seem to manage just fine. Obviously, non-Irish people won't know in advance how to pronounce or spell them, but, seriously, if you're crushed by a dental receptionist not getting your name right, or have a desperate need to be able to buy a mug/fridge magnet/stick of rock with your name on it, you're probably too sensitive to go out without a suit of armour.

I have a very rare name, only ever met one other. It's an easily recognisable word and spelling and brings a smile to everyone's face. I absolutely love it and can safely say my life would not have been the same if I'd had a common name. I've blessed all 3 of my kids with unusual names and they love it too!

I love Ariadne! Floated it to DH just now for our baby due in May. Unceremoniously shot down.

If you give your child a rare first name

• give them a relatively common second name that they can switch to if they want
• allow them to shorten / adapt their name if they wish
• get used to it being mispronounced

and PLEASE don't make it be something downright odd
www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-46393501