Active discussions

Help protect children from gaming harms.

Take our survey

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Original poster

Thoughts on the name 'Aslan'

295 replies

sel2223 · 12/01/2020 16:36

My OH is Turkish and we've trying to agree on a name for a little boy (we have a girls name already).

We want a Turkish name with no special characters that is easy to pronounce in both Turkish and English. Asian means 'lion' in Turkish and is also the name of the lion from the Chronicles of Narnia, which I love.

What do you think? Is it too 'out there'?

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Set a reminder
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Incrediblytired · 18/08/2020 20:38

So.

In a number of social circles I mix in, Aslan is a code name for “poo”...

So if someone says “ooh I think Aslan is on the move” it means “I think I need a shit”.

“Are you ready to go out yet?” “Hold on a bit, Aslan’s growling” means “not quite, I think I need a poo before we go”...

I’ll just leave this comment here.

Toilenstripes · 18/08/2020 20:33

What about Yunus? It means dolphin in Turkish.

Lucylivesinamushroomhouse · 18/08/2020 20:31

Just remembered this thread and how much I love the name Aslan. OP what did you decide in the end? Would love an update!

Original poster
sel2223 · 15/01/2020 08:22

Wow 12 pages! Can I just take a second to thank everyone who got involved, It's been so interesting and helpful!
I promise to come back and let you all know what we decide x

OP posts:
missyoumuch · 15/01/2020 08:15

Guess it must be regional, I asked my relative and he said only religious people in his area would name their son Ismail or Ibrahim.

SE13Mummy · 14/01/2020 20:40

@missyoumuch earlier on in the thread, OP said her OH was Muslim. The Turkish Ishmael and Ibrahim I know are both from families that are not practising Muslims. One of the boys has a twin with a secular name.

randomusername1 · 14/01/2020 12:02

I really like Aslan and I really think you should go for it, I would mainly associate it as a Muslim name or with the lion from the narnia movies, never knew about all this god/religious connection but then I've never read the books.

I've nc because this bit is outing but my ex seriously wanted to name our ds Tarzan 😂 I would have compromised with Arzan but we went with Azad in the end.

Original poster
sel2223 · 14/01/2020 11:33

I've learned a lot during the course of this thread too.... great stuff!

OP posts:
Original poster
sel2223 · 14/01/2020 10:53

Thank you everyone! I appreciate all the responses and suggestions.
A lot have already been ruled out but there are a few new ones in there I like! Thank you x

OP posts:
MopsRUs · 14/01/2020 09:43

I think Aslan is a great name.

blueruin · 14/01/2020 07:24

How about Kaplan? I hear it means tiger.

missyoumuch · 14/01/2020 02:35

What about Ishmael, Isaac, Idris or Ibrahim? I know the first two have different Turkish spellings but wondered if they might work if paired with the Turkish last name?

Although most Turks are Muslim, the use of Islamic/Arabic names outside of a few very common ones - e.g. Mehmet (Mohammed), Ayşe (Aisha) - would indicate to others that you are highly religious. I wouldn't suggest those names unless OP and her partner are practicing Muslims.

SE13Mummy · 14/01/2020 00:14

What about Ishmael, Isaac, Idris or Ibrahim? I know the first two have different Turkish spellings but wondered if they might work if paired with the Turkish last name?

I know a Turkish Ishmael (Ishy) who is lovely and used to teach a fabulous child whose name is Sami. Aziz, Erhan, Mustafa, Kerem, Mehmet, Yusuf, Musa, Volkan, Benan (Ben), Erol, Hamza, Kasim, Nadir, Nuh, Nur, Samir and Rayan are some of the Turkish boys I've taught over the years.

Jambo1 · 13/01/2020 23:58

Aslan is a great name.

RhubarbFizz · 13/01/2020 23:58

I know a Turkish boy named Aral

Majorcollywobble · 13/01/2020 23:50

Aslan is perfect for a boy with a Turkish father . I like it .

Ginbauble · 13/01/2020 23:43

Lover Eren and Erdem.

Grumpasaurus · 13/01/2020 23:31

Those are more traditional names, to be fair.

I really like Aslan, for the record.

I used to go back and forth to turkey a lot with my ex- some names are so hard to say in English!

What about:

Eylu
Neval
Zeki

Grumpasaurus · 13/01/2020 23:16

I dated a Serdar, which was lovely and easy to say.

His dad was named Bekir, which I also liked.

Lordfrontpaw · 13/01/2020 22:59

ThePlantsitter - the name Tarzan is supposed to have been made up as the apes name for the foundling in the book. I can’t see it as a name before that. Where is it from then?

mynameiswah · 13/01/2020 22:08

Aslan is a great name but I've always thought it would suit a dog (or cat). In fact, it's on my list of pet names, if I ever get one.

blueruin · 13/01/2020 21:44

I know an Aslan. I thought it was a little bit funny at first because it made me think of Narnia but not any longer. He's an awesome kid and he 'owns' his name.

Oakeyy · 13/01/2020 21:14

I do just think of the lion from the Lion, Witch and Wardrobe etc. But I'm sure the baby would begin to own the name once it's established and then people would think of him, not the lion, once they knew him.

Amelie was very famous for the film and there are sooooo many Amelie's now that I don't bat an eye. If you really like it, go for it.

littlealexhorne · 13/01/2020 21:02

Its really grown on me as I've read the thread too! Also I'm British and had no idea there was any religious connotation/connection.

Isbutteracarb · 13/01/2020 20:58

I love Aslan! FWIW I've never read Narnia so no connotations whatever, it just sounds like a perfectly nice name to me. I get wanting to have names the sound the same in both languages, my DH is Polish so we chose the Polish version of a classic name I thought would be pretty straightforward but people often mistake it for the English name which is pronounced differently. Not a huge deal but it does happen a lot.

Not sure if it's been mentioned already but have you considered Orhan?