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Baby names

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

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Original poster

Oban - anyone familiar with this name?

71 replies

CornerOfTheSky · 04/03/2020 12:09

This name is on our potentials list for boys, because it's one of few that we both agree we like, going purely by the sound of the name, and that it means little bay, rather than any particular connection to the place in Scotland or being big fans of the whisky.

Could anyone confirm the pronunciation? If my research is right, I think it's pronounced Obe-un, a bit like Open with a b, and the emphasis on the Oh syllable, rather than saying it like Oh-BAN or Oh-BEN?

Would appreciate the input of any Scottish mumsnetters, Twitter seemed a bit disparaging of Oban the place,...is it a bit like naming your child Blackpool?

OP posts:

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JollyGiraffe12 · 05/03/2020 23:21

It feels downmarket to me but I can’t put my finger on why

Verily1 · 05/03/2020 23:19

The name Nairn isn’t so uncommon so it’s not really any different from that!

Twixes · 04/03/2020 20:56

Obanweekinobee

WouldShouldCould · 04/03/2020 19:29

@florascotia2 that's a great link, the names listed
Fave Baroque-Valentyne

rednsparkley · 04/03/2020 19:07

I was also brought up there and quite enjoy the single malt but I would not give my child the name. I do like Oran though

Thisismytimetoshine · 04/03/2020 15:32

No worries, I don’t always express myself very well

florascotia2 · 04/03/2020 15:27

time to shine Sorry if I gave the wrong impression - I wasn't meaning to criticise your post. Oban does indeed look quaint in the picture-postcard long-distance veiws. All I was trying to say is that close up it can also be very busy and very very touristy, and that the port is right at the heart of the town. I rather like Oban as a place but I most certainly wouldn't name a child after it.

Thisismytimetoshine · 04/03/2020 15:23

Word . Jesus...

Thisismytimetoshine · 04/03/2020 15:22

Oh, I meant quaint in a good way! Maybe it was the wrong world.

florascotia2 · 04/03/2020 15:19

It is quaint from a distance. Close up, it has some pleasant Victorian buildings and some rather scruffy areas. But nothing horrific. It has charm.

However - most important - who you WILL find wandering around are thousands and thousands of tourists. the streets can be crammed on summer weekends.It's Scotland's fifth most popular tourist destination, I believe. It's frequently said - though I don't know where the info comes from - that the population swells from around 8500 in winter to 25,000 in summer. It's not posh or gentrified or particularly cultural (unlike Tobermory, home of Balamory) - it's a busy working port. westhighlandline.org.uk/oban/ Like all ports, it's very interesting. And it is in a truly spectacular setting.

It rains on almost 200 days per year. It gets wonderful sunsets.

ShowOfHands · 04/03/2020 15:10

I visited Oban while honeymooning in Scotland. We had excellent fish and chips and listened to a little folk band playing in the basement of a bar. I quite liked it there. It's not really established as a name for a child though.

IKEA888 · 04/03/2020 15:07

I have met one and love the name.
Although I detest the place... it's a nightmare tourist trap.
I'm.scottish and it's it's pronounced as it's written.
so ... Ohhhban

IAmFleshIAmBone · 04/03/2020 15:02

I grew up around there, its a nice little place, ALWAYS windy. I don't think it's a nice name for a child but each to their own! I'm probably too used to hearing it.

Thisismytimetoshine · 04/03/2020 14:54

I think it looks really quaint. You’d expect to see the Balamorey characters wandering about...

florascotia2 · 04/03/2020 14:49

More about Oban town maps.nls.uk/townplans/background/oban.html

It's not usually used as a name, though there were six babies given the name in Scotland in 2018, but none in 2010. So perhaps it's having a moment... Stats here www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/names/babies-first-names/full-lists-of-babies-first-names-2010-to-2014

florascotia2 · 04/03/2020 14:34

OH-ban - you can listen here: learngaelic.scot/dictionary/index.jsp?abairt=Oban&slang=both&wholeword=false

Oban does mean 'little bay' - though the bay at Oban is huge , in fact ; as previous posters have said it's the main ferry port for the Hebriedes. And rather run down, though not unpleasantly so. But perhaps you might want to NB that there is a very, very similar word in Scottish gaelic ( obann) that means 'suddenly'.

DoAsYouWouldBeMumBy · 04/03/2020 14:25

I'm not getting what's wrong with Oban the town - ferries to the Hebrides, fabulous scenery and countryside, amazing chippy I suppose if you're comparing it with St Tropez or somewhere...

But if you can't pronounce it, don't call your son it, is a reasonable rule. Sounds ok to me, though I'm not a fan of made-up names.

Iminaglasscaseofemotion · 04/03/2020 14:22

I love the place, go there often for a weekend away. Just nostalgia though. It's not the nicest of places. I wouldn't name my child oban though.

Time40 · 04/03/2020 14:18

It sounds quite nice as a name, but poor Oban would spend his entire life explaining to people why he was called Oban, and I think he'd get sick to death of having the same conversation over and over.

I like the pp's suggestion of Oran.

(I was in Oban last month. It's OK. A bit grey and run down, and it rains a lot. The countryside around there is beautiful.)

Namelesswonder · 04/03/2020 14:05

No different to naming your child Preston or Chelsea or any other town name I guess. I would wonder if child had been conceived there though!

midwestspring · 04/03/2020 13:56

I think it is quite pleasant, just like a lot of places it can suffer from a lack of investment.
The basic countryside, seascape and architecture are very scenic.

Thisismytimetoshine · 04/03/2020 13:46

Oh, that looks quite pleasant? Maybe different up closer.

midwestspring · 04/03/2020 13:34

It is a slightly run down place but not unpleasant. Very wet often with some boarded up shops.

Original poster

CornerOfTheSky · 04/03/2020 13:13

What if you’d been told it was pronounced differently to how you’d imagined op?

If I were told it is pronounced differently to what I thought, we'd take it off the list of potential names. At the moment, it's just one option out of a few that we are considering.

Thanks for those who have given me a bit more context to the name / place. Just wanted to do my research before we get serious about any name contenders.

Of all the names to choose from, you agree on one that isn't actually a person's name and you're not sure how to pronounce it.

Again, yes thank you for the helpful comment. Wasn't actually asking for opinions on our 'picking a name' process. Why are some people on here so brash and rude for no reason?

OP posts:

eddiemairswife · 04/03/2020 13:03

Sherry Hewson(?) actress.

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