Page 2 | A black child with an Eastern European name ?

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MerryChristmasToYou · 23/06/2022 11:20

Questions like 'Is it your real name or did you change it?', 'Are you adopted?'
Going for a job interview and being aware that the person is surprised by your appearance - they were expecting someone white and middle-aged.

All are signs of ignorance and prejudice, but i think that most people will have a mental image of what sort of person will look like based on their name.

From what I understand, France is more racist than the UK.

RevoltingHumanHead · 23/06/2022 11:12

Namerci · 23/06/2022 10:58

Can you please tell me which issues it caused ?

That's my fear, that "Anya Dimitrieva" ( not real name) will be assumed to be a european/white girl/woman and she will forever have to explain herself. Or people will think I wanted a white child , or that she is adopted.

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I think she'll get comments and questions on Dimitrieva anyway, no matter what her first name is.

Original poster

Namerci · 23/06/2022 11:00

Plexie · 23/06/2022 10:57

Quite a drip feed that the OP lives in France, not the UK.

For what it's worth (very little, as I live in the UK) I didn't know Karlene and Anya were East European names anyway. I've known a Carlene, and Anya has been in use for a long time. In fact there's a variety of potato called Anya, named after Anya Sainsbury who was born in the 1930s.

You really need to ask some French people.

We are not going to live in France forever. So there's no "drip feed". I just added info as the conversation continued.

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Original poster

Namerci · 23/06/2022 10:58

MerryChristmasToYou · 23/06/2022 09:41

Not shocking, but might cause the odd query.

I know someone who has a very british sounding name but is mixed race, and whose looks suggest a different nationality, and it has caused a few issues.

Say there were two people and one was Jane Wilson and the other was Aisha Siddiqui, Jane would be assumed to be Aisha, even though she had no Pakistani heritage but was 7/8 Indian by blood.

Can you please tell me which issues it caused ?

That's my fear, that "Anya Dimitrieva" ( not real name) will be assumed to be a european/white girl/woman and she will forever have to explain herself. Or people will think I wanted a white child , or that she is adopted.

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Plexie · 23/06/2022 10:57

Quite a drip feed that the OP lives in France, not the UK.

For what it's worth (very little, as I live in the UK) I didn't know Karlene and Anya were East European names anyway. I've known a Carlene, and Anya has been in use for a long time. In fact there's a variety of potato called Anya, named after Anya Sainsbury who was born in the 1930s.

You really need to ask some French people.

MaChienEstUnDick · 23/06/2022 10:56

I think in France it's very different, isn't it?

In the UK there's research that suggests 'white' names get called for interviews and opportunities more than 'black' names - which of course is massively racist and I very much hope will be eradicated by the time your LO is in the job market. Is that maybe what your sil is thinking about?

Whatever, Anya is such a beautiful name.

Hoppinggreen · 23/06/2022 10:44

My half Indian friend and her black husband have a son called Dmitri
I think it does raise a few eyebrows but it doesn’t seem really odd

Amid · 23/06/2022 10:38

My niece is Anya. Not strange at all.

Igmum · 23/06/2022 10:27

Second generation Latvian here too - go for it and congratulations

bobbythevet · 23/06/2022 10:22

To me, Anya is a fairly domesticated (and lovely) name in the UK, so if you were here I wouldn't think of it as being anything but British. Though I appreciate that may be different in France, even then people that raise an eyebrow aren't good folk.

RevoltingHumanHead · 23/06/2022 10:19

I thought of Carleen Anderson from the Young Disciples too!

Both names are absolutely fine and wouldn't seem at all incongruous to me on a Black child.

Lindy2 · 23/06/2022 10:10

No. I'd just think she was a child with a lovely name.

IncompleteSenten · 23/06/2022 10:02

Your sister in law understands that some black people are European right?

Unless she think that all black people are born in Kenya and move. 🙄

LosDolses · 23/06/2022 09:55

My sisters name is French, she is not French.
My name is Russian, also not Russian.

You are over thinking it. Anybody can have any name they want.

MerryChristmasToYou · 23/06/2022 09:41

Not shocking, but might cause the odd query.

I know someone who has a very british sounding name but is mixed race, and whose looks suggest a different nationality, and it has caused a few issues.

Say there were two people and one was Jane Wilson and the other was Aisha Siddiqui, Jane would be assumed to be Aisha, even though she had no Pakistani heritage but was 7/8 Indian by blood.

Original poster

Namerci · 23/06/2022 09:16

By the way we live a town in France , so it's so not like London. Conformity is encouraged , " Oh in France act like French people" , they even had a dude who wanted to forbid non-French names run for presidency.

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Original poster

Namerci · 23/06/2022 09:12

emuloc I am not sure, but if the teacher reads the name , let's say Dimitri Siemonev and a black boy puts his hand up , people might find it strange ? I don't know

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SausageAndCash · 23/06/2022 09:10

I live in S London and any list of names from the Dc’ school, such as the 100s involved in the concerts or prizegiving demonstrates the fantastic global diversity of London.

Nothing would raise an eyebrow, not even slightly.

Polish-Vietnamese hyphenated surname? Bring it on. Etc.

Original poster

Namerci · 23/06/2022 09:06

Thank you everyone. I feel more relieved.

Sorry, maybe I should've added it in the OP. I started thinking about it since my sister-in-law made a comment about it. Something like " A black girl with an Eastern-European name ? Strange".

Yes, her family name will also be Easter European.

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thenewduchessoflapland · 23/06/2022 09:05

To be kind here it doesn't matter what your child's skin colour is you have the right to name your child whatever you like;if people don't like/want to make assumptions then that's on them.

Both myself and DD's have names that are traditional in a particular Eastern European country;we've never been asked about our names and people don't know I have a great grandparent that came from that country.

Your name choices are lovely.

yui · 23/06/2022 09:04

Not at all.

I've never heard of an Eastern European woman named Karlene and I would never have guessed it was Latvian. To me it looks like a name from the US South, similar to Arlene and Darlene.

Anya is fairly popular in the UK generally, so I can't see anyone being surprised by it.

Etinoxaurus · 23/06/2022 09:04

Chaoslatte · 23/06/2022 08:57

My neighbours are black and their daughter is called Sasha which is Eastern European and I’ve never thought about that until now

More derailing- I always thought of Sasha as a black name because I envied my friend’s black Sasha doll. Looking at them now they’re terrifying- Midwich cuckoos!

A black child with an Eastern European name ?

MandyMotherOfBrian · 23/06/2022 09:01

It’s fine, and ok different spelling, but Carleen Anderson one of my all time favourites!

emuloc · 23/06/2022 08:59

Namerci · 23/06/2022 08:48

Hi! I have been thinking about this a lot , and would like to get some opinions.
My husband is half Latvian half Black British and I am Black. We are expecting a little girl and we both like the names Karlene and Anya, which are latvian/Russian names. But our baby will probably look fully black ( Since she'll only be 25% Latvian). Would you find that odd or shocking if you met a black person with an Eastern European name ?

Why would it be odd or even shocking though? However the skin tone of your child, the fact is that you wish to name her with a name from her heritage. Do so, and don't concern yourself with what people think.

LimesandClementines · 23/06/2022 08:58

I don't think it would even cross my mind! Anya is a lovely name btw