Is this 'baby names' section a bit racist?

Really?! I think Layla's a gorgeous name... that's now on my list in case small jellybean becomes DD1.

I think it's just down to personal taste, and maybe we tend to warm to names we are more familiar with?

Is she? And I thought I knew all the Charlies Angels trivia!

Like all three of these those names (is that semi interesting? )

Farrah Fawcet is of Arabic decent I think..really threw that blonde pure American cliche she represented out of the water

One interesting name that came up the other day was Farrah.

All most posters could think of was flicky hair and bell bottoms (me included). Then the poster mentioned ?her dh was arabic and this is an arabic name (please correct me if wrong as I cant remember exactly) and suddenly the name seemed less terrifyingly California 70's.

Is that racist?

Very middle class, though, isn't it? Even I admit I am guilty of thinking 'Jordin? Paige? Mason? Urgh!' although I am not in the 'oh William and Alexander are just diviiiiiine dahling' category, yet!'

Saying Dante is a tad pretentious and that Donte is a crap silly misspelling is now racist? Oh what utter bollocks.

I honestly never noticed racism in this section.

Maybe you are referring to the fact that some people just find it odd giving a very typical name to a child that has no relation whatsoever to it's origin.

For instance, I don't object to french flower names for girls but Italian boys names for non Italians sound just plain daft in my opinion.

However, I think you may very well have a valid point when you say "Interesting, so people just assume that only white women are having babies and using mn ".

I'm guilty as charged here. Most of the time I make that assumption. Ironically I'm from an ethnic/religious minority myself.

I haven't seen Islamic names slagged off at all.

I do think there is a bit of an upper middle class bias to what people find acceptable.

But then I get out of my pram at non-Irish people wanting traditional Irish names they can neither say or spell!!!

Was it Sarah!?!?!?

People hear a name and react to it based on their own experience or image of the name. That's the best we can do on a message board.

If that name has completely different connotations within a different ethnic group, then a poster with knowledge of those different connotations can come forth and state their opinion as strongly as they like.

Doesn't make other posters racist.

names disclamer.Yes read at your peril your euphoria inducing name is vomit inducing to someone else

I'd like to hear which Islamic names are discredited, as the OP says.

I have seen people ask if someone is scottish/irish/welsh because of their name choices. I've also seen people stating that their family heritage is italian/french etc so they want a name that fits with that. I think if you are looking at a name that has a definite cultural element then it makes sense to state your connection to that culture.

TBH, if you're that bothered by other people's opinions of your choice of name that you have to ask on an anonymous forum where posters can't see you and know nothing about you, your heritage or your current life then you have to accept that people are going to make assumptions about you.

Seeing as MN is mainly british and therefore mainly white (as that's still the predominant race in the UK) then yes, it's understandable that people judge acording to those criteria.

Boulders, with regard to Danté, I suggested Donato (Italian) with Dante for short. (Ditto Donald).

Danté strikes me as a turtle name, not an afro-caribbean name.

Well, I am White and I'm Irish and I guess that yes, that that has some bearing on my opinions. We are all shaped up to a point by our upbringing.

I don't think anybody owns a name. But I think if somebody doesn't feel comfortable using an Eskimo name, then that should be respected!!!

Boulders-unfortunately some folk are unkind about any name.i dont interpret a racist subtext just rude

I've noticed the Dante slagging too - think it's a lovely name fwiw. I tend to think of it as a 'black' name because I have so far only come across black or mixed race boys called Dante. I have seen it called chavvy on mn, I think - really don't know why.

Didnt know Dante had a race slant to it. Like it, but think of inferno and rings of hell etc. Not race...

I think boulders has a fair point.
you do get people coming on and slagging names off, and demanding to know if the poster has x,y or z cultural background.

have never seen anyone say "i'm calling my baby john" and get the same response (ie, well, it's ok, but only if you have a british background)

what sprogger said

how does the subject of race enter it then?

Someone slagged of one of my DS's names a little while ago saying "what sort of a name is that".......but I'm just presuming they didn't realise it's a pretty common name in the country where my exh was born and bred - and where we met and married.