to think that naming a baby shouldn't be a competition in stupidity

[Ithinkitsjustme]

I don't really care what you name your baby, but I have noticed an ever increasing number of frankly attention grabbing names around, when the mother of 2 boys, names them JimiHendrix (one word) and BobDylan (again, one word) then AIBU to think it's getting a bit ott!

According to Wikipedia, Dweezil and Moon Unit have siblings called Ahmet Emuukha Rodan and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen. Some might say D and MU got off lightly.

You are not serious? FFS

I was just saying the same to my DS Stepney, and my DD Dollis-Hill. Someone has to draw the line

I did hear (from a friend) about her friend's dh who suggested Hal for their first child. Which is OK - except he wanted it to be Hal short for Halibut. His dw must have refused, as the child got an ordinary name.

I went to school with a girl called "Candida". She got some serious grief about her name and her nickname was "fungus". Children can be cruel, hence any child of mine will have something straight forward and sane.

A friend asked her MW what was the most unusual baby name she'd encountered. The MW said "Yeti".

I heard someone called their DD Merlot.

For some reason the Horrible Histories Gory Games programme has some right shockers on, my personal favourite was Sonnyboy.
Sonnyboy (yes all one word) was about 7 and had a mohican.

It just stinks of parents expressing their 'coolness' through their children.

My poor friend has two older teenage sons called Tony and Blair.

I kid ye not.

The problem with coolness is that it ages. My boys Fitch and Abercrombie were saying so only today. They then had a quarrel about who would be renamed Hollister.

I watched the CBeebies birthdays bit and there was a card for twin boys "Victory" and "Sucess".

Admirable sentiment but I wanted to weep.

PS Nowt wrong with "plain" old James, it's a classic name. Mr Bond does all right with it ;)

Zowie Bowie's called Duncan Jones now.

I think Candida is a lovely name and i know two of them,one in her twenties and one in her late thirties.

wonder what became of Rolan Bolan (Marc's boy)

RE - The Candida name...

It was a normal respectable slightly posh name, until it became an STD.

So, sometimes the names become odd/funny/outthere after the child has been named.

Think of all the Harry Potters in their 20s or over who were named before it became a brand...

YABU.

Perhaps you would like to provide a list of approved names from which we could choose?

fwiw everyone I know with an unusual name (and believe me, I know some - children as we are of the late 60s and early 70s) has kept that name and remains happy with it. Some of those names have become more mainstream years on, others less so. Most of them have done v.well for themselves, too.

And fwiw (again!) my own ds has a pretty normal name, so I have no axe to grind. I cannot be doing with narrow-mindedness however.

is quite appropriate for this discussion I think. FWIW I agree. I'm sure Pilot Inspektor agrees with you OP.

PS A child living round the cornor from MIL is called Lucifer.

I've lived in countries that do have an approved list of names... sometimes I wonder if there isn't a very good reason for it.

Oy ! whats wrong with: Jaidyyn-Leighvi (Jayden-Levi), Treyy (Trey), Shaqeeelah, Caydience (Caydence), Keane (pronounced Kane), D'Angelo, TyShawnn, Southern-Rome (really!) ?
(All names I know sadly and a couple in the paper today.) Poor kids is all I can say !

So, sometimes the names become odd/funny/outthere after the child has been named.

So true, I know a Lenore, I think she was about three when the fabric softener came out.

I have a distant relative whose middle name is Obi Wan. His first name is just as cringe worthy but that's already giving myself away.

There's a limit. He is bullied mercilessly at school.

Just want to say that Jihad is a very common Arabic name! It doesn't actually mean 'holy war' it means 'struggle'. A woman is doing Jihad when she is giving birth for example.

We know an Obi. Short for Obidiah, but nobody realises that!

I agree. I'm a nurse working in a children's operating department and for each patient we record the child's name on the swab count board for all the team to see. Sometimes the names I have to write are just a sign of the 'modern' times like 'Zac' and 'Paisley' but then there are the parents who call their kids things like 'Tinkerbell' 'Spyda' and 'Sunray' BUT most of all, you can tell the parents that think they're smart and snazzy by changing the spelling of a traditional name (or even a modern one) to something like 'Aymey' or 'Hailee' or just plain mis-spelling it like 'Coal' instead of 'Cole'! Make people seem just plain thick if you ask me, LOL.