Do you classify or label people by their name?

[manicinsomniac]

And does it often turn out to be correct?

I have a shameful addiction to the baby names forum.

Recently I have noticed my oldest daughter's name getting rather a slamming. It has come up in the past and it has generally been agreed on as 'chavvy'. Recently is has been called 'truly awful' 'dreadful' and 'just no'.

Her name is Savannah. The names Susannah, Samantha, Sophia and Sylvia however, are almost always received positively. These names, especially the first two, are very similar. So what is it that makes Savannah 'truly awful'? I can only assume that people are basing their liking of the name on what they assume its owner or her parent/s to be like, rather than the actual sound of the name.

I've also seen that people 'hate' the names Charlize and Charmaine but really like Charlotte. That they think Jayden is an awful name but like Aiden and Hayden. Isabella and Annabella are lovely but Arabella is ridiculous.

Am I unreasonable to think that people pretend not to like names when the truth is that they just have a particular association with a name that they wouldn't want for their child? And, if so, do those associations bear out in real life? I'm getting worried that I've saddled my child with a name that will cause people to roll their eyes before they've even met her. Especially as comment about my other two daughters names tend to sum up as 'nice but dull' and 'nice but posh' as oppose to 'god-awful!'

RachelWatts- thank you, that's really interesting re Afro-American names, and completely understandable why people would make that choice.

I'm always impressed when parents choose classic/biblical names which are not commonly used.

you can be unusual without being chavvy.

Its rather naive to suggest that you can't often tell a lot about people and their background from the names they have. Not consistently, not always accurately on an individual level, but on a population level of course you can.
You can have a good guess at the background of both Jaiden and Tarquin. You can tell something about the parents of either Lexxi-Mae and Cressida. You can have a stab at the leanings of the creators of Skye Moon vs Richard James.

It;s just the way it is. I don't think thats the same as being judgy or mean, its simply the way it works.

I wouldn't have thought I cared about what other people think of my children's names, until we found we were expecting ds3. We wanted to call him Roman, but our surname is almost identical to Polanski so we decided in the end we just couldn't do it.

On a subconscious level I'm sure I do make some assumptions based on names, but it's something I actively try to guard against because it's the behaviour of a twat, really.

I woul like to think I do notjudge by names as people do not choose their own generally. I am 5 mnths pgand my husband is dutch we both love a certain dutch boys name but fear english people will just not get it....what to do....

Interesting ... ish The baby names forum HATES my name! It can't decide whether it's chavvy, pretentious or ridiculous, but it hates me!

OK, so what would you surmise about these names?

Devin
Pierre
Edward
Perry
Bonnie
Fred

I remember reading that the happiest name to have was Pam, which is hardly ever heard of!
My daughter has an unusual name and we've not met another yet. A very popular name sounds similar, and many people have the same nickname but with a different spelling (F instead of Ph). I'm happy with it as it's a talking point and she has the option of using the full name or nickname.

I can't remember where I read it, but am sure I read that children with longer and more complex names tend to have a higher IQ? I always wondered if it was connected having to learn loads of letters to write out their name as the first thing at school

Confession - For a long time every girl I met with the name Christina (4 in total) was neurotic and a prized bitch. They really treated me poorly. Makes me wary of ladies with that name. I try not to be but its true, we associate names based on the people we have met and how we have been treated.

The names Phil, Matthew, Rory, Robert, Dave, kevin are all tied to men in my past who haven't been the greatest. Those names can bring up memories and my immediate reaction is 'ugh! Hate that name!' For the ladies its Sam, Katie, Claire, Alice, Christina and Sian. (sorry to any ladies here who have those names)

As for names that might be chavvy. Aren't they usually area dependant?

Courtney for example, Its really popular in one area around here but in other areas its seen as really chavvy. Rex is becoming popular where I live too but that just reminds me of a dog!

Any name that a celebrity has used can, in some circles, be classed as chavvy and naming your children after the royals is a big no-no in others.

You can't win.

As for naming my child. Nice solid, normal first name, out of the box middle name and then another from a relative. My child has a choice growing up. Be kooky and odd in their teens or straight-laced and normal at work.

Yes, the baby names folder hates my son's name, too. I don't give a shit and neither should you: Savannah is a beautiful, evocative, romantic name.

The posters on the baby names forum generally only like very ordinary names (Emma), very faddy names (Atticus) or names that come pre-endorsed by favourite celebrities (Luna).

Have another list:-

Autumn
Jake
Zoe
Zara
Zac
Max

OK, I've bored myself now. To save you writing answers on a postcard, the first list is from Ebay's Board of Directors and the second are aristrocrats.

If you ever read the credits on a piece of software, you'll find a long string of names this forum would despise. Baby Names knows nothing!

If a boy called Barack can grow up to be leader of the most powerful country on the planet, I'm sure all the little Kaydens and Jaydens will do just fine in law school.

I can't remember where I read it, but am sure I read that children with longer and more complex names tend to have a higher IQ I think that is wishful thinking! My brightest DC has a name with 5 letters, then comes the one with 7 letters and least able the one with 8 letters.
DH and I managed to name three children without the aid of Mumsnet (it didn't exist). I think you go with what suits you. Our boys have Biblical names, our daughter is named after my grandmother, but it is still a 'classic' name, and her middle name is Biblical.
I like Savannah, by the way.

Re the 'racist' things ie people saying names are 'made-up' when they are actually a name in another language... the thing is though, unless you actually have a link with another culture then it strikes me as poncy to use a name from it.

Obviously most names originally come from some other language, but they have become common in this country. But calling your child, say, Akiko (randomly picked Japanese name) if you have no link with Japan strikes me as weird.

I'm afraid I do judge people who give their kids made-up names, or one that are spelled wrong just to be original, and I do think potentially having a stupid sounding name can affect your life adversely in terms of how potential employers etc judge you.

Vickisuli I once knew someone who named their child kadifae. Even the spelling grates.

naming your children after the royals is a big no-no in others.

DD was born a few months prior to princess Charlotte. I got really stressed in the build up to the princess's name being announced because DD does have a name that was considered likely and a middle name of Elizabeth. It really worried me because if her name had of been the same, in a few years people would think DD was named after the princess because she's be about the right age.

I generally try to get past a first name before I judge, I think. How limiting if not!

I knew a controlling, manipulative, aggressive and physically violent man called Mark, I wouldn't however, assume all Marks were like that.

I think the name Savannah is quite nice, I wouldn't pre-judge one if I met her.

bettyberry was it Colonel Kadifae?

mamaL haha! Oh I won't be able to say that name right now XD

cain hard sometimes to tease apart the name from the abuse/bullying. I turned down a lovely lovely guy because I couldn't bear he had the same first names as my violent step father. Too close to home and I'm sure I'm not the only one who has experiences like that. It takes a long time to manage those things and your memories tied to them.

Rightly or wrongly, you do make first judgements about people from their names, I think. I'm a teacher, and when I'm doing seating plans if I know absolutely nothing about the children involved whatsoever (ie if I'm teaching in a new school or it's a new Year 7 intake), I do use names as a starting point. I.e. an Elizabeth I would probably sit towards the back, a Chardonnay-TrixiiBellah would get a front row centre seat. However, only until I know the kids better, and sometimes it turns out to be the complete opposite. I can think of a class a few years ago where I had an Elizabeth and a Victoria who were incredibly naughty and rude, and the most delightful hard-working girl in the class had a variation of Chanel as her name.

(For the record OP I have taught some lovely Savannah's so have a really positive perception of that name!)

I'm afraid I do judge people who give their kids made-up names, or one that are spelled wrong just to be original, and I do think potentially having a stupid sounding name can affect your life adversely in terms of how potential employers etc judge you.

Why would employers ( or anyone for that matter)judge a person because their parents gave them a " stupid" name?

toomuchtooold

Thanks for that link. My name has dropped like a stone so I'm thinking about starting a revival for it.

#saymynameguessmyage

Valancy so where would you put a kid with an ethnic sounding name then?

Just thinking about a class I taught a few years back... The nicest girl in the class was called Jessica and so was the biggest pain in the backside. There were also two other Jessicas who were both nice enough.

I suppose I judge the parents when they give their child a name which when teamed with their surname sounds silly.

Steven stevens, Paul Ness ( p ness) anything beginning with the letter A when your name is Pratt ect ect.
Why oh why.

Oh and another thing I can't understand why would someone give a child a name with no intention of ever using it?

I met a woman recently and both her and her sister have never been referred to by their first name. Their parents have always introduced the. By their middle names.