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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Aaliyah Reign?! Seriously?!

205 replies

SniffsandSneezes · 30/09/2015 19:41

So, Katherine Jenkins, a woman with about as regular and average a name as they come, has called her daughter... Aaliyah Reign.

AIBU to be sick of celebrities (who almost always have utterly ordinary names, Katie Price I'm also looking at you) giving their babies the most godawful names you could think of??

And worst of all, it's spreading to normal people. I occasionally wander over to the baby names thread on MN when I need a laugh and, genuinely, there are people on there suggesting all manner of ridiculous names, including... wait for it... Zebulon.

I mean WTF is that?!

I'm serious, there should be some sort of law against this, these people need to be stopped.

AIBU?

OP posts:
Mrsjayy · 01/10/2015 08:12

Al e a is how you say it

WhoTheFuckIsSimon · 01/10/2015 08:13

Thanks.

Mrsjayy · 01/10/2015 08:15

chairperson of ici names Grin tinkly

NaughtToThreeSadOnions · 01/10/2015 08:18

I don't think your being unreasonable about celeb baby names when their like the ones in your more post. Just maybe the wrong example even reign isn't as bad as those.

But here's a point and I see it on the baby threads a lot oh don't nane your child cookoo hot chocolate buscuit it will get bullied at school and they'lol never go to university and get a professional job. Well when my youngest sister was born 21 years ago she was given the name of an Asian country, followed by a flower hyphanated. Everyone told my mum it was a terrible name, over the top modern, everyone would ask her where she was going on holiday or if she's going to the place she's named after (as it turns out her and mum have done a lot of charity work there) or be called the name of fictional archeologist adventure played by Harrison Ford, she wasn't partically bullied yes there were a few little jibes but meant actually in good heart by her best friends and she soon devolved gosh isn't that funny I've never in my whole life heard that one before, and is now at one of the Oxbridges! Her name is actually now recommended on the baby name threads. Theres at least one TV narrator with the name. My point is when does a nane stop being weird and how do you know it's going to stay that way?

NaughtToThreeSadOnions · 01/10/2015 08:24

Why do people care so much about other's opinions re baby names? "This is why I don't understand the Baby Names topic. Name the baby whatever you want. Some will like the name some won't.".

I really don't understand the baby name thread either!

Sparklingbrook · 01/10/2015 08:26

Just us two then Naught. Grin

I have it hidden because I just don't get it. All that name matching stuff too.

NaughtToThreeSadOnions · 01/10/2015 08:34

I don't really get all the sibsets and name matching! What is Harry's brother called, well what ever you chose to call it, in my family we've got a very very irish name, my name that is female Verision of a male name, a name associated with the British royal family, and and Asian country, really our don't match our mum didn't care wether they sounded good together, I just don't get what it matter to anyone else but the parents!

Sparklingbrook · 01/10/2015 08:35

Exactly. I named my DC years before I found MN and didn't match their names. Terrible. Shock

Booyaka · 01/10/2015 08:38

I think you can take a pretty educated guess though naught. I mean, I think I know most of what your sister's name is and if I'm correct it's a name that was fairly popular amongst the upper classes much more than 21 years ago. I believe one of Princess Diana's bridesmaids had the name.

It's unfortunate but we do live in a class ridden society and people do still make judgements based on a name. And in the 60s you could have looked around at the people who called their daughters Sharon or Tracey and extrapolated from that the names might be a handicap in certain situations. I know there's a list somewhere to which details the names teachers associate with naughty children so people do pass judgements. I'm afraid I do think this name, particularly when used by someone white and Welsh, is one of those names.

And if names don't affect you then how come Zowie Bowie calls himself Duncan? I bet Frank Zappa's kids don't call themselves Dweezil and Moon Unit either. And Joachim Phoenix doesn't call himself Leaf either.

Mrsjayy · 01/10/2015 08:40

Sibsets make me laugh its just daft but seems to be a thing. in the olden days you just named your babies what you liked now its all sibsets and will they get a good job, i went to the drs a few months ago young locum Gp called Kylie made my day

patienceisvirtuous · 01/10/2015 08:43

Crapbag is fab adds to list

NaughtToThreeSadOnions · 01/10/2015 08:57

booya I did say some of these celeb names were ridiculous and maybe my sister name like aaliyah is abad example as their maybe just more unuseal than out there weird!

I'm not denying the moon units zowie, leafs peaches of this world have probably been affected by their names, and didn't every one go what the hell is Brooklyn beckhams name and that seems pretty normal compared to some! I was talking about the names that aren't so outradious that still get the no don't call them that when k look at it I just think what why ever not so its a country, object, flower rather than a note well known tradional name, but it works as a name!

And in fact thanks for that mrsjay Kylie is an even better example, when I was a kid calling your daughter kylie meant you watched neighbours and her brother was probably called Jason it was an Aussie name to laugh at and call chavy although chavy didn't exist then but those connotations yet oh theirs a doctor called it!
And I know their not the most popular celebs on her I'm rather fond of them though but look at what brian McFadden and Ronan keatings second wives are called vogue and storm. Storm particalalt has very very successful professional career -tv director/creative.

Laquila · 01/10/2015 09:05

I think someone's mentioned this already, but just to say that in Hebrew, if you say you're making aliyah, it means you're moving back to Israel, i.e, the motherland. There's a whole ceremony that happens when you touch down on Israeli soil - it's a very big thing for some Jewish people. I don't know if it has a similar meaning in Arabic?

Having said all that, I don't actually know any Jewish girls/women with the name Aliyah/Aaliyah. The two I know are from not particularly religious/semi CofE families.

Reign doesn't really bother me, to be honest. I like reading the Baby Names threads and don't personally understand why people find it so baffling that other people use them - if you've decided not to mention your name ideas/choices to family and friends, you might conceivably want some input on what other people think of them, what associations they might have, how many they know of anecdotally, how they pronounce them etc. You might then choose to take the comments on board, or carry on regardless. Alternatively you might just be stuck for names and prepared to listen to all ideas. (Ahem...heads over to baby names for the 24th time this month)

Also loves "ICI Chairman names"!! Brilliant.

noeffingidea · 01/10/2015 09:09

According to my 18 year old son, children with unusual names are no longer picked on. As for a professional sounding name, it's really easy to change your name by deed poll if you feel the need.
'Will need to spell it out everyday' - I have a traditional English boring 4 letter
name, and I have to spell it every single time.

lemonade30 · 01/10/2015 09:18

I'm Jewish.

I don't know one single Jewish woman/child named Aaliyah or any variant thereof.

I also don't think it's a nice name, whatever its supposed/intended meaning.

I'm not surprised by Katherine Jenkins calling her daughter that name either.

NinjaLeprechaun · 01/10/2015 09:30

"And Joachim Phoenix doesn't call himself Leaf either."
But his name actually is Joaquin, not Leaf. He 'changed' it when he was in his teens because he thought it sounded cooler.

Wolfgang Van Halen is the crowning glory of celebrity baby names as far as I'm concerned.

noeffingidea · 01/10/2015 09:43

I didn't know Aaliyah was a Jewish/Muslim name either. I associated it with the singer. I guess it might be more popular in America than here.

Skullyton · 01/10/2015 10:10

i only know the name from this lady -

Skullyton · 01/10/2015 10:13

she was also the lady who played the Vampire Queen in the "Queen of the Damned" she died in 2001

noeffingidea · 01/10/2015 10:19

I thought it was very sad, though she wasn't one of my favourite singers.
It's not unusual for people to name their children after singers, just like some people name their babies after members of the royal family.
Not that Katherine and her husband necessarily did that, they may well have picked the name for their own reasons.

alteredimages · 01/10/2015 10:25

Aaliyah is super common here in Egypt. My daughter has at least 3 in her class of 27 and the other classes are full of them too. It is not in the least downmarket, in fact mostly the opposite. The name here has a glottal stop at the end though, not an h. It is often not pronounced though.

It means elevated or honour.

So not really weird.

If Welsh people are only allowed Welsh names, then we need someone to travel back to the 1950s and stop my Mamgu calling her kids Wayne and Karen please.

Would Llinos have been more acceptable? Hmm

SilverNightFairy · 01/10/2015 10:52

We have a next door neighbour who is named Reina. I'm guessing she is about 40. She is blonde and blue eyed, so cannot fit into the black category..shall I ask her if she is chavvy?

lljkk · 01/10/2015 15:41

Means Queen in Spanish, I like it I think.

SquirrelledAway · 01/10/2015 16:52

I was reading an article a couple of weeks ago about an American man called Thomas Johnson (actually not that surname, but something equally everyday-nothing-special), his son Denali and daughter Sequoia.

Both names are American SUV models, as well as National Parks.

noeffingidea · 01/10/2015 16:59

Reminds me of Topanga from Boy meets world.