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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To ask your thoughts on naming children after the parents/ grandparents

97 replies

Bearbehind · 26/02/2016 19:47

Just that really?

I have never really understood the desire to name a child David, after his father and grandfather David (a la Royle family) as there are so many names to choose from but lots of people seem to do it.

Isn't it confusing?

OP posts:

WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeG0es · 27/02/2016 10:06

I don't think there's anything wrong with it, but having been saddled with my much hated middle name just because it was a family name made me clear we weren't going to do the same to the DCs.

BertrandRussell · 27/02/2016 10:09

My children have 3 names each- only one isn't a family name. They love the connection.

dolkapots · 27/02/2016 10:15

Mine have their first names and then 2 names that are the same for all of them. Family tradition that was always going to be. I like it, but sometimes daydream about what their unique middle names might have been.

Loqo · 27/02/2016 10:20

I don't like it. I like the kids to have their own names and I find it a bit that a kid might be named after someone that they don't really know or, in some cases have never even met.

The other important thing is I don't see how you can name your kids after certain relatives without causing someone to feel slighted. For example, if you name a child after a maternal grandmother might the paternal grandmother feel put out.

Finally, it must be a nightmare with post and ID. My DH and one of our DS's have the same first initial and different middle initial and it still causes problems with post. I find it ridiculous that some organisations still don't use full name in all correspondence.

NaughtToThreeSadOnions · 27/02/2016 10:26

I'm named after my maternal grandparents my first name is the female version on my grandfathers name and my middle name is the shortened version of my grandmothers name.
My first name is always shortened to the standard shortening for both sexes, but while it was the name my grandfather used in Ireland in England everyone knew him by his middle name.

I always knew where my name came from and loved it. There was never much confusion over who my grandmother was talking too.
Love it almost more now because I've always felt more connected to the Irish side of the family and since gone NC, with my dad and his side of the family. Love that sence of belonging.

JennyOnAPlate · 27/02/2016 10:34

First born boys on my dm's side of the family have the same first name going back generations. It's the kind of name you can have variations of (think Michael/Mike/mick etc) so not confusing. My cousin chooses to use his middle name though.

clockbuscanada · 27/02/2016 22:30

XDP and his DF had the same first, middle and last names which they used to commit fraud, or as they called it, "keep the banks guessing". I'm sure it's exceptionally rare but it has spoiled the whole tradition for me. And yes, I reported him when I chucked him out.

ManneryTowers · 27/02/2016 22:44

We used my DF's middle name for DS's middle name. Wouldn't have done if we didn't like it anyway

Gatehouse77 · 27/02/2016 22:56

Ours have all got significant middle names. My first born was always going to be named after my brother that died before I was born. Fortunately, it has a male/female version. That was decided when my Mum said she didn't want it to be used as a first name as she thought it was too much for another child to live with.
My second shares a name that crosses both families and my third has my middle name, more because it flows nicely!!

Gatehouse77 · 27/02/2016 23:00

The one that makes me laugh is George Foreman who's 5 sons are all called George!

Although they have nicknames to identify them.

QuerkyJo · 28/02/2016 08:25

This happened a lot in the 50's when I was young. Same name handed down Meant that almost everybody had an extra description.

I can remember, old Jimmy, big Jimmy and Little Jimmy in one family Then there was Johnny bald to distinguish him from his father Johnny hair. It was worse for the women as they were given the husband name, so Bert's Alice or David's Alice.

LilacAndLovely · 28/02/2016 08:41

DS1 is called the same as dh (first name) with a random name we liked as a middle name.

So DH and Ds1 are both called (for instance) Adam. Ds1's middle name is Jack. Dh is known as Adam and Ds1 is known as AJ. It caused no confusion.

Ds2 has a middle name that was shared by both DH and my Grandfathers.

Any future dc3 will have my dad's name as a middle name (there is a female version) - then dh and I are even!

sayatidaknama · 28/02/2016 08:48

DS, DH and DFIL share a first name. Only one is known by it.

Notagainmun · 28/02/2016 08:52

DS1 has my maiden name as his middle name but it is also a very common male name.

BathshebaDarkstone · 28/02/2016 08:59

2 of my DC have DGPs' names as middle names, I know of a family where DF has the same name as DS, one's Davie and the other's David.

SchnitzelVonKrumm · 28/02/2016 09:01

My DD1 is named after my mum, who brought me up alone and died when I was a teenager. It's also a lovely and unusual name. The other children also have names with some family connection though we also had other reasons for using them - they really like having names with a history.

HackerFucker22 · 28/02/2016 09:42

DS has FIL name as a middle name (it's also my brothers name so 2 birds)

I wanted DD to have my mum's name as her middle name but it would have given her sill initials so we didn't. I do regret it now as I love my mum's name.

bigmouthstrikesagain · 28/02/2016 09:53

My dad died when I was 18. One of my older sister's was pregnant and she took one of Dads names for her son, she went on to have 5 more sons so has used both of Dads names now. I understood that desire, dad only met 2 of his 15 grandchildren so it was a fitting way to keep his memory alive. I have used the middle names of 2 of my children to commemorate relatives on dhs side. It is a meaningful connection to the past.

FattyNinjaOwl · 28/02/2016 10:00

DS1 has my dads, step dads and oldest brothers name as one of his middle names. (All go by different variations) his other middle name is my mums maiden name.

DD is named after my mum.

DS2 has part of another brothers name as his name. And my youngest brothers middle name as his middle name.

agapimou · 28/02/2016 10:03

Sometimes its a cultural thing. My DD has the name of her dad's Mum. The first boy and girl always take the names of the father's parents. Thankfully we didn't have a boy as I hate fil's name, but mil's name is actually quite pretty. They also don't do middle names here but I gave DD one anyway, which has lead to everyone calling her by both names.

It's a nice way of honoring the gps, but if you have 5 or 6 brothers who all have a boy and a girl then you end up with a load of cousins with the same name

DixieNormas · 28/02/2016 10:12

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

BertrandRussell · 28/02/2016 10:13

It's a cultural thing in DP's family too- ds and fil were Big X and Little X. One day ds will be Big X if there's another one. I think it's really sad that we don't have Big X any more and ds is just X.

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