AIBU to want to tell my sister to change baby’s name?

[Eleanora8]

My nephew is due this week and my sis really wants to name him Atlas! Me, my parents and her friends all dislike it and my Mum has made her feelings clear and joked she hopes he never gets lost with a name like Atlas...
My sis got upset but I wanted to tell her I hated the name too but felt bad.
Should I speak up (vote yes) or keep quiet (vote no)?

Not RtFT but I know someone with a kid named Atlas. I think it might be a Turkish name but could be not up to you what they call their baby. You worry about your children and their names.

Id tell her but at the end of the day it's her choice. X

With my first i had a name chosen which i loved. I mistakingly mentioned it to my mum while pregnant and she hated it and although I still loved the name i was left feeling that i couldnt use the name. It still gets mentioned now at family get togethers. 'Remeber whan track wanted to call x that name can you imagine' followed by laughter all around.
BUT i still love the name and it upsets me to be mocked over it and also that i conformed to expectations and gave into my family views.
I would advise expectant parents to not mention names until they introduce the baby as then the wider family cant influence in the same way.

Atlas is a great name, from Greek mythology.

"until they introduce the baby as then the wider family cant influence in the same way."

Ha!

My usually lovely Mum said that she "didn't know/wasn't sure/wasn't keen".

I told her that I was telling her the name, not asking her opinion.

Stll hurt a bit though.

I hate it but it's up to the parents alone to choose

I think some ppl are missing the point here. The question is not if you like the name Atlas or not, its whether someone else has the right to choose your child's name.
From the original message the OP seems be talking with mum and friends about this behind her sisters back. When she was hoping for love and support instead she gets snide comments and betrayal.
You sound awful and like some others have said I would be telling you all to F. off.
Whats gives you the right to be self righteous and so cruel, I don't know. I can only assume you and your mum are jealous and vindictive and your sisters name is Cinderella.

@ThinkAboutItTomorrow
DD is in a class with a boy called Achilles. He's very sweet but almost every time I see him he's asleep or crying.
Atlas was a Titan who held the world on his shoulders. It's a lot to live up to.

I suggest you google names in your family and you may be surprised what they mean. See if it actually correspond with the child and more likely than not, the name was picked because the parents liked it and potentially the meaning behind it and not because of someone famous ( and in this case fictional) was also named it.

Just assume if someone didn't want their sister calling their child Jack because of a serial killer from 1888, ppl would think they were crazy

I think it’s a dreadful name and the child will likely get made fun of. If you’re close enough to your sister, then you could very gently say that you’re concerned about bullying rather than saying you hate the name. It’s her child and unfortunately she can call him what she likes though. It’s very unfair on children with names like this and I wish parents didn’t do it.

I don’t think it’s awful, I’ve heard of a few others. I wouldn’t tell her you dislike it though, it’s not your baby!.

It would be interesting to hear from more people whose parents gave them "unusual" names

My friend at school had an unusual name. My friend hated it and resented her parents who had very common names. Other kids always commented on her name and used it to wind her up. She said it really affected her confidence and when she went to Uni she chose another name to use. I haven’t seen her in years but I heard through someone else that she has 3 kids all with very common names.

@garlictwist

Poor kid will have the world on his shoulders

🤣🤣

@Eleanora8. You owe it to your nephew to at least try to get him spared of such a stupid 'name'.

She can call baby no2 Satnav.

@SionnachRua

Atlas is a ridiculous name. Fine if he grows up big and burly but not on a small bookworm. The meaning isn't great either. However it's not your baby so you don't get to make the choice.

at least they didnt chose to call him dictionary, ( which would be dick for short)

at least they didnt chose to call him dictionary, ( which would be dick for short)

Or Map

You're my kinda person @Jenasaurus

@Bluesheep8 you too!

People who say the kid's going to get bullied for his name and therefore he should not be named it, do you think we should all alter or behaviour in case we get bullied? Do you think people who run the country or become CEOs or athletic champions don't do stuff they want in case people bully them? Those of you who've thought up names to bully him or sniggered at those names, well done for your brilliant bullying skills; are you bringing your kids up to be bastards? And... Do you all live in places where only people who are English live? Are you not allowed to go to school without being bullied if your name is forrin?

People who say the kid's going to get bullied for his name and therefore he should not be named it, do you think we should all alter or behaviour in case we get bullied?

No I don’t think that, but I wouldn’t give my child something which would be a clear target for bullies.

People who say the kid's going to get bullied for his name and therefore he should not be named it, do you think we should all alter or behaviour in case we get bullied?

It's not just about bullying, it's also about pre-judging people based on their names. Lots of people do this for more "out there" names, including educationally/professionally. It can be difficult to look past the name to the individual. Yes, it's wrong but the quiet snigger can be more harmful than actually bullying, which can be stopped. Why hamper your kid by giving them a weird name when they're unlikely to thank you for it later?

My dd goes to school with a boy called Marvellous, apparently he’s anything but.
I know of an Atlas, so it’s not a unique name.

@Longdistance

My dd goes to school with a boy called Marvellous, apparently he’s anything but. I know of an Atlas, so it’s not a unique name.

I used to teach an Innocent. Innocent he certainly was not!

Marvellous and Innocent sound like the wonderful names you can hear in West Africa ... like "Goodluck" and "Precious". Personally I really like them. But then I grew up with my DF having friends from all over the globe.

@DGRossetti

Marvellous and Innocent sound like the wonderful names you can hear in West Africa ... like "Goodluck" and "Precious". Personally I really like them. But then I grew up with my DF having friends from all over the globe.

Well, exactly. People don't always stay where they're born. My name is incredibly common for my generation in my home country I mean, we're talking Jack or Olivia equivalent but exotic and strange and non-phonetic in the UK and in other places I've lived. Mn sometimes exhibits a strange tendency to think that children should be named to blend in with a white. culturally-Christian, UK English speaking norm, as though that child will remain indefinitely in Little Trundling. A lot of us move around rather more than that, and /or may want to name a child from our own heritage, or at least not feel limited to what will be familiar to an Anglophone monoglot.

DS is not quite nine, and has lived in three countries with vastly different ideas about what constitutes a 'normal' name.

I've taught a Blessing, Goodluck, Marvellous etc who are lived up to their names. More or less anyway. But the contrast between Innocent and his behaviour always made me laugh.