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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To change my name?

58 replies

bootolou · 05/04/2021 18:09

I've name changed just in case as this could be outing but tbh I bet lots of people with my name use Mn.

My name is boo (yes, really Grin)
and tbh i've always disliked it, it reminds me of those cockerpoo/doodletzu/whateverpoo dogs for some reason Grin
By mistake a friend uses english as a second language called me Lou.
And it just felt really right? Shock
I like how it's similar to boo. Wibu to change my name?? Grin

OP posts:
SleepingStandingUp · 05/04/2021 18:10

So your registered name is Boo? I'd say yes it's perfectly reasonable to change it, and at least Lou or Louise is keeping to the sound t

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 05/04/2021 18:11

I think it’s perfectly reasonable to change any name you dislike!

VladmirsPoutine · 05/04/2021 18:12

yanbu - it's your choice. I think it's quite cute actually and have never come across it as a name - only as a term of affection. But Lou still works or whatever feels like 'you'.

MolyHolyGuacamole · 05/04/2021 18:14

I would change it in a heartbeat. Horrible for someone to name a child Boo.

PolarnOPirate · 05/04/2021 18:14

YANBoo - You Are Not Boo. You are Lou!

Same4Walls · 05/04/2021 18:14

Absolutely change your name.

As a side note how old are you? I'd be very impressed at someone getting to 16 and having not already changed their name if saddled with the moniker Boo.

cinammonbuns · 05/04/2021 18:17

It’s a unique name and I don’t find it bad but if you do then of course change it. Isn’t it a faff though, do you plan to change passports and stuff or just how you are feted to with friends and at work?

Original poster
bootolou · 05/04/2021 18:18

I'm 34 Sad

OP posts:
Same4Walls · 05/04/2021 18:19

@bootolou

I'm 34 Sad
Oh wow! You've suffered enough absolutely change it! Make 2021 the year you reinvent yourself. Smile
BramStoker · 05/04/2021 18:21

YANBU - I'm amazing you've tolerated being called Boo for 34 years!

Its a great idea to change it to something that sounds similar because it is hard for people who have known you a longtime to adapt to a change if you select something completely unrelated

therocinante · 05/04/2021 18:36

Definitely change it! Lou has the same kind of fun, short feel without the cockerpoo vibes haha Grin

queenofthenorthwest · 05/04/2021 18:37

Do you o is how to change it op

Sparklesocks · 05/04/2021 18:40

If you want to change it go for it 😊

Original poster
bootolou · 06/04/2021 09:49

Could you all maybe type some sentences to do with the name Lou as if addressing me for things? I want to see how it feels Smile

OP posts:
PrelovedWithValue · 06/04/2021 09:52

Hey Lou, have you been watching The Circle? I'm not a fan of Manrika..

BaronessBomburst · 06/04/2021 09:53

Lou, Lou, skip to my Lou,
Skip to my Lou, my darling.

WitchesBritchesPumpkinPants · 06/04/2021 09:57

Hi Lou

Personally I'd have changed it the moment I was old enough (sorry). Have your parents ever said why they chose it? Especially 30 years ago? I mean it's a bit less 'out there' for small children these days, but 30 years ago -assuming you were in the U.K. anyway, it would have been very out there)

So anyway Lou. Lou isn't a name I'd choose (loo) but I guess being an adult it's less of a problem.

But isn't there another name you'd love to have??

When I was a teenager(a hundred years ago) an adult family friend changed her name from Rachel to Helen it took a bit of getting used to, but we all got there. (Though as they're both so 'ordinary' I do have to stop to think which way she swapped!but I don't see her often.

Boo to anything else wouldn't be such a dilemma

But if I was name changing I'd pick something I LOVED,

Let us know what you choose 🌸

LooseThreads · 06/04/2021 10:02

My dh changed his name in his early thirties. His old name was daft. He hated putting it on CVs and hated even more introducing himself and seeing peoples brains try to process the information and work out if he really said that.

His parents still use his old name but nobody else does and it all just worked out.

If I were you Lou, I'd change your name.

VickyEadieofThigh · 06/04/2021 10:04

I wouldn't change it to 'Lou' specifically - give yourself a proper name, such as Louise or Louisa.

Serialcatmum · 06/04/2021 10:10

I know a Boo. Lovely lady.

Nothing wrong with the name Boo, unless that is that you dislike it.

You definitely dislike it so just change it. You could just informally change it and not mess about with all the paperwork. Tell your friends it’s now Lou, change your name tag at work and just go with it.

I used my middle name till I was 11 as my parents named me after my grandma abd it seemed silly for us both to have the same name. I still accidentally answer to the middle name though!!!

RickiTarr · 06/04/2021 10:15

Boo? Shock

Go for it. Lou is lovely, either in its own or as a diminutive for Louisa or Louise.

I hated my name for a long while before switching to a nickname in my 30s. I didn’t legally change it. I just use a diminutive of my middle name, for everything, including work.

You’d need a change of name deed, of course, but nothing wrong with changing it in your thirties. That’s when you fully become yourself, IMO.

CeeceeBloomingdale · 06/04/2021 10:15

Well Lou, I think that would be a good call. I'd probably make it short for something classic like Louise or Louisa. Louella could also work but I think usual is more your aim here.

PriestessofPing · 06/04/2021 10:17

If you’re going to change it why pick another one that’s a bit naff, Lou? (Boo, Loo, Boogaloo) Why
not change it to a really lovely name that you like?!

If you’re going to do it go big!

BeesAnkles · 06/04/2021 10:21

Lou, I'm just throwing this out there: what about Lu, short for Lucia or Lucille? I've never been one of those people who thinks everyone should give their child a 'proper name' for their birth certificate. I love names like Kitty, for example!

That said, Lou is a bit of a funny one to have as a stand-alone as it really is an abbreviation. That's why I thought, instead of Louise, maybe something slightly more exotic!

Original poster
bootolou · 06/04/2021 11:26

Yes I think Lou is lovely and that it really suits my face Smile Thanks all xx

OP posts: