To want people to calm my baby by his actual name?

[SimGuruRu]

Name change as outing. To avoid the inevitable “what’s his name” replies ... he’s called Brian, hence outing.
He’s 6 weeks old and friends and family seem unable to call him by his actual name. They make up stupid names for him “baby Bobo” for example, I’ve had people literally snigger when I say his name. MIL has outright told us it’s an awful name for a baby and she can’t say it without laughing.
I’ve told DH I’m getting to the point where I feel if people can’t call him by his name maybe they shouldn’t be seeing him?! He thinks this is an overreaction and that I’m being too dramatic. They are going to make him grow up hating his own name.
AIBU?

@VickyEadieofThigh

Someone - ANYONE - what's wrong with Brian?

Many of you are going off as if she's called him Satan or something.

I'm 62 and Brian was a relatively common name when I was growing up. My first boyfriend was Brian.

I've spent the last few years astonished at some of the very unusual names people are routinely calling babies these days - and people are saying "No, just no!" to Brian?

Explanation?

Quite. I mean, it’s no Balonz.

I love Brian. I hope he marries a Judith I always said if I had another boy I'd call him Brian. Toooo old now!

Very few names fall out of fashion permanently. If you'd have told people in 1990 that Arthur would be the most popular boys' name in 2021 they'd have laughed in your face

Many many names fall into obscurity, some never to be heard of again. Take many of the names from history or classic novels, did they all go through a revival? Or just vanish? How often do you hear of a baby Estlethwaite these days? Or a baby Prudence?

Arthur was always going to have links to King Arthur and mythology so I don’t think it’s a surprise it came back into fashion?

Names that were popular over a century ago seem to have a different reception when revived eg Biblical names, certain Latin names, many names connected to royalty or intertwined with history. For example Horatio makes people think of the famous French Admiral Horatio Nelson whose statue still stands in tourist spots?

Names from Shakespeare; some have remained popular (eg Miranda, Juliette, Lysander) others fallen into near obscurity (eg Hermia, Prospero, Oberon etc).

To me Brian is similar to names like Colin, Simon, Wayne, Barbara, Dennis, Sharon, Beryl, Joy, Leslie, Walter etc. Maybe I’m wrong and it’s from a different era but it feels like a name from that time period somehow.

Of course I could be wrong and it could make a comeback one day! I just don’t think that time has come yet, especially with the unfortunate character in the infamous comic satire movie which is probably why your MIL gets the giggles?

To me Brian is similar to names like Colin, Simon, Wayne, Barbara, Dennis, Sharon, Beryl, Joy, Leslie, Walter etc. Maybe I’m wrong and it’s from a different era but it feels like a name from that time period somehow.

Well in England it is a name from that period but surely you can't think that means it won't come back into fashion? 20 years ago hipsters were calling their kids Stan and Ruby. Those names are utterly mainstream now so the hipsters are moving on to 1940s/50s names like Peter and Susan. So I feel pretty confident that Brian and Dennis et al will have a comeback. The OP is just ahead of the curve.

And funnily enough I do know a baby Prudence.

How rude.

Brian is a fine name for your baby and much nicer than some of the awful half names around.

I feel guilty for writing this but you have given your child a name which I fear is never going to go down well.

For me, it conjures up an image of very old fashioned, boring parents living in an 80,s style decorated home and have no idea of modern life.

I’m in my 20’s and can confirm that this name is still very much out in my generation.

I highly suspect your son is not going to thank you for this name. I think the nickname ‘Bri’ could possibly undo the utter uncool ness of this name.

What is wrong with Brian???

@User1357

I feel guilty for writing this but you have given your child a name which I fear is never going to go down well.

For me, it conjures up an image of very old fashioned, boring parents living in an 80,s style decorated home and have no idea of modern life.

I’m in my 20’s and can confirm that this name is still very much out in my generation.

I highly suspect your son is not going to thank you for this name. I think the nickname ‘Bri’ could possibly undo the utter uncool ness of this name.

How bloody rude.

This is an actual child you re talking about, not a hypothetical name. Perhaps you should have listened to the supposed guilt you claim to be feeling and kept quiet.

@User1357

I feel guilty for writing this but you have given your child a name which I fear is never going to go down well.

For me, it conjures up an image of very old fashioned, boring parents living in an 80,s style decorated home and have no idea of modern life.

I’m in my 20’s and can confirm that this name is still very much out in my generation.

I highly suspect your son is not going to thank you for this name. I think the nickname ‘Bri’ could possibly undo the utter uncool ness of this name.

I’m pretty confident that by the time Brian gets to your age that whatever you’re measuring ‘coolness’ by will have completely changed and your assessment will be irrelevant. No twenty something gives a shit what someone in their forties thinks is cool or not.

@User1357

I feel guilty for writing this but you have given your child a name which I fear is never going to go down well.

For me, it conjures up an image of very old fashioned, boring parents living in an 80,s style decorated home and have no idea of modern life.

I’m in my 20’s and can confirm that this name is still very much out in my generation.

I highly suspect your son is not going to thank you for this name. I think the nickname ‘Bri’ could possibly undo the utter uncool ness of this name.

Do you fuck feel guilty.

You're sitting there behind your screen grinning with glee at putting the boot in and hoping beyond all hope your quote gets picked up in the papers.

Your name your choice. However I think I'd feel odd calling a baby Brian.
Only Brian's I know are in their 50s so it's Brian or Bri.

I'm late 30s and a friend in mid 40s is called Rodney..
It never was cool. He hated it from a young age. Even in his 20s 30s and 40s. Its always been ' dated' he's always hated it.
It's never been cool

@Checkingout811

Regardless of whether people like it, think it’s horrible, think it’s controversial or not, these people not calling him by his name are being rude! There’s no 2 ways about it, it’s wrong and I would be seriously annoyed! You do not have to justify your name choice to anyone and you most certainly don’t have to change it!!! It’s pathetic really that grown men and women snigger at a child’s name. Really pathetic.

Agree

@Blueskytoday06

YANBU but I thought Brian would have been retired by now

Forty years ago no-one was calling their babies, George, Toby, Oliver etc.. Names come and go in fashion, ie pleasing the lowest common denominator. Your son may be in the vanguard of a new wave of Brians.

See the only experience I have of the name Brian is from fast and furious (Paul Walker). So I don’t associate with elderly men

@Mowington

I'm Brian and so is my wife.

Laughed for a good minute. Made my night.

The only Brian I can think of is Brian the snail in Magic Roundabout. Don't worry about your choice of name, be proud that you have chosen something different. My name is different, I was the only girl with that name at primary school & the only one in my year at secondary school.

For all the talk of whether the name Brian will get the child bullied by 40 year-olds who don’t like it, it’s worth remembering that no name is future-proof. Ask anyone called Karen if they’d have been embarrassed by their name five or ten years ago.

I had two Lornas in my year at school, and another two on my course at uni. Not a common name in the way that Julie, Joanne and Louise were then, but for me to know four suggests it had a bit of ‘a moment’ as a name around the time I was born. The parents probably thought it was unusual without being outlandish, with the added bonus of being a literary reference.

Then, when I was about 18, Phil Mitchell got an alcoholic mistress called Lorna. Neither of the uni Lornas could go to the pub or the canteen without someone shouting ‘Lor-NAAH!’ at her in a bad cockney accent. Lorna was no longer a romantic Victorian novel character; she was a drunken old slapper. Of course, it’s long forgotten now - but I bet there weren’t many Lornas born that year.

Reminds me of my cousin she called her gorgeous baby Ian 😳

When you look at the word objectively, Brian is a really pleasant name and I much prefer the look and sound of it to Archie or Stanley etc. You may just be a few years ahead of the curve on this and it will be shooting up the popularity charts in five years time. But no matter, you love it, it's important to you and it's his name. I agree with others, every name gets shortened and played about with in the family and I'd just ignore it.

My DS is named after my dad (and his dad, and his etc etc). He loves this. Calls my dad "Grandpa Me".

I have a colleague who is early 40's called Bryan and a student aged 8 called Brian.
It's not to my tastes, but what does that mean anyway? absolutely nothing. It is a classic name and I have heard much much worse.

You give your baby a name that you like.

DS was born 2 weeks before Prince George. I did hear comments that it was old fashioned, and now, it's very common.

@drspouse

My DS is named after my dad (and his dad, and his etc etc). He loves this. Calls my dad "Grandpa Me".

This is incredibly cute

Looks like this thread has reached the daily mirror

Oh dear, poor OP. What a horrible outcome, it's rather outing. Stay strong and maybe they will even be embarrassed if they read it. But praying they don't for Ops sake. They have been nasty enough already.