Just call her by her name?!

[FF7RGEEK]

I have 4 DD, my youngest is 1 next month.
My MIL won't use her name, just calls her baby she says it is impossible to pronounce (it isn't) in the beginning she would try to say her name and call her something not even remotely similar to her name.
She now has other family members doing the same and they won't use her name either, even though they did to begin with.
DH, tells her all the time that she is being silly and to just use her name, she will then just fall out with us.
I know her name is unusual but it is beautiful (in our opinion) am I being unreasonable to tell her she has to use her name?

I think you can always tell the people who did bully other people for their names by posts like this. A child would blink an eye at a name - unless parents couldn’t help but make snide comments.

It is a beautiful name. I’ve never played any of the FF games so wouldn’t have known the association but I think it’s lovely you’ve picked a name from something you are your DH bonded over.

Wouldn’t*

You named your child after Japanese computer game. Seriously (assuming you are not japanese) While your mil is being unreasonable I don't think that's a name your daughter will thank you for at school. Awful.

I named my child after a character written by a british author - also a name common in British aristocracy and royalty. You may safely assume I am not British. I'm Irish and fully congnisant of the 800 years of of oppression etc. the snobbery on this thread is something else. And I say that as someone who has never played a computer game in her life.

I think it's a gorgeous name!

I love that name. I know an Aerith who is now nine and isn't bullied for the name in the slightest so don't listen to PP, they're just being narky.

@MrMeSeeks

Sorry would not have guessed the name at all looking at it ( struggling even now i’ve been told how to say it!), don’t think it’s good. It’s not what i like though…if you’re happy that’s what matters!

It is pronounced air ith You struggle with how to say it 'even after' this very clear explanation?

I think you can always tell the people who did bully other people for their names by posts like this.

This is so true.

Never played FF or seen the name Aerith before but I think it is pretty and the pronunciation straightforward.

Had you called your daughter Sonic, the refusal to use her name would have reasonable grounds.

I'm slightly on the fence about this, as a gran I call my grandchildren poppet, munchkin etc. However I do also use their names. I was recently put down by my grandson when I called him poppet he said I'm not poppet I'm real name. He didn't mind being called poppet later in the day though.

What a lovely name! Your MIL is being a dick. End of.

Ah people are a bit mean. Ithink I was still high on gas and air when i called mine the most obscure random names on the planet and they've never been bullied over it. I can guarantee no ones kids on mumsnet have got my kids names but they rock it. Your daughter will love it OP.

Whether she likes the name or not, it is the child’s name. I don’t believe for a minute that she just can’t pronounce it, she’s just being rude. I meet children with names I don’t particularly like all the time. I still manage to pronounce them correctly.

@FF7RGEEK Just here to say, love the fact you named dd after a video game character unfortunatly none of the names from games I play, even jrps have appealing names ... I did call one of my dogs after a tekken character though, and nobody knows because its the most mundane (flower related) pet name

Surely the kind of ppl who are snobby about games won’t realise it’s from one?

I assumed it was a traditional Irish name just from looking at it.

I also openly laughed at the muppet who claims she’s still ‘struggling’ with it. Good grief. There’s no way in hell MIL can’t pronounce this name - she doesn’t want to. Staggeringly rude.

I actually think it's a very pretty name, and not one I've heard before.

However it's not remotely Japanese!

Btw the name does not mean earth in Japanese. It's a created name. It's still very pretty though!

Yes, wrt struggling with it, if she can say air and ruth then she can obviously manage to say it!

It's rude & very annoying & sounds deliberate as she doesn't like your name choice.

I'm with StAndrews, you need to call her out & refuse to engage with her nn.

Though my mil had a silly nn for DD, got to admit we all hated it at the time (but miss it now she's gone) & by 18 months, DD had told MIL in no uncertain terms, hands on hips, finger pointing "that not my name, DONT. it's soon stopped

My 7 year old loved the name and corrects anyone who dares to mispronounce it, I'm going to jump on her band wagon and make it know it isn't acceptable to call her anything other than her name.
All 3 of my older children have game characters names for middle names. Our dog is called red 13 (another ff7 reference), my 11 and 7 year olds hamsters are called Biggs and wedge (more ff7)
We clearly like the game and I think she will own it like a champ when she is older.

My son has an unusual name. At appointments when people mispronounce ir, I don't usually bother correcting them. I thought it didn't matter as we're unlikely to have a lasting relationship with them. My son recently told me that this annoyed him, so now I do correct them. Just something to bear in mind (although I can't imagine many will struggle with Aerith).

Aerith is a lovely name but it’s no more difficult to pronounce than Aaron, which is from the bible.

Just stick to your guns and refer to her as Grandbag , a name which combines her status and personality.

Aerith is lovely and easy to learn how to pronounce. She is being ridiculous.

When I was born my maternal grandmother rang my father to complain about the Welsh name my native Welsh speaking Mam gave me "what the fuck have you called her that for?" Dad told her to deal with it or piss off. She dealt with it

here we go again. Shakespeare or "classics" ok anything else bad (or "common" no doubt)

Nothing snobbish about Shakespeare or using names from classic novels. Or using a name that has cultural relevance to you. My name is in a Shakespeare play and people always say ‘oh, like in (name of play)’.

I think naming after a character in a computer game or movie isn’t the same unless it’s a classic movie or a name that’s already in use. A bit like calling a child Buffy because you enjoy the series?

It's hardly difficult to say, yanbu