bothered that another parent copied my childs name

[catphone]

This happened a few years ago when we lived in a remote area.
My child name was very uncommon and unique. I deliberately picked the name because it wasn't common and I didn't want her to share her name with a number of people. I don't want to say what it is because there are very few people in the world with it. As she got older, in assembly, she found out that someone in primary 1 had the same name as her and the parent had obviously heard of and copied her name. Subsequently, there were a number of others with the same name.
AIBU to be annoyed?

Sounds like you picked a name which was just becoming fashionable and then it grew in popularity. Really we need the name and the year and dark greener will tell all!

I know someone who told me she picked her daughter's name as it was simple and unusual so she wouldn't be one of many in her school - she's called Ava A first born and I guess the parents didn't know many little kids.

And that automatically means shes copied you? Nah. My daughter has a semi uncommon name, and when she was 3 or 4 we went swimming and I called her name and a little girl of perhaps 7, turned around and said to her mum "that's girls got the same name as me" and her mum to my disbelief said "theyve just copied it as it's so pretty" so I said actually I copied it from my favourite book not from you.

Why don't you change your child's name to a symbol to make sure they're entirley unique?

Erm, actually, maybe that would be copying too.

I guess you're going to have to live in the real world and deal with the fact you're not the only parent with a child called Sharon.

I bet you ANYTHING the name wasn't as unique as you thought. When I was pregnant I was living in London, feeling a little homesick I came up with the name Clodagh. My friend living in Boston came up with the same name. But although the name was not in the top 100 names, it was our friendship, our similar upbringings, our same age, similar levels of education, class, race that made us both come up with the same "unusual" name.

The name wizard explains it very well. Name ranks take the entire population in to account but in certain pockets of society, Margot is in the top 10 names.

You DD will probably be glad her name has become common popular in your area. People will recognise how to say it/ spell it. She will be able to negotiate both the real and online worlds without everyone associating her and her alone with the name so if 'name' gets a mention online or in the press it won't linked only to her. Future employers won't know that any mention of X from Y town is definitely her. My DC love coming across people that share.their names - they like seeing sports people, actors, games designers etc that are called same as them it shows them what they can do.

My son has an uncommon name. Only 8 children where registered with it in the year he was born. in the recovery room after having him a couple came in with their new born son and where arguing over what to call him. The woman sent her husband away and she starting chatting to me and asked what I named my son and her eyes lit up and gushed over how lovely it was and then she looked quite sad. I told her that she should use it if she loved it . Shortly after I was taken to a ward but I always hoped she'd used it.

I hope you have purchased the domain name already.

How?

Did she pull a gun on you?

I sympathise, deeply Op. My name was 'unique' when I was at school. Sent my school years spelling it out. Then along came the 60s-70s and half the world seemed to be called it. Have never recovered from the trauma.....!

Do you think I could sue the Pop group responsible? No saying how successful/happy/rich I would have been without this happening. Millions £s they owe me.

Ah me........ahhhhhhh.

I'm just here to see if the name is finally revealed.
When naming my DD4 I picked what I thought was a name not that commonly used. Guess what - I've seen many birth announcements after hers with the same name (even with the same middle name). I'm pretty sure they didn't all copy me.

The name might not be as rare and unusual as you think it is. You must have heard it somewhere originally and liked it. The other mother may have also heard it from the same origin as you and like it. Or yes, perhaps she heard of it from you naming your child and liked it. It's just a name.
When you give your child a name you can't then keep them hidden away, anonymous to the world. As soon as you speak their name someone will hear it, and others, and others, and people will like it, some may want to use it. It's a silly thing to be annoyed about.

Agree. That’s how you are best to take it, though probably easier said than done. I know someone who had a truly unique name - I would almost guarantee much more so than the one you chose. No one has ever copied it. Almost everyone looks stunned, faintly pained, then asks if it really is her actual name. That’s a risk you take with an outlier name so just be pleased it didn’t go that way.

One of my colleagues has a son named after someone in a Sci-Fi series, her son is now in his early 20s. If she hears of any other male with the same name, there’s a “oh no, not another one, I thought my xxxxx was so unusual!” comment.
Followed by sulking…

Im so fed up with it, that I mention next doors son frequently, who has the same name! This name is now very common with infants & primary school kids.

My son was named after his Ddad, started off with the full name as a little one, and early pre-school, then got shortened all through school and now slightly altered further to his Ddads version of the name. Loads of the same name through his school years, didn’t matter to him, nor to me🤷‍♀️

What a daft pointless thing to stress about!

Tbf I've never met a lad called evie

😂

You just wait til the next Covid outbreak ...

Unless it is a name you literally made up YABU. Presumably you heard the name based on somebody else with the name so by your logic you also gave your child a name that belonged to somebody else so what right do you have to be annoyed?

Nice try. 0/10 😂

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Is your name Noddy?

@catphone "the parent knew of my DDs name"

Serves you right for letting it slip or the other parent would never have known of it. You should be better at keeping things secret and maybe less of the pinot grigio at the next PTA meeting! That way your DD could have made it through her entire childhood with noone ever knowing of her name.

WTF? 🙃

Oh, you sweet summer child!

Someone was obviously designated to crouch with their ear pressed against your delivery room door,

The moment your infant's name was revealed, they rapidly texted a Global Name-Stealing Syndicate which immediately distributed it worldwide.

Ring Interpol immediately - they are desperate to clamp down on this abuse. Ask for the Nomenclature Division. Your evidence may make the difference between a name being "unique", or being "chavtastic".

I believe there is a Witless Protection Plan for those prepared to testify in open court.

That would have pissed me off too. I think irl it would piss off a lot of people who think they wouldn’t be bothered.

I deliberately picked the name because it wasn't common and I didn't want her to share her name with a number of people.

You set your child up for a lifetime of people getting their name wrong, having to ask her to repeat it, how to spell it etc. Because if it’s unique, people will not be familiar with it as a name and will struggle to remember it.

I wish people would go back to giving their children names which are actual names.