Anyone actually managed to pick an unusual name?

[Carlitawantsababy]

I'd really love my DC to have an unusual name and personally wouldn't like it if there ended up being 4 others in his/her class at school etc. I gathered together a list of names I like bit looking on here loads of other people like them too so I've clearly, subconsciously, picked up a penchant for fashionable names. So..I was wondering, did you pick an unusual name for your DC which is actually still unusual now they are at school? How did you do it and have you got any tips for avoiding the latest trends?

sheepgomeep DS1 was a Ciaran

I have a Malachy, at first I thought I cursed him as people were like "whah" but now they all love it like me.. tee hee

Origins are Hebrew from Malachi but the irish take on it is Malachy pronounced Ma La Key.

Wow, Hully! Brian really is unusual.

Smearedinfood I wanted Malachy for my 4th but no one liked it and then I had a girl so couldn't use it.

Doesn't anyone like my dcs names?

Great thread. I'm in Ireland and there are loads of great names beyond the cool but very popular Fionans and Oisins.

Some of the below are popular here, and some I haven't come across since I was in school.

Girls
Aifric (pron. Afrik), Róise (Irish for Rosa), Róisín (Little Rose), Ailbhe (for a boy or a girl but to me it'll always be a girl's name), Aisling, Tara, Aoibheann (pron. A-veen or E-veen), Ciara, Caolfhoinn (Pron. and sometimes spelled Keelin), Méabh (also spelled Medhbh or Maeve)

Boys
Cian, Cillian, Cuan, Enda (name of our revered leader ..my kids won't believe he's a man), Macdara, Tomás, Tiernan (it's a good solid name but a bit Ross O'Carroll-Kelly ifykwim)

oh all right they aren't their real names

I work in an infant school:

Cillian, Gus, Otto, Finch, Rufus, Nate, Oisin, Angus, Alvah, - not got any of those currently that I am aware of.

Stanley, Seth, Felix - have either taught or have/had in school recently

Lilah, Peggy, Tierney, Oonagh, Keeva, Eilidh (pronounced Ailee), Raythe, Aurora

None of the above although come across Lila a fair bit.

To say it has been the most popular name for boys for years, it's odd at my son's infant school there's not a single Jack.. Now Seb, Zeb, Mabel, Aggie's are a plenty.

I know a lovely little boy called Camlo, and another friend has a daughter called Eska.

Names I loved which dh wouldn't agree to:
Asher
Briony
Hamish (managed this as a middle name)
Coral
Cariad (Carrie for short)
Rosemary (chose something not too far off for dd in the end)

I love Zebedee and Jethro
And for a girl Keziah or Ottilie.

Everyone seems to have really individual taste in names where I live, to the extent that I haven't noticed a repeat of any name at all... no matter how unoriginal they might have been in the past.

It's quite handy really.

My current favourite is Aro though. Apparently it's very popular in Hungary?

eilidh and angus fairly popular in northern scotland good names I like them but not so common further south. peggy is nice too and felix and seth know 1 seth, several angus's and eilidh's

For a different perspective. I have an unusual name and love it. Never have to use my last name to differentiate myself!

And my step nephew and nieces had unusual names and hated them to the extent that they insisted unchanging them before they would go to Secondry school.

I understand the desire to name your child something that means they likely to be the only one in their class. ( I thought I was doing this 15 years ago by namingbmy daughter that charming, unusual, old fashioned name Grace!) I am baffled by deliberately given. Child q name that requires explanation, spelling, pronouncing or all three every single time it is given for the rest of that person's life!

"at my son's infant school there's not a single Jack.. Now Seb, Zeb, Mabel, Aggie's are a plenty"

Really - I find that hard to believe

DS1 has a rare name but not unheard of. He will be the only one at the whole school when he starts secondary school next year for eg.

DS2 has a more unusual name and i've only tracked down two others in this country. There are more elsewhere though.

My son's name is not in the least "weird" and doesn't stand out as such. However, I have yet to meet another child with the same name as him and he is 8.8.

Picked DDs name thinking it was fairly unusual (but traditional) then found out it was about number 39 on the list the year she was born! However, she's 3 now & I haven't so far come across another one.

All the unusual names I like(d) are creeping up in popularity & DH would say no to anything too 'out there'!

Cariad means sweetheart doesn't it?

I've always fancied having a Basil.

My daughter is named Cariad which is Welsh for sweetheart. We live in England and she chooses 'Cassie' for short

I have a theory that in past years there were one or two names that were hugely popular to the extent that large % of the population of that rough age will have the same name. Whereas at the moment although there has been the odd runaway name, most of the time there is more of an even spread between the top 25 - so that even if your child had the most popular name for that year their still aren't necessarily that many of them.

I was thinking along the same lines Carlita and luckily my husband and I hit upon a 2 names (first & second) that we both LOVE around the time I fell pregnant (after 10 years of never agreeing at all) I just looked up both names on the link above and found that there were only 10 others of her first name and 17 of her second last year. At first I was really pleased that we'd picked something so unique but now I'm worried the name has some kind of hidden history or meaning I don't know about. Nevermind I still adore it, even more so now that I associate it with my beautiful 8month old.

Seriously though, there were 10 'London's and 10 'baby's. Who calls their baby, baby?!? Surely our name is better than that!!!!!