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Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

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Original poster

How has your name affected the way you name your children?

46 replies

SouthernandCross · 10/10/2011 14:58

I have a very unusual name ( my mother made it up- thanks mum!) and have spent my whole life spelling it out and correcting people. In the end I've adopted a shortened version of it and call myself that.
I was determined that my kids would have nice, normal names that were easily recognised and am not at all bothered if there are more than one of their name in the class.
My DH has a very common name from the 70's and was fine with common names for his children. Maybe men don't worry as much?
Did your name influence your children's names at all?

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Catsu · 10/10/2011 16:33

I have a very common name that can't be shortened.
I've given all my children names that have nicknames as I always wanted a nickname as a child!
Have also tried to go with less popular names (have failed spectacularly with dc1 but luckily he is still the only one in his class with hos name)

thefirstMrsDeVeerie · 10/10/2011 16:34

You wouldnt believe what my maiden name was.

Absolutely no worries about taking OH's name when I got married.

Couldnt bloody wait.

TheSmallPrint · 10/10/2011 16:40

I have a very normal easy to pronounce and spell english name and yet people get it wrong on a weekly basis , people are just a bit lazy when it comes to getting other peoples names right I find.

My children have very simple traditional names that can be shortened easily.

headfairy · 10/10/2011 16:42

I have a French first name and an Italian surname, both dh's names are Italian. We've both spent our entire lives spelling and pronouncing our names, our dcs have Italian names, but they're pretty well known over here and easily pronounced. Our surname on the other hand is a double barrelled nightmare of a name... no need to let them get off lightly :o

IvyAndGold · 10/10/2011 16:42

MrsDeV really, that bad? I'm intrigued...

headfairy · 10/10/2011 16:43

firstMrsDeVeerie, you're maiden name wasn't arsehole or something was it? I can't imagine what would be so bad you'd be desperate to change it.

BikeRunSki · 10/10/2011 16:54

My name has affected how I named DS (and proposed name for DD, due in 2 weeks) in a big way.

I am 1 of 4 children myself, and we all have reasons for all our names (the 2 boys have 2 names+surnames, the two girls have 3 names + surname. We all also have confirmation names and I still use my maiden name at work!). The reasons are all linked to family history, family geography, M&D's favourite things, then the last child was a Z name! for this reason I just name my children a name just because I like it!

eg:
I am M&D's joint favourite literary heroine (they discovered this on thier first date) - Granny's name - Place in West Indies where Dad lived for many years.

DS is - Longstanding first name on DH's side, discovered when FIL was doing his family tree when i was pg with DS - Uncle who was dying but lived when I was expecting him - FIL.

DD will be - Variation on MIL's name - My name (in honour of my Dad, he spent his whole life collecting editions of this book, the weight of this name in my family is way beyond just being me) - Village where DH and I lived when we first got married.

Having lived with a awkward middle name (the west indian ones) and maiden name (irish, lots of vowels) and now having a lovely simple traditional English surname, both DS (and DD)'s names are normal, well known, unremarkable, spellable names.

thefirstMrsDeVeerie · 10/10/2011 16:54

I am not telling so ner.

It was mad.

I had to spell it out all the time. Not because it was hard to pronounce, because people wouldnt believe they had heard it right.

I am not giving out my maiden name on MN. If you guess it I will give £20 to ClicSargent. I have played that game before.

But you wont not without some sort of interweb underhandedness

tallulah · 10/10/2011 17:17

I have a very boring very common name. It can't be shortened but I have the longer spelling of maybe 5 variations. Nobody ever spells it right and lots of people lengthen it. I don't have a middle name either.

My children have long(er) unusual names, and a middle name each. It was fairly easy for the first 4 but I think we've cocked up with DC5 because her name seems to have suddenly become very popular.

picnicbasketcase · 10/10/2011 17:21

My name is very boring, loads of other people with the same name in primary and secondary classes. My DC have very normal names but only one other child with each of their names in their whole school, so I'm cool with that.

picnicbasketcase · 10/10/2011 17:22

MrsDV - I would like to guess at Haddock. Am I right?

thefirstMrsDeVeerie · 10/10/2011 17:29

Nope.

Haddock is quite a nice name IMO.

IvyAndGold · 10/10/2011 18:36

Oh no, MrsDeV I'm imagining all kinds of hilarious possibilities now!

hellokitty123 · 10/10/2011 18:40

I have a very common 1970s name and hated sharing my name with several others (even now, at work it can be confusing), so our dc's have less popular names (although still nice and easy to spell/pronounce), just not as trendy as the top 50 or so names.

Bamaluz · 10/10/2011 19:09

The only problem with my name is that the shortened version/nickname starts with a different letter.
This means that my initials are different on official paperwork to the name I'm generally known as, which has caused problems, especially as I'm self employed and sometimes get paid with a cheque with the wrong initial on.
DH has the same problem, so I made sure my kids' names could be shortened without the initial changing.

helendigestives · 10/10/2011 23:10

My name is quite unusual, spelled several ways, but easy to pronounce, and I've only met a couple of others in my life. My partner's name is similarly unusual, but well-known. (We're unusual enough that we don't get personalised keyrings/mugs with our names on it. Make sense?)

We'd like recognisable and easy-to-spell names for our kids, like Sarah or Thomas.

TaffyandTeenyTaffy · 10/10/2011 23:22

My son has my maiden name as his christian name. Its a simple name to say/spell and is fairly unusual but not completely off the wall.

I have struggled through life with a hyphenated Welsh name which always gets spelt wrong - or I get called by the second half of it, which annoys me more than people calling me by the first part only which is a fairly common name.

E-mail has become the bain of my life because the hyphen always confuses!

DejaWho · 11/10/2011 08:20

Had an arkward as fuck to spell surname (THAT got ditched sharpish when I got married as it was a pain in the arse) and then the much-less common of two variants first name with a really cheesy meaning to it. I loathe it, sick to death of it being spelt wrong when there's only a few letters in it - so you look like a right pedantic twat if you correct people on it (so I don't bother).

Thought I could be a smart arse at school and doss about since my first name is so short it was quick to write - nope they made me write the nightmare surname as well.

If this little one makes it - it's getting a name that's spelt conventionally, can have a nickname (cos I always wanted one) and one of my fave girls names is ruled out because it would give the same name as a celeb in combination with my surname.

allieballiebee · 11/10/2011 11:20

I've got a really common name, was most popular girls name when i was growing up. I was always one of several in the class. I never turn round when someone shouts my name in a supermarket as it's more than likely not me they're calling out for. I gave my 2 children unusual names as a reaction against that. I love their names, however DD1 (8) has decided she doesn't like her name and would like to change it to something more common! We're debating about whether to shorten her exisiting name now or use her middle name (we did give her a common middle name as an alternative in case she ever wanted to change it). Can't ever win!

thecatatemygymsuit · 11/10/2011 11:33

I have an unusual but classic (ancient Greek) name, I have hardly ever met another in this country but I totally love my name and did so throughout my childhood, loved not being one of a sea of Emmas and Kates.
DD has a relatively unusual name, but not ridiculously so (I think it's top 100), I didn't want her to be one of 4 class Isabels (or whatever). She also has the best surname in the world (DP's), I get a ridiculous amount of comments about how lovely her entire name is!
My only regret is not indulging my name obsession by giving her another middle name, she only has one plus my surname.
I think maybe if you have an unusual name that you love, you're more inclined to replicate that in your children? Certainly in my experience.

Tuschinski · 11/10/2011 12:57

Both me and DH have names that every knows and can spell but which aren't too common, we wanted the same for the kids.
Friend has a very, very unusual Irish name nobody can say or spell but she still gave her DD a difficult name too so didn't put her off.

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