Everyone laughs at my babies name......thinking of changing it????

[KidderminsterKate]

Well, title says it all really. DS is 10 weeks old and is a handsome smilng chap already so gets alot of attention. My parents hate his name but are sort of used to it...my other DC's love the name but its HVs and shop keepers and friends and friends of friends that usually just eh and then oh.

I wasnt bothered at first but now its starting to get to me. I do love the name but am a bit embarrassed now.

Would these sort of things make you change the name??? I'm thinking of changing it to Edward (Ted).

Whats the name? Im sure its not that bad.

Just think of it this way. What if you had that name? Would you worry about people picking on you for it? When i chose my daughters name i just imagined her being called out for a job interveiw. So the names suitable at all ages.

Choosing between Bear and Edward is making people who dislike popular names side with Bear, so you could consider some other bear-ish names and keep bear as a NN - what about Orson? Or Theodore to Ted to Bear instead of Edward.

Sorry just read the convo n found the name. I find nothing wrong with the name bear. If your happy with it leave it :-)

Also i just met someone called Zephyr, named after a sewing machine.

You can easily change name of a baby up to 12 months old -- you get a form from the registrar, tell them the name you want, and you're issued with a new birth certificate. We did this when we realised nobody was calling daughter by her first (boring) name but the far more unusual middle name. Glad we did it.
Sorry, but think you're setting him up by calling him Bear. You could make it a middle name though. Which he may never admit to having.

My brother was christened Edward Bear. Has always been known as "Ed Bear" to friends and family. He's an investment banker and seems to have survived, but presumably only introduces himself to clients/colleagues as "Ed".

My son has a highly unusual name, which he likes. He is happy, well adjusted and has never been picked on about his name. The person just becomes the name, and I don't think his friends even register it as unusual any more. On the other hand his cousin's friends we're really excited to meet him because he sounded 'so cool'. He's also always remembered which is nice.
I think if you and your partner love the name, and if you feel it suits him you should keep it .

My friend called her daughter "Liberty" after the statue. I thought it was odd at first but now it sounds fairly normal. Other names of children I know, that I found odd at first but have now got used to are India and Blue. People get used to names it is just when you first hear them that you react.
I hated my name as a child though because nobody could pronounce it or spell it and it still makes me feel uncomfortable when I have to explain to people that it is spelled in an odd way because it is not an English name. I get called the most odd things in place of my real name. I wouldn't ever consider changing my name though.

Thanks for all the comments. i still dont know what to do - but am suprised and relieved by the number of positive comments. Yes I have alredy registered it.......he is Bear Alexander.

kidderminster I like the name bear. And I say this as someone who has an unusual first name which I have to repeat constantly to people (and which oddly now relates closely to what I do for a living). Hell grow into it - I'm pleased that noone has my name and it's not run of the mill name. As long as you give him the confidence to have that attitude hell be fine :)

Really and truly, if you wouldn't call your son Gay (once a very popular abbreviation of Gabriel in Ireland that nobody would dream of using now) then you should think of changing it, to Edward or maybe Theodore as suggested.

I know a 44 year old called Bear... well actually he's called Stuart but he really suits Bear and nobody laughs at him.

He is about 6'4" and built like a brick outhouse though.

i think its fine, i think Bear ALexander sounds really nice actually and he has options with his middle name that can be used in full or shortened etc if he wishes when older.

you say it suits him and your parents are now used to it and other people will get used to it and tbh if they dont its not their business.

i think its fine and fwiw my boys, well the elder 3 who are 7, 9 and 12 didnt see the issue, they know plenty of kids with 'unusual' names and it just doesnt phase them :)

i knew a boy called Zebedee, he got called Zeb sometimes or Dee, it never seemed to cause him any problems, i may look him up on fb and see where he is now!

The positive comments are heavily outweighed by the negative ones, and there are diverse reasons behind the negative opinions - not just one.

gosh i think that's fine. You ought to hear what my cousin has called their baby, now that really is a shocker.

I was initially a bit aghast that someone would give their child the name Bear when you posted it Kate

Actually, I quite like it, especially with the middle name you've given him

Just asked DD what she would think if a child in her class was called Bear - she said it's "awesome"

Keep it! It's lovely

It does depend on the child though, a confident/good-looking/popular child can probably carry off almost any name, but what if your child isn't like that? A less confident and popular child will be likely to get bullied a lot as a result of a very 'different' name.

Its a hell of a risk to take imo, so I really do think its a good idea to change the birth certificate. I actually like Bear as a nickname, so I would carry on calling him Bear and either do as I said already and change the bc to Edward, or I would swap the middle name and first name around so he is Alexander Bear.

Haven't finished reading thread yet but had a bit of a snigger at bearcrumbles dissing orson as a name cos it means bear and then sniggered some more when he/she came back and said they liked bear as a name
Op do what you like. There are weirder names and if you bring ds to be a confident chap then there's no reason he won't be able to pull it off.

"Also i just met someone called Zephyr, named after a sewing machine."

Or perhaps after the car?

My favourite nickname for my ds is 'bear'.
One of the presenters on Channel 5's 'Fifth Gear' is called Bear - he was featured once when they were testing family cars!
As somebody else said I don't think there is any such thing as an 'unusual' name in London - anything goes! Maybe in less cosmopolitan circles people are less adventurous.
As for your decision, I can't decide either! Prejudice is prejudice...

Keep it, I like it! I don't see the point in changing the bc but keep calling him bear. If he really hates it when he's older he can change it then. Who's to say he wouldn't hate Edward? I vote for keeping Bear.

It is more difficult to change it when he is older.

Im another for Bear, i think its really nice.