If you decided on an unusual name did you every regret it?

[Brugmansia]

DP and I are currently deciding on names and the ones we like are all on the less-used/unusual end of the scale, particularly the boys short-list.

We really like them and they're also the only ones we can agree on, and in general I feel we should just go with what we like. There's a bit of me niggling away though that's worried about both other people's reactions and whether it could be a bit of a burden for DC in the future.

Just wondering on other people's thoughts who've chosen unusual names for their children.

"If anything I think the unusually named kids get 'cred' in later years from their peers."

Not in my experience.

Well, I was given a very bog standard name...for the country I was born in.

Unfortunately it was not bog standard and all but unpronounceable in the countries I spent much of my life in.

I have given my dc names that are easy to pronounce in many languages, while still being vaguely of an ethnicity coherent with us. They are unusual in many countries, but at least they don't get mangled quite as badly as mine did!

Many bog standard English names are impossible in other languages.

one of the 'ard' girls in my school had an unusual name. no-one bullied her in school.

bullying will look for something to focus on - if not your name then something else, if you are the target. if you are the perpetrator it doesn't matter how daft your name is - it won't focus on you.

i think now more people are moving away from the standard run of names anyway, who is to say what will be unusual in a few years time. i like to think people are more tolerant of difference in appearance and names than used to be the case though i am probably wrong

discrete. That is quite an important point that people need to take into consideration.

I have two cousins who moved to Sweden when they were young. There names are Johnathan and Timothy. Timothy, not too bad but Jonathan became Yownatan, he later moved to Spain, another country where his name is impossoble. However he has a perfectly acceptable normal name in England.

I get 'cred'. I'm memorable, me. So I get a lot of work (freelancer relying on word of mouth). I was born with a very dull name (Kate) but my Dad hated it and gave me a funkier name when I was 2 or 3. And I love it. It's not unique, it's an old Welsh name.

I want the name Caoimhe for DC3 (if it's a girl). Problem is that having had an unusual name I wouldn't want to burden one of my children with an odd name.

I don't mind it as much now, but I longed to be a Samantha when I was little, a Samantha with a headband that hand my name on it. My mum very kindly got me a fridge magnet that had a cute rhyme about having a special and rare name. It didn't help.

I've still to meet another person with my name.

journey, I agree about well name but not currently popular names not being unusual. It is interesting though getting an idea of what different people consider unusual.

I've just been browsing through last years 1000 most used boys'names. It's interesting comparing some lower down the rankings. For example Ezra and Jeremy are both around 450. I'd say Ezra is unusual, being known and in use for a long time but as far as I know never used much. Jeremy on the otherhand I don't think at all unusual. There are lots of adults with the name it's just unpopular at the moment. Others though may see both out neither as unusual.

(incidentally Ezra isn't the current name in question but one I really like that DP vetoed)

aaargh, my head is about to explode with needing to know all of these wonderful names....

I read with interest, although way past baby naming stage. Thought long and hard about baby names. Any suggestion over ruled by DH because of his prejudice from university. I loved all these names, except perhaps the Quintus variations. See below HIS prejudice:

Lily, Ivy, Rosie, Lottie all too 19th century??!!!!
Lucy dismissed as "loose elastic", Sophie, " soapy ###^^"
Chloe, too perfume.
Tess, too Hardy.
Quentin, Quintus, Quinn, all dismissed, slang, not going there.
Any name that could be shortened to a unisex dismissed, no Alex, no Charlie, no reason given.
I wanted easy to write letters, so teacher didn't dismiss child as struggling to grasp alphabet in reception. Three letter names both of them.
Friends had Zin, no one questions, entirely brilliant, totally suits, phonetically spelt. Other friends had Xander, now quite common apparently, slightly unusual at the time.
I reckon there could be a backlash. Susan, John, Anne, Peter, Betty, Paul. You mark my words ; ). Xxx

I read with interest, although way past baby naming stage. Thought long and hard about baby names. Any suggestion over ruled by DH because of his prejudice from university. I loved all these names, except perhaps the Quintus variations. See below HIS prejudice:

Lily, Ivy, Rosie, Lottie all too 19th century??!!!!
Lucy dismissed as "loose elastic", Sophie, " soapy ###^^"
Chloe, too perfume.
Tess, too Hardy.
Polly put the kettle on.
Jack the Ripper
Arthur and Camelot.
Merlin, Marley, Morpheus, too sci fi
Moses, Isaac too Old Testament
Quentin, Quintus, Quinn, all dismissed, slang, not going there.
Any name that could be shortened to a unisex dismissed, no Alex, no Charlie, no reason given.
I wanted easy to write letters, so teacher didn't dismiss child as struggling to grasp alphabet in reception. Two or three letter names both of them. Ours are called Id and Ego, no just joking!
Friends had Zin, no one questions, entirely brilliant, totally suits, phonetically spelt. Other friends had Xander, now quite common apparently, slightly unusual at the time.
I reckon there could be a backlash. Susan, John, Anne, Peter, Timmy, omg, it is Famous Five. Anyone for Enid? . You mark my words ; ). Xxx

DS has an unusual name, I have never regretted it, not for a second. It was a name we thought hard about and chose as we love it. We still love it!

Love Ezra btw.

i think that you're right to wonder whether giving your child an unusual name is the right thing to do or not, I have a perfectly ordinary name but it's spelt differently and I get so incredibly bored of people asking me where the spelling comes from? how it's pronounced? what an unusual name etc.
My advice would be would the name be to look at the name very critically from an outside perspective, do you think it will reflect badly when Dc goes for a job interview? will the name sound ok if DC wanted to be a lawyer? Doctor? Teacher?
How will it sound on their weddingday?etc

I consider my name unusual - I've never net another, registration stats show between 0 and 8 people registered with my name annually. But it's easy to spell, easy to say, and there are no issues working out the pronunciation from seeing it written down.

The name I chose for DS is similar - occasionally appearing in registration statistics, but never more than half a dozen a year, easy to spell and say. I love it, no regrets. We originally were going to go with something more mainstream but after announcing the original choice to family we realised it was wrong.

discrete "whilst vaguely being of an ethnicity coherent with us" LOVE your turn of phrase!

I'd reiterate other people who've said the names you think are unusual might not turn out to be. We were really surprised when we had dc1 3 years ago what the latest names trends were. I was thought my husband's choices, Freddy and Alfie, were completely out there but they're actually amongst the most popular. Names that I thought were bog standard, David, Stephen, Ben now seem to be quite out of fashion and toddler groups round here are heaving with the likes of Herbert, Algie, Elsie, Hugo and Evelyn. I think anything goes nowadays-except Gavin or Sheila, I think they would be considered truly unusual for a newborn!

PS I know two baby/toddler Enids!