Is Reeva ok to use?

[fairyteepee]

Me and my husband love this name if we are having a girl BUT im worried everyone will immediately think of Reeva Steenkamp? I know she seemed like a lovely person and theres nothing negative surrounding her as a person. But the circumstances surrounding the name are very sad.
Would you still use it?

[flipchart]

Tryingnottolaugh
You sound like my mother, she did this with every name I suggested!

Most names can be made to rhyme with something.

[3stripesandout]

I wouldn't use it. Friends mate has a little girl called Madeline. The same age as MM.

She gets it on a daily basis about MM and how sad it was.

[cashmiriana]

I'd be put off, I'm honest, not only by the RS connection but the border reivers as already mentioned.

Also if you meet anyone who's a Firefly/ Serenity fan, they'll associate it with reavers (I won't link because the images and narrative are quite upsetting) who are straight out of a horror story.

[SanityClause]

It would be lovely to use that name!

She was a beautiful woman, whose life ended so tragically.

Let her have a lovely legacy!

[fairyteepee]

I do agree sanity clause that to name a lovely baby with the same name as her would be a nice thing, not an in bad taste matter, but each to there own.

[QOD]

Of course it is! Not as unique as you'd thin either

"THE HIGHEST RISING NAMES IN ENGLAND AND WALES 2013

Here is a run down on the names that made the most gains in 2013.

The highest rising name for girls in 2013 was Reeva, obviously inspired by model and paralegal Reeva Steenkamp who was tragically killed in February 2013. The case was (and still is) very big news and, while parents may not have deliberately named their daughters for Reeva Steenkamp, for most Brits, it was the first time we had heard of her name. Clearly some parents liked it enough to use it. Oscar (the other major player in this case) also saw big gains in 2013.

For boys, Greyson at #882 made the most gains moving over 1000 places. More popular spelling Grayson, at #231, also moved up over 100 places itself.

Below is a chart of the top 50 boys' and girls' names within the 2013 England and Wales Top 1000 whose rank increased the most since 2012. The first number denotes the name's rank in 2013."

[MoominKoalaAndMiniMoom]

I like it, but as a sci fi buff, my immediate thought is the horrifying Reavers from firefly/serenity.

[EhricLovesTheBhrothers]

Riva would be fine, you have a family connection and it's not the same as Reeva. Why you would change the spelling to Reeva I don't know.

[YoungBritishPissArtist]

I say go for it, but stick with the Riva spelling.

[persepolis123]

I'm expecting a baby and really like the name too. I have seen it spelled Riva quite a lot which would be a better choice if you did go for it. Personally I think it's still too soon and it's not like it's a popular name here so no it's not the same as using Holly, Jessica or Madeleine.

[gunsnraisins]

I think it's fine.

[gunsnraisins]

....And now I know my name change has worked....

DD is Meredith. We liked the name before the case was in the news and she was born around a year later (I think?). It did cross my mind whether it was ok using the name, again massive news story and a violent death, but it felt wrong to tar the name by association and cross it off the list.

6yrs on and I only remember the connection when the case hits the headlines every so often. Even then it's just a vague acknowledgment they have the same names, my Meredith is very much her own person, I don't feel she's burdened with the name or anything.

[3pigsinblanketsandasausagerole]

It's a pretty name

If I liked it and was having a girl what has happened to one person with the name would not stop me from using it

[HibiscusIsland]

I've only read the op, but I think if Reeva was a well known south african name that would be one thing, but my husband is south african and had never heard of it. So it's kind of specific to her and I think you should avoid

[birdofthenorth]

Love Rivka and Reema. Only one association with Reeva. Spell it Riva if you go for it.

[PorkyMinch]

I actually think I'd be upset if I was her mother and people thought they couldn't name their child after her because it had horrible associations. It's a lovely name.

[gamescompendium]

I'd stick with the family spelling if I was you and always say 'She's Riva after DH's great nan'. If someone makes some comment about RS then you can say 'but it's a family name that's spelt differently that we'd decided on years ago' then give them a hard stare.

For other reasons I'd recommend the family spelling. DD2 has the middle name 'Anne' and my Mum was not impressed that we spelt it with an 'e' (not the family spelling).

[BOFster]

But it ISN'T after Reeva Steencamp though

[OldF0ssil]

Definitely too soon. But agree, Riva is slightly better.

[Sootgremlin]

OP, I think if you had started a thread about the name with the Riva spelling, saying it was after your DH's great-nan, and asked if it was too similar to 'Reeva' to use next March, I think the responses would have been completely on the side of you using it.

You are bound to get negative responses now as it is at the forefront of everyone's mind at the moment because of the events of the last few days, and your original post was ambiguous as to whether you were only using the name because of Reeva Steenkamp.

[Hakluyt]

I think next March will probably be OK. So long as there's no appeal.

[Frikadellen]

Off course you can use it, I also think it is a beautiful name

Holly (Wells) and Jessica (Chapman - Soham murders) Madeline (Mccann) Ben (Needham) & Jack (the ripper) are all names that are still commonly given to babies despite their "connections"..