If you gave your DD a very unusual name

[ZebraZeebra]

Care to share?

And also, did you tell people beforehand or is it best to just announce once they're here?

An-tig-0-nee

Thank you, I couldn't see past anti-gone but knew it couldn't be right. Antigone is lovely!

Neither my son or daughter have "unusual" names; I'd say traditional and not overly common in this area. Apparently very popular in France which cheered up DD who reckons nothing is ever printed with her name on it!

They have unusual middle names though. DD's is the name we called has as a "bump", and DS is lumped with DH's granddads first name and my granddads surname as his middle names, though we still call him by the nick name we gave him as a "bump" - though didn't lumber him with it as a middle name as his three names are long enough!

Either way; whatever you call your child, people may comment. So long as they're not pointing out your childs initials now spell FUK or anything like that, ignore everybody!

3 with the same name in as many pages, peppa. Not so unusual after all!

zebra if I can figure out how to pm you, I'll tell you. But only if you promise to use it

DD has a pretty rare name. I think there were 17 born in the year of her birth. It's a proper, recognisable, real name that always gets a positive reaction. It's as if people had forgotten the name existed.

It would entirely out me if I said it here. Sorry!

I wanted to call DD3 Octavia but wasn't allowed

My DDs are Octavia Camille and Lorelai Cordelia.

We didn't choose their names until they were 2-3 weeks old and I didn't think they were that unusual but some people were quite rude when we announced.

I gave my dd a very unusual name 18 years age. Many raised eyebrows.

The name? Grace!

As soon as I read Redcliffe I knew it would have a St Mary Redcliffe connection!

I like Afton, but have only ever heard it as a character in Dallas, so maybe it is an American name?

I'm surprised that Meredith (lovely name) is considered unusual, though.

DD3 is Liberty which is unusual where I live. She's nearly 8 and we've never met another one.

My DD's had very unusual names for their time unfortunately a couple of them ended up as popular names hopefully the youngests won't.

The name was ripped to shreds on here but in RL we have never has a bad reaction not even 'the look'. I'm pretty sure there have never been more than about 15 named each year for decades.

Any name no matter if its Olivia or zooella should never be announced before its sealed because rude people will be rude about it in advance

Ohhhh I'm bloody cross now there were 19 last year 19 that is unacceptable give it 5 years and it will have done a bloody ruby!

Have a play with this

names.darkgreener.com/#

My daughter's name is Joanna - not unusual at all, but people have trouble with it. MIL still calls her Joanne, and teachers at school have said JoHanna, Joanny, Jonah. I don't get it.

I have always loved Gaia because Latin matrimony vows used to use this name as a kind of "any woman" name. Ubi tu gaius, Ibi ego Gaia. Very evocative. And also means earth Goddess.

Also heard an Athena in the park but not in UK . It was pronounced "a-tayn-a here which I thought was nice.

I have an unusual name that has only become popular since a film when I was about 16. Very annoying now as they are becoming so common! Love having an unusual name.

Fionnuala... Most people struggle to say it at first but they catch on pretty quick. I didn't announce it before birth but wouldn't have done that even of we were calling her kate!

The DC have names that are very unusual here (DD was the only one born the year she was born) but not at home. So they go between having to explain pronounciation and (especially) spelling to meeting LOTS of people with the same names as them when we are visiting my family.

Make sure you really love the name because yo do get a lot of faces and rather unsubtle negative comments (SIL said she 'struggled' with DD's name, lots of people say 'oh is that from your home?').

Or Daryl? That's down at zero but I think these girly names ending in "a" might become old hat soon and you'd remember a Daryl.

I have a Mary, which always gets this
So now we call her something different

Cordelia and Octavia are fab. Book-names (a.o.), and I'd always support a book-name for giving to your child. I also really liked the pp's dd's nm Mem - it is a very real-sounding, unpretentious but lovely name to carry through life with you.

Also, I want anything to name change and spill!!!

This is a fab thread, thanks so much for everyone's input!! Some really really lovely names - some I know of well and some I've never heard of. But all so beautiful!

Bang your DDs names are so grand, I love them! Particularly Cordelia.

whozit how do you pronounce Fionnuala?

Fast pm me please!!

Unfortunately my uncle is Darryl in the exact same spelling. But Darryl Hannah was always very cool.

If DD had been a boy we would have named her Talisker

Yes, after the single malt. Nearly called her Autumn but balked at the eleventh hour