Is Bear really that bad?

[YellowGrass]

We would love to call our child Reuben Bear, but have seen some very negative comments! Lots of people seem to be asking!

Is it really that bad? He's 4 weeks old and plan on registering him very soon.

It is a middle name. Who cares? He can be Mr. Justice Reuben B. Smith. or Mr Justice R. Bear Smith if it comes to that. Or Ruby Smith or whatever.

My children have the most straight down the line names and I am not a fan of trend names (in fairness Bear is a trend name at the moment) but as a middle name what on earth does it matter at all? No one knows middle names if the person who owns them doesn't want them to.

Please don't do this to your poor baby.

Bear is fucking hideous. People wouldn't call their child 'Penguin'.

This.

Please don't do this to your poor baby.

Bear is fucking hideous. People wouldn't call their child 'Penguin'.

Seriously? It is a middle name. No one is doing anything to a "poor baby". Have you really never ever met anyone with a middle name that was a bit quirky or odd? Probably not because you don't know the middle names of 99 percent of the people you meet.

And "fucking hideous". Adolf Hitler as a middle name might be fucking hideous. Or Moist Towels. Or Josef Stalin. But Bear?? Even Penguin isn't fucking hideous. Just a bit odd. In fact if someone named their child James Penguin Lane because great great whatever was the founder of Penguin books you'd probably think the name was fabulous.

Even Penguin isn't fucking hideous. Just a bit odd.
A bit?

You can call your children whatever you want.

I cannot see any adult thanking his parents for putting 'Bear' in his name though. Think of all the adult ceremonies (graduations/wedding/presentations etc) and how he might feel.

Ruben is a lovely name though.

Can someone please explain to me how Bear is any different to Autumn?

Can someone please explain to me how Bear is any different to Autumn?
Expect some sarcastic replies to that question, Remote

Please don't. A boy in our class had a middle name that sounded like a type of monkey. He is still known as 'monkey' 30 years later (it's not a racist slur - he's white).

I think he has come to terms with it now, but he was mercilessly teased for years. Bear is 10 times worse because of sounding like 'bare'.

Just use it as a nickname.

Beyond pretentious

Its not juat slebs whk use animal names
Someone I know has a son called Tiger. It really suits him. There is also a boy called Fox in our village. Both his parents are secondary school teachers so I imagine they thought carefully about the name and any possible teasing factor before deciding on it.

I would normally say if you like the name then go for it but I really don't think it works with Reuben. It sounds too much like Rupert Bear.

I really like it :)

Awful, but hey he's your child so go for it. You seem determined to. Poor Reuben Bearback Smith

You seem defensive about the opinions you have sought. I have a very mildly unusual name and it's a pain in the arse. It must have occupied days of my life by now the amount of time I've spent spelling, correcting pronunciation and explaining my not very unusual name. FWIW. HTH.

Nobody cares about middle names, I'm surprised you're getting such harsh reactions to a middle name.

IMO, middle names are a chance to honour family members and ancestors, or to go a bit crazy whilst saving face with a decent first name.

Bear as a middle name is fine. A bit behind-the-times-following-in-C-list-celeb-footsteps, but fine.

Give the poor child a proper name!

I like it OP. Especially as a middle name. Prefer the addition of Nicholas though to soften against Rueben. People are really harsh on here sometimes but if you like it then go for it. I doubt he'll be the only one given its current popularity (along with teddy) so hardly going to be unusual to the point of bullyworthy. Bit hysterical.

olympicsrock

Give the poor child a proper name!

She has, Reuben

Some of these replies are ridiculous at best and nasty at worst.
It's a middle name.
There are other noun names out there.
Nothing to say she is copying celebs (the Bears I know are school age!).
Not many children get picked on (despite people on here using that as an argument regularly) for their first name let alone their middle name!
Insinuating it's cruel is unfair.
Calling people 'dicks' or other names is wrong, celebrities or not.
The 'you seem determined to' comments...well the OP hasn't been back since page 2 so...

Entirely your choice, I think cute Nickname, but not on his birth certificate, he may not thank you when he's older and friends find out!

It's just daft. I understand that to you he's the cutest ickle wickle bear in all the world but to literally everyone else who ever finds out his middle name he'll be 'that poor bloke whose parents named him Bear'.

I think you're getting a hard time OP. Reuben Nicholas Bear sounds lovely. I wouldn't go with Reuben Bear because of the similarities to Rupert. But that's just me.

Bear - FGS. Aardvark is much better.

I think the name Arthur means "bear". Could you not have Reuben Nicholas Arthur? Nn bear? Then best of both worlds. No one will stop you calling him bear at home! But when he's a professor he won't need to deal with a name that was a fad once in 2017...?

I don't actually hate it. The fact it sounds like Rupert Bear would put me off.
But I do feel the need to ask, if you're not going to call him it, or use it as a nickname, why do you want it? Only my son has a middle name and that's to honour his grandads, I don't really get middle names that aren't family names or aren't going to be used

Some of these replies are ridiculous at best and nasty at worst.

Agree. It's all a bit hysterical. It's just a middle name!