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Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Original poster

To anyone thinking of picking something pretentious...

80 replies

LethalWhite · 09/10/2018 14:27

Don’t know if anyone else was listening to radio 6 just now?

A woman rang up with a request, mentioned her 6 week old daughter
Presenter: what’s she called?
Woman: Isolde Fleur
Presenter:.... what? sounds confused
Woman Isolde Fleur
Presenter: why? Where’s that come from?
Woman: it’s an old Arthurian legend.
Presenter: right. Why...why did you pick it?
Woman: well we were researching baby names and it just seemed to fit.
Presenter: well, ok.

BlushConfused

The poor woman

OP posts:
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TatianaLarina · 09/10/2018 17:13

Not everyone lives in a thick and violent area.

It’s a very ordinary name for them to get worked up about. What do they make of Indian, Arabic, African, E.European names?

madeoficecream · 09/10/2018 17:16

Hmmm... she should come and live here... at my sons school there is an Ophelia, a Florian, a Flora, an Amos, and a Guinevere.... no word of a lie... this is all his year

TatianaLarina · 09/10/2018 17:17

Love Guinevere.

basquiat · 09/10/2018 17:19

I worked at an inner city school and never saw kids bullying anyone for having an unusual name tbh. It was more likely they'd make up juvenile rhymes for totally common names (i.e. Nick the Dick, or the boy called Luke who other kids called Puke). So many different names about these days that they doesn't really register as bullying material, I don't think.

DGRossetti · 09/10/2018 17:22

Love Guinevere

Or it's Celtic antecedent, Gwynefar ("White Owl" Hmm) ?

SleepingStandingUp · 09/10/2018 17:22

I always think it LOOKS pretty but neve too sure on pronunciation.
Also like Persephone but don't trust people to pronounce it right!!

susurration · 09/10/2018 17:22

It's no more pretentious than using Juno, Hero or any other mythological name. Isolde is beautiful and is associated with a tragic Arthurian love tale.

SleepingStandingUp · 09/10/2018 17:23

Tbf to the dj, I can see it throwing you if you're expecting Ruby May and get Isolde Fleur with a fake French accent

welshweasel · 09/10/2018 17:23

Isolde is a lovely name - I know of a couple locally (Wales) and it’s what DS2 would be called if he was a girl.

Treacletoots · 09/10/2018 17:29

Oops.that backfired a little... I'd say if you're looking for pretentious look at the Tatler list of children's names.

Ones that jump out are Npeter and Quail. They make Isolde look quite normal now?

TatianaLarina · 09/10/2018 17:31

Or Gwenhwyfar.

I don’t find mythological names pretentious.

DGRossetti · 09/10/2018 17:32

I don’t find mythological names pretentious.

Jesus ? Mark ? Peter ? Grin ....

Annandale · 09/10/2018 17:32

Djs can't sound like they know stuff, they would break the ' cool = ignorant' rule. They would also be afraid of sounding middle class, because they probably are.

I have to say i dont know how to pronounce isolde.

HungryChocoHippo · 09/10/2018 17:34

My son is called Tristan, which actually comes from the same Arthurian legend... I am french and it fairly common in France, my british DH loves it.

TatianaLarina · 09/10/2018 17:34

Isold.

Unless you’re German in which case it’s Isolduh.

SleepingStandingUp · 09/10/2018 17:35

Google suggests "ih sold uh"
I'm imaging dodgy phone connection and
"ih sold uh flush" very quick feel for the DJ!

SleepingStandingUp · 09/10/2018 17:36

Ih sold uh fluh
Not flush

Cosmoa · 09/10/2018 17:43

It's a very bulky awkward name to say. Isolde is bad enough... Never mind fleur too! Especially with all the different accents in the UK.

I don't think the presenter was right to be rude. But I can definitely understand their confusion. It is a pretty awful name.

Moonflower12 · 09/10/2018 17:44

My DD attends a small village school- less than 80 pupils and there are 2 Tristans there!

SleepingStandingUp · 09/10/2018 17:45

I'm not sure the presenter was rude. He asked what the name was, where it had come from and why they'd picked it. Perfectly sensible question for why did you call her Mary, Isolde Fleur, Kaseigh-Mai-Bluu or Jess a

Sunflower321 · 09/10/2018 17:52

Only on mumsnet is that considered a normal name FFS. I'm with you and the presenter OP and feel sorry for the child.

No, only on Mumsnet are lovely interesting names considered 'pretentious' and made fun of. Your opinion being an example

Original poster
LethalWhite · 09/10/2018 18:08

And yes they’re my definition of pretentious.

I hate it when people do this. Make an outlandish claim and then say 'well that's my definition of xyz.' You can only make a valid argument by using the universal definition of things, otherwise you just look extremely ignorant and uneducated.

OP posts:
SputnikBear · 09/10/2018 18:44

They’re both chavvy not pretentious. Who says they can’t be both.
Chavvy and pretentious are opposites. Chavvy is lower class and pretentious is wannabe posh.

palindromeam · 09/10/2018 18:48

I heard this. The dj - I think it was Chris Hawkins- couldn't quite hear. Nor could I as a listener. And because it is quite a long and quite unusual he couldn't catch up. He was a bit rude but it did make me chuckle (which is probably a bit mean of me).

Also it is probably what's going to happen a lot.

Flamingosnbears · 09/10/2018 18:50

Definitely NOT pretentious

Thick presenter