How’s important are initials?

[GroundhogWeek]

Baby number 2 is imminent and we have struggled to decide on a name, mainly because we’re keen to put some ‘reference’ to family members in there, but without making it too much of a mouthful.

Finally thought we’d cracked it, then realised the initials would be OAP Surname. Not offensive, but certainly noticeable. I can’t do it can I?? (Could go with OPA Surname, but it just doesn’t sound right). Argh, back to the drawing board!

I think you’d be ok. Only bad when they are rude I think.

Oops, just realised there’s a thread with the same title just a little further down the page, shoulda scrolled first!

OAP is fine, raises a smile but not as bad as a Victor Anthony Gale or Charles Unwin McIntosh, say.

DS2 is BAD

I've told him he can become a rapper.

I know someone with the initials TWAT lol

My son’s are BJG. A few of his mates called him BJ to wind him up at school. He doesn’t use his middle names now, but not because of the connotations.

I think OAP is fine. For ages all of our choices were OAP for either boy or girl and it didn't bother me.

I think OAP is fine.
'Opa' is Grandad in German.

I don't think it matters at all, when my little one is born the initials will spell out TLC lol 😁

But it’s not OAP, it’s OAP plus whatever letter your surname begins with. I doubt anyone but you will ever notice.

OAP is not so bad, really.

It's not entirely true people don't ever notice, mind. I happen to work for a FUR at present and it most certainly does make people snicker until they get used to him. Probably doesn't help that he's pretty hairy, poor sod.

My son is STD. He’s 7, hasn’t realised yet. I don’t know that he will forgive us

My friends ds (just turned 19) has first and middle initial of BJ. Hypened so if generally referred to as both those names. I remember debating with my friend over whether it was a wise choice at the time, but she really wanted it, so she went for it. I've never heard her mention him having any issues with it and he's certainly never dropped either of them. So maybe not that important.

Not initials, but I had a teacher at secondary called Dianne Rear and even then remember wondering what her parents were thinking.

Swap them and make OPA.

We have 2x AA’s and one is AKA.
I’ve never had to use their initials, ever.

My daughter is HAT. I love it!

My daughter is LAW.
My husband insists she becomes a police officer so she can shout 'STOP in the name of the law'

My DD is CF.

@GobblersKnob I'm really struggling with this! I'm having a boy and we absolutely love the name Benjamin, but surname begins with a J. He will have a middle name, not sure what yet. I'm just not sure if we can use it, but there's definitely nothing else we love as much.

Sorry to use someone else's thread to ask this!

My friend's parents rearranged her name order as her initials would have been SAD.

OAP isn't too bad, it's not a term that is used much now anyway.

OAP Surname is ok because in reality their initials will be OAPS (assuming S is surname) or just OS day to day.

I don’t think initials matter .. until they spell something rude or offensive. Then they matter a lot.

@coastergirl there are of course plenty of people with those initials out there (Boris Johnson!) but it would give me pause for concern I admit.

My initials are GAL, which is not too bad.

In fairness to my parents GAL was not slang for Girl when I born.

It depends. I wouldn’t use something like POO or HIV, but ELF or JEM is ok.