Hatred of American names

[FluffyMunchkin]

Why do so many people on here hate American names? They really take a beating here, being called chavvy and horrible. I'm Canadian, so see them as normal, which could explain why I don't mind them as much. But the reactions here are so intense!

@MrsTerryPratcett the national pastime of Canada is hating on American things..? I've lived in Canada for well over twenty years and that's not the case at all.

I am British and really like a lot of American boys names - Cody, Calvin, Brady, Casey, Cory.

And I strongly dislike boring traditional British names like George, William, Sam, Thomas, David.

I've lived in Canada for well over twenty years and that's not the case at all.

www.boredpanda.com/funny-america-canada-differences-mocking-usa/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic

Just one of maaaaaaaaaannnnnnyyyyy.

MN loves to hate on America as much as possible. HTH.

The issue of hating American names actually spans across Europe. You can research the “Kevin effect” in France.

In the UK there still appears to be a class system. The naming trend in the UK is to pick a “well to do name”, as we believe that giving a baby a “posh” name will help set the precedent and help them later in life with preconceived judgments and jobs etc.
You will notice that when looking at popularity rankings, most of the popular names now are names that the affluent used to use frequently eg. Amelia, Olivia, sophia etc
But as these names are now being adopted en masse, these names have now lost their “affluent appeal” as it trickles across the classes. So the affluent have to use different names eg jemima, otillie, Beatrice which I’m sure will follow suit and become used en masse. In the UK the “higher classes” set the naming standards.
In the US there is less of a class divide. There may be a little with “trailer trash” and typical African American names or Hispanic names. However on the whole class is less of an issue (which is s good thing). Americans idolise celebrities and therefore it’s the celebrities that set the naming standards over there. So made up, creative and unique names are chosen.
But it’s interesting to note that Americans tend to follow the UK naming styles. The UK actually set the naming standards for the US. It might be because they don’t have a class system that they look across the pond for naming inspiration as they tend to love all things British as it incites images of the queen, castles and posh and upper crust life.

It’s all very interesting.

In the US there is less of a class divide. There may be a little with “trailer trash” and typical African American names or Hispanic names. However on the whole class is less of an issue

I get told this a lot. I think class is more obvious in the UK, landed gentry and Rees-Mogg and all that. But class is deeply ingrained in North American culture. The signifiers are different but it's there. I know a few privileged Americans and Canadians who swear class is dead in Canada and America. Then you ask them how many friends they have who smoke, or don't recycle, or drive a pickup, or watch The Kardasians, or work at McDonalds, or even rent their home in some cases. Or have children called Dravon or Zakeree or Amber.

Class exists, it's just about a different set of behaviours.

Class exists, it's just about a different set of behaviours.

This is true, but in terms of names, accents, and style of dress you don't find much difference at all. Whereas in the UK it's very obvious that if you speak a certain way or do your hair/makeup in a certain way, you're working class or middle class.

is true, but in terms of names, accents, and style of dress you don't find much difference at all.

Accents yes (unless you're an immigrant, PoC or Indigenous). But dress is absolutely class bound. All the bloody hipsters are middle/upper and anyone wearing Walmart lounge wear and knock-off Uggs isn't. Swearing is 100% working class.

But dress is absolutely class bound. All the bloody hipsters are middle/upper and anyone wearing Walmart lounge wear and knock-off Uggs isn't.

Disagree with that. I have teenage relatives who attend elite private schools outside of NYC and some whose parents are basically paycheck to paycheck in the South. They dress exactly the same.

Oh God teenagers yes. But that's age, not class. And the Uggs would generally be real and the lounge wear not from Walmart.

I get funny comments for calling my daughter Mackenzie but it's a fairly common name for a girl in the US

Mummy

That's because it means 'son of Kenzie' and in the UK is seen as more of a surname. I think quite a few names that in the UK would be surnames but in the US are first names, some are crossing back over the atlantic as first names eg Taylor.

Class exists, it's just about a different set of behaviours.

Yes but it isn't set in stone the way it seems to be in the UK. So you don't have the strange situation of two university professors, living in a 4 bedroom house in the right part of town, with 2 children at grammar - or maybe independent - schools saying "we are working class" because their grandparents or parents worked in a factory. No one in the US would say this but you hear it all the time on MN. Also the cliches about how you can tell what class people are by how much they clean their houses. It is very strange if you didn't grow up there.

On the baby name thing, there is a strong tradition in the US (particularly in the South but not just the south) of giving a child his mother's maiden name as a first name - hence so many names that are surnames. I kind of like them and like that it gives a link to the mother's family and heritage.

Most of my children's friends (they are older teens) in the US are called things like Alex, Max, Emma, Julia, Sophie, Isabel, Emily, Alex, Alex, Alex (did I mention Alex - one year I think the entire hockey team was called alexandra and its derivatives), Joseph, John, and a few names from people's heritage - like Nilufahr (my favourite name), Rajan, etc. My dd is friends with a Navaeh - only one we have met - she is a great kid.

Isn’t that what makes the world a more interesting place that we like different things in different countries?

This is all very interesting.

Class exists, it's just about a different set of behaviours.
Agree with this.

This is true, but in terms of names, accents, and style of dress you don't find much difference at all. Whereas in the UK it's very obvious that if you speak a certain way or do your hair/makeup in a certain way, you're working class or middle class.
Agree wrt the British (very much wrt the English), but disagree when it comes to Americans.
You can tell a huge amount about Americans from little things, ranging from clothing to hair colour and style to recycling (YYY) and hundreds of other details. It's very easy to 'place' them not only in terms of family background or professional or educational background, but also to cross reference in terms of regional origin.

I agree that swearing is very much a working class trait in the US.

The turning up of noses at so-called American names/ surnames as forenames is not really a British thing. It's more of an English thing.
Use of surnames as names is a Scottish tradition that crossed the Atlantic and is now making the return journey with the twist that girls now have traditional Scottish surnames bestowed on them.
www.namenerds.com/scottish/last.html

See also Hallowe'en, which draws a lot of ire because of its alleged Americanness.

Alex, Alex, Alex (did I mention Alex - one year I think the entire hockey team was called alexandra and its derivatives)

LOL - at the high school graduation of one of my DDs the Superintendent's speech featured remarks on the number of Alexander-related names for men and women alike represented in the graduating class.

I was in a class with 7 Lisas back in the 80s.

Teeth are a key giveaway for class in the US: good teeth = growing up in a family with good health insurance, which usually means a well-paid, professional job.

Americans a partially decended from lower class Britons. The American culture is partially derived from lower class British culture hence considered naff. It’s the case with a lot of former colonies. Going to Australia is like walking into lower middle class Britan with a disproportionately high number of immigrants.

Americans a partially decended from lower class Britons. The American culture is partially derived from lower class British culture hence considered naff. It’s the case with a lot of former colonies.

Where to start...

Never underestimate the condescending arrogance of a certain type of Brit.

Have to say that Britain has the most rigid class system I’ve ever experienced outside of countries with caste systems/where phenotypes are class markers.

The thing about popular American names that makes me cringe is that they seem to be aiming for an posh old-money "white Anglo-Saxon Protestant" feel, but it all falls flat. The use of occupational surnames as given names particularly annoys me for some reason - Mason, Cooper, Taylor, Hunter, etc - and notice that it's always an English name, you never meet a child with the first name Kowalski, Patel, Goldberg, Garcia, etc!

All the actual posh people in America seem to be giving their kids classic "plain" names like Elizabeth and James.