Basil

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My Dh late grandfather was called Basil and I think it's such a cute name. However Isit mean to call a baby Basil? I hate the shortned version of Bas though! Opinions of Basil?

Good lord, no. Don't do that to your child. It's the perfect name for a cat, use it on that.

Baaasssiiiiiiilll.....

Too soon. Fawlty Towers is still out there.

Basil fawlty would always spring to mind. Not sure if that's necessarily a bad thing but it wouldnt be a name I would choose

Use as a middle name maybe but not a first name

No, just no.

Nope.

I'm not a fan, sorry.

And it might get shortened to Bazz / Bazza, which I really dislike.

love it.

My cat was called basil

If you get to call a baby basil then that's not fair when I put my name suggestions on here of Terry and Alan everyone hated it! I'm still grieving for them names tbh. Little Alan

How funny, my DH just suggested it this morning for our shortlist, being American and unfamiliar with Basils Brush or Fawlty. It's a shame because I think without those awful and seemingly indelible associations it would be a lovely name that fits in with the tree / plant names trend at the moment. (Of course, the other issue if you have any Americans in the family is that they'd pronounce it Bay-sil 😱)

Basil is a good cat name!

Awful.

Another one who goes straight to "BASIIIIL!" in Sybil Fawlty's classic shriek!

And I want to shout 'BOOM, BOOM!' like a certain betweeded fox

No

I know it’s an ancient and noble name, but when I hear it I think of comedy foxes with loud laughs, and Sir Basil from the Herbs.

My dog (who I love dearly) is called Basil.

Hello op this is a common Jamaican name. Sadly people can be ignorant to names that are part of other cultures. Seem to see it a lot on mn

this is a common Jamaican name. Sadly people can be ignorant to names that are part of other cultures.

Sorry for not having an encyclopedic knowledge of the top fifty names in every country. Really, if the only acceptable answer to the question 'do you like this name?' is yes, we ought to just get rid of the baby name thread.

I've never seen faulty towers so never made the basil connection but glad that's been brought to light 😂 interesting that it's Jamaican as my father in law is actually West Indian (St Lucia) I still do love it but just the thought of it getting shortened to Baz is just really putting me off!

Kids won't care about an old tv program

......that's the thing with Fawlty Towers - it has stood the test of time, and generation after generation do watch it and refer to it, it's characters, and lines from it. My dc love it.

If you get to call a baby basil then that's not fair when I put my name suggestions on here of Terry and Alan everyone hated it! I'm still grieving for them names tbh. Little Alan

AnitaGreen - I work with U5s, and am working with 3 Alans at the moment - it has definitely had a revival in these parts.

I agree with ReganSomerset. The OP has asked strangers on the internet for opinions of a name because she wants to know what people will really be thinking. If she wants everyone to say "That's nice" then she would just ask her friends. Your knowledge that it is commonly used in Jamaica is a helpful fact, as is the fact that so many people associate the name with 2 really well known (in the UK) characters from TV shows - which the OP hadn't connected. So those posts are helpful. The OP can still go and use whatever name she likes but, from this thread, she has learned what a lot of people will be thinking, which is why she asked.

Basil is a BRILLIANT name - for your cat!

I love it