Hecate for a baby girl?

[BuddingBaker]

Hecate (pronounced hek-ah-tee). In Greek mythology Hecate was a goddess associated with witchcraft, crossroads, tombs, demons and the underworld.

Bit of an unusual name but my partner really likes it and I think it sounds nice. What do you think?

I made a mistake - sorry - and missed out a whole sentence. Hekate's Roman name, Trivia, does echo her triple-headedness but it originates from the Latin name for a crossroads where three ways meet.

I think it's lovely that Greek names have a special meaning for you. They do to me too because I studied classics many years ago. I chose Greek names for my DCs, but fairly "boring" ones because it was back in the day when baby names were all very plain and dull like Sam and Evie, so I didn't dare call mine Xenophon or Persephone or anything like that! (My favourite name was actually Sophia, and it had become ubiquitous by the time I produced DD1 but I used it anyway.) If your DP has had Hecate picked out for years, you should definitely use it. I gave DD1 unusual middle names which she can use if she ends up being one of five Sophias in a future class or workplace, and if you wanted to be conservative you could go for "[Ordinary name like Sophia] Hecate Beese".

Nah, always makes me think of Princess Diana, she died on Hecate's Feast Day - apparently.

Ha @99bb I know EXACTLY what you mean there! That was a good episode!

I like it. I like how it sounds in my mouth. I might have to get a kitten now, damn you.

Gods sake, that’s bloody awful. Why would you do that to a child?

Bad name. She’ll spend the rest of her life having to explain it to people.

Choose it if you want but know this, if you do everyone you know will be rolling their eyes and laughing at you behind your back, they’ll tell you they like it and it’s a lovely name to your face.

Please remember this is a person you’re naming, not a dog, they will have to live with this name, they might turn out to be outgoing and confident and pull it off, or they might turn out to be painfully shy and self conscious and not want to have to explain to people how their name is pronounced all the time.

She will be mocked mercilessly throughout schoola nd will probably be deeply embarrassed by her name as a teenager/adult. Why would you do that to a child?

It's not a beautiful name either. Greeks call their daughters after Godesses, so that is not unusual. However, Diana, Athena and Daphne are a lot smoother and more beautiful than Hecate, which is lingually hard sounding.

I heard someone shouting of an 'Aria' the other day. My instinct was to roll my eyes (metaphorically) and think FFS, how embarrassing. It was an involuntary reaction on my part, and that's what your daughter will face day in, day out.

Please don’t OP.

It’s a very harsh sounding name for your little precious newborn girl! And a truly appalling name for an older child/teen she won’t thank you for it.

I’d pronouce it Heck-Ate. It doesn’t go with the surname.

Sorry, please find another.

I have no idea about the Shakespeare links but just from looking at it, I had no idea how to pronounce it. At a guess I would have gone for He-Kate.
Agree you could always shorten it to Kitty as a NN but just ask yourself, would she be embarrassed with her full name any time it had to be said out in public or written on a form or job application? Would she get fed up of relentlessly telling people how it is spelt and pronounced? I have what I consider a fairly normal surname that is said the way it is spelt but nobody ever says it or spells it right and I get so fed up of telling people that I have actually resorted to giving people my maiden name as it is just easier.

Personally, I would go for something like Althea. It is along the same lines but softer and easier to say than Hecate.

Thank you to those who have suggested alternatives (I do quite like Sophia) and to those who haven't but don't like Hecate, are there any alternatives you would suggest?

Personally I think it's quite a beautiful name, if somewhat unusual, but that's personal taste I suppose.

Inspired by a previous poster, Diana Hecate is very nice!

Call her Kate.

'Yes but the OP not an Ancient Greek nor a Wiccan. She would be naming her child after a deity she doesn't believe in because she just quite likes the name. Which seems at best odd and at worst offensive.'

Sure. I just found the suggestion that someone wouldn't call their child Jesus ridiculous and ill-informed when really a lot of people do call their child Jesus.

Brother: Beelzebub.

Yes but the OP not an Ancient Greek nor a Wiccan. She would be naming her child after a deity she doesn't believe in because she just quite likes the name. Which seems at best odd and at worst offensive.

I greatly doubt that many of the the parents of any aging Martins were devotees of the Roman god of war. The culturally-appropriating oppressors.

I don't mind Hecate but added to Beese is irredeemably stupid and sounds like a cats name

It's not a human name

If you want something Greek sounding but still pronounceable how about:

Artemis
Hera
Alexandrina
Cressida
Delia

I mean they’re all a bit eye-rolly but that’s because they sound a bit pretentious if you’re not actually Greek.

I think as your surname is so short sounding I'd have a long first name

Arabella
Anabelle
Cassandra
Melisandre (not really)

Genevieve is good with Bees

OP - "what about this name?"

Literally the whole world - "no. Don't do it"

OP - "you're wrong"

Why ask in the first place. Classic MN.

I think as your surname is so short sounding I'd have a long first name

Arabella
Anabelle
Cassandra
Melisandre (not reallygrin)

Clytemnestra? A good strong woman.

@Babybel90 Hera Beese sounds like "here are bees" so probably not.

There's nothing "eye-rolly" about Greek names. The usual conservative rule is that names must be Biblical, classical or royal.

I like your suggestion of Artemis though.