Thoughts on the name 'Aslan'

[sel2223]

My OH is Turkish and we've trying to agree on a name for a little boy (we have a girls name already).

We want a Turkish name with no special characters that is easy to pronounce in both Turkish and English. Asian means 'lion' in Turkish and is also the name of the lion from the Chronicles of Narnia, which I love.

What do you think? Is it too 'out there'?

I have a client called James Bond, which is pretty cool but not a name I'd have chosen. Unless your surname is Thelion, I can't see a problem. I might suggest it to my son as a potential baby name for my as yet imaginary grandchild.

I like it, absolutely no different to Leo, Rory in making me thinking of a lion or tiger.

@oncemorewithfeeling99 well not really considering Allah is actually God whereas Aslan is not a religious name at all and simply means 'lion' but just happens to also be the name of a fictional lion character in a children's story book.

For those so against the name for its so called religious connotations, where do you stand with biblical names? Or names derived from Theo (Greek for 'God')? or Mohammed (the prophet - literally the most common name on the planet)?

Thanks for all the replies - a lot of opinions on both sides

@Cbeebiesrehab you may be right. The more I'm having to defend it, the more it's actually growing on me haha

OP I think you have to accept that for some people Aslan is a name with religious connotations.
In the UK traditionally giving your dc such a names is unusual.
There are other cultures where this is totally normal.
You are completely at liberty to ignore the culture of not giving a name linked with god and go with an alternative cultural approach.
But you cannot insist that Aslan isn't a religious name at all because to some people it is.
Within UK culture the name Aslan is a symbolic representation of God. I understand that this isn't the case in other cultures. I think that over time this link is fading as it is an older book.
You can't dictate other people's understanding of a name and it's cultural significance to them, you can of course choose a different interpretation for yourself.

Cinderella is not a name made up by Disney!!!
you can't compare to Mohammed, as that is an acceptable and unremarkable name for Muslims
you can't compare to Harry- Harry is an ordinary boy's name
you could possibly compare to Hermione as that is unusual but it is still a recognised girls name in the UK
Only in areas where there is an established Turkish community will Aslan not mean 'Lion, allegorical Christ figure' to an English speaker.

I instantly think of a lion but it’s not a bad name. It’s nice, I’ve only heard of Aslan as a last name though but it is nice.

I think of a christian symbol in LWW too, sorry.

@Midwest I guess I was trying to educate rather than dictate lol but I do hear what you're saying.
I think It's just hard for me to understand where people are coming from as I'm English and was brought up reading TCON and I have no problem looking at the name as just a character in the book. Prior to starting this thread, I didn't even consider the 'religious connections'....I would understand if I was wanting to name my child Jesus and we were talking about the bible but TCON are not religious books. They are just popular fiction.

@StillWeRise I think it's completely appropriate to compare it with Mohammed. That is a very religious name which is popular amongst Muslims across the world and is now considered acceptable in the UK due to its popularity.
Aslan is also a popular name amongst Muslims, it's just not as well known in the UK (at this moment in time).
You just have to read this thread to see that there are plenty of Aslans in the UK though, it's not unheard if

Someone asked me upthread to clarify why I thought Narnia is racist - I’m not the only one, there are plenty of commentaries on this over the years.

Key points are: Narnia is basically a classic good vs evil story, the ‘good’ side is mainly white Northern Europeans, of distinctly Aryan appearance. One of the ‘bad’ sides is the Calormenes, brown skinned people from a hot/desert country to the South East of Narnia, who wear turbans and carry scimitars and worship another (enemy) god of Aslan, called ‘Tash-may-he-live-forever’. I have children of mixed European/Middle Eastern heritage, and while this was one of my favourites growing up, I’m not sure that it’s appropriate reading material for them. And I don’t think I could use a name from the book for a child either

what I meant OP is that Mohammed is widely known, recognised and accepted as an ordinary name in the UK- non Muslims would assume Muslim family but it would have no other connotations
Aslan is NOT widely known or recognised other than through the Narnia connection UNLESS you have Turkish heritage.

@StillWeRise so we can ignore the religious connotations of Mohammed (literally the prophet) because it's such a common name but because Aslan is less common in the UK, I should avoid the name at all costs?

I don't find it odder than Mary, Mother of God, really!

I'm with OP, it's growing on me.

OP you need to seek advice from people where you live as in not sure mumsnet is representative.

If someone told me their name was Aslan I’d probably think “like the lion in the lion the witch and the wardrobe?! Huh. ”. If you’re ok with that crack on. (And FWIW it’s grown on me over 9 pages).

I would not think “what?! Like God?!?!” Which is an overreaction as far as I’m concerned!!

And it’s not like you’re naming it after the bloody lion! It’s just a name and to quote mumsnet “no one owns a name” even CS Lewis

@raindropsfallingonglass 🤦‍♀️

Can't we just accept things written in a different time without having to take offence at everything? So many old books and films and tv programmes contain language which would be considered racist today but it's still part of our heritage and we can use it to teach our children.

It's always something isn't it?: 'the fairy tale of new York song should be banned for offensive language', the Mr Men books should be banned for being sexist', the programme Friends should be banned for being homophobic'. Goodness me.

@ShallICompareTheeToASummersDay thank you for the common sense response. We have sent some feelers out to family and friends too to see what they think.

It's funny, it's grown on me over 9 pages too 🤣

@eggandonion THIS! Thank you

No one said the Narnia books should be banned FFS. It is perfectly acceptable to read literature and other creative work critically, acknowledging that it has flaws as well as good points. There are a lot of questionable things in both Friends and the Mr Men books I think it's good to discuss it rather than just absorbing everything without considering the impact and implications.

Anyway for you Aslan is a Turkish name that just so happens to be a character in a book, other people may associate it solely with the book (and may or may not dislike it for that reason) but that's their problem not yours.

It sounds as if you are keen to defend the name which suggests to me that you really like it, so go for it!

But please use an English middle name at least. And i still think you should give baby your own surname as you're not married.

But please use an English middle name at least

Why? What’s wrong with foreign names?

Nothing wrong with foreign names.
But if I'm carrying, birthing and raising a child I would like them to have at least ONE name to reflect MY heritage.
OP is English so I think her child should have at least one English name.
Just my opinion, obviously hers is the only one that counts! (Plus the father but he's getting what he wants already, his surname and a Turkish first name.)

I think it’s nice to reflect both sides of the family (mum is just as important as dad) in a child’s name if the parents aren’t from the same parts of the world.

I know a few kids with this name but they have it spelt as Arslaan or Arslan

The child will have my dad's name as the middle name so don't concern yourselves about that....and the Turkish first name is something I'm pushing for, not OH, so it's not him 'getting what he wants'

As stated previously, i am still using my ex husbands surname and wouldn't want to give DC my maiden name as I got frequently picked on as a child because of it. That's why DC will have OH's surname.

Aslan ??!! Get a grip!