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Original poster

Which would you regret more?

119 replies

Onceuponatime123 · 19/07/2020 20:34

Which would you regret more?

Choosing a popular name and child being 1 of 3/4/5 in class.

NOT choosing a popular name that you LOVE because it is popular.

The name I am referring to is Evelyn but the question is relevant to any popular name.

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bigbella26 · 19/07/2020 22:46

Go with Evelyn. It's beautiful and there's not a single one in my 7 year old son's year at school. That's two classes of around 28 in the year. My nearly 3 year old daughter is in nursery and I'm not aware of any.
I am a 70's born Sarah and love my name.

ThedietstartsonMonday · 19/07/2020 23:00

Hmm tough one...I wouldn't love it if my child was one of many with the same name in the same class but if you love the name it shouldn't really matter. The questions is would you regret not using it?
For what it's worth there are 3 Evelyns in my daughter's year. Two are pronounced EVE Lyn and one EV Lyn. That confuses me more than anything with this name, I can never remember which one pronounces it which way!

Whatsyourflava · 19/07/2020 23:06

I think Evelyn is beautiful! I'd use it OP

I don't know why people keep saying "Eve A, Eve B, Eve C"

Her name is Evelyn not Eve. I appreciate it could get shortened to Eve but on class work and things she'd be Evelyn and not "Eve A". She'd only be "Eve" on classwork if you put on the school form that you'd like her to be "known as" Eve

Whatsyourflava · 19/07/2020 23:08

Ps. I don't know any Evelyn's

Looking at the official statistics the numbers of babies being given the name has plateaued so it is likely the numbers will now start to fall if you look at the numbers and trajectory

Msgiggles30 · 19/07/2020 23:09

I've been teaching for 10 years across different areas i.e. affluent to deprived and have had tones of Eva's and Evie's. But never had an Evelyn or Eve! I only know one Eve and shes 14. I love Eve cannot stand Evie due to the popularity

UsernameNotValid · 19/07/2020 23:15

Not picking the name you love.

We found a name we loved early on in my first pregnancy, a celebrity used it a few weeks later and it suddenly became popular which caused a bit of a spike. DS was 1 of 5 in nursery/primary class but it never bothered him or us, he likes his name and we still love it - now he's in high school it's less prominent with more children anyway 🤷

I however, have a relatively uncommon name and only ever knew 1 other in my childhood yet in a work team of 20 there are 3 of us! You can't win and it varies by area anyway.

Allmyeye · 19/07/2020 23:20

Same as Msgiggles30
I've been a teacher for years. Never had an Eve or Evelyn but loads of Evie’s and Eva’s. Have a close family member who is an Eve but she’s early thirties.

Tigger03 · 19/07/2020 23:21

You just never know! I know a girl born in 2000 called Eve when it was much less common, so even if you pick a more obscure name you don’t know what might explode.

I also know someone who called her daughter Elsa 2 years before Frozen came out... just go with what you love!

Foxinthechickencoop · 19/07/2020 23:23

Evelyn is a beautiful name. Why not name her that and insist in people saying Evelyn and not Eve or Evie. Granted it will be out of your control at high school. But if there are loads of eves and Evie’s then Evelyn still might stick as a way of determining who is who.
It’s a truely beautiful name, and no where near as popular as Isabelle / Isabella / Izzy or Sophia, Olivia or any of the Ellie and Millie names.

I named my DD an unusual name. So much so that my mum questioned if it was a real name. I had never met anyone called it (only in a random book). Bizarrely there was another one in her nursery and it’s now becoming quite popular ten years later. So you just can’t tell.

MaddeningtheUnhelpful · 19/07/2020 23:23

My son is 1 of 3 boys in his class with his name. He doesn't get confused because they use surnames generally. I still love the name. Before we re located and changed schools though, he was the only one with that name in the school and nursary. I still love his name, it suits him. No regrets here x

sunrainwind · 19/07/2020 23:25

Go with what you love. My daughter has a top 10 name from the year she was born and she's the only one in her primary school with it. I know quite a few Evies (but only two that I know of in the primary school) and one Evelyn.

Lindy2 · 19/07/2020 23:25

I don't know any Evelyns. There's several Evies and Eves but no Evelyns.

Stick with the name you love. Evelyn in it's full form is very elegant and pretty.

Megan2018 · 19/07/2020 23:29

There is literally nothing wrong with a popular name. The obsession with having something unusual is weird IMO.
There were several with “my” name at school. Never saw it as a bad thing!

Pick the name you love, always. Sod what anyone else thinks.

But I’d rather see 10 Evelyn’s than some hideous Yoonique monstrosity.

IthinkIsawahairbrushbackthere · 19/07/2020 23:30

One of mine had a popular name - three out of 5 in his preschool class had the same name! But it was a family name and we would have used it anyway. I would go with the name you love and not worry about it being popular.

rooarsome · 19/07/2020 23:36

@MsTSwift

Eve is crazily over used I really wouldn’t. The parents who chose it regret it
... I haven't regretted it.
turquoise50 · 19/07/2020 23:41

At least with a popular name she won't get bullied about it.

My parents chose an extremely unusual name for me because they didn't want me to be 'just another Beverley or just another Karen' - what they perceived to be the popular names of the day (showing my age!). My name was constantly misspelled, mispronounced, misgendered (it's a 'unisex' name) and was the cause of endless bullying for me. I hated it, still hate it, and changed it by deed poll as soon as I could. My year group at school had multiple Karens, Sarahs, Rachels, Nicolas, Alisons etc and I'd have given anything to be one of them! (Never met a Beverley though Smile).

I gave DS what I thought was a 'mid-range' kind of name - not one of that year's hyper popular ones, but at least a name which people would had heard of. Turns out that most people spell it differently to the way we spell it, and it drives him bananas.

Go for the popular name and spell it the popular way. Your kid will thank you.

GracieLane · 19/07/2020 23:41

One of mine has a very popular name and it's still my all time favourite boys name and so I don't care. It suits him beautifully and every other one he meets it's like hearing the name again I still want to say "ah, what a lovely name" every time I say it it makes me smile 😊

Lotsalotsagiggles · 19/07/2020 23:41

I know a lot of young children and none are called Evelyn

turquoise50 · 19/07/2020 23:52

Oh and btw I knew a very cute little girl a couple of years ago called Evelyn and it really suited her. She pronounced it 'Ev-alyn' though so I'm a bit confused why everyone is assuming she'd get called Eve for short. I wouldn't pronounce it 'Eev-lyn' if I saw it written down.

So on second thoughts, if there was any doubt at all about the correct pronunciation or spelling, I'd pick something else - neither you nor she will want to spend the rest of your lives saying 'No, it's EEV-Lyn' (or whatever) every damn time. Trust me, I went through this, and DS goes through it with his name's spelling. Pick something that can only be said one way and spelled one way!

Heh1991 · 20/07/2020 01:39

I think Evelyn is a really pretty name I’d just go for it.

I’m in the same boat I adore the name Oliver but am likewise in two minds as it’s just SO popular!

BF888 · 20/07/2020 01:56

Go with what you love! She maybe the only one in her class called Evelyn - don’t overthink it as long as you love her name and feel it suits her that’s all that matters.

Prettylittlelady · 20/07/2020 05:23

Go with what you love. For what it’s worth, I’m a teacher and in my class this year I’ve had one Eve.
Across the school there are COUNTLESS Evie’s - as in probably at least one in every class - sometimes up to 3.
But I’ve never taught - come across an Evelyn, it’s a beautiful name, I’m planning on using it as a middle name for my daughter.

DazzleCamouflage · 20/07/2020 05:34

Avoid the overused name. I was one of five girls with my name throughout primary school, and it was a thoroughly depressing experience feeling so generic and learning not to answer to my own name because the chances were someone was talking to one of the others.

MushyPeasAreTheDevilsFood · 20/07/2020 05:46

I gave my dd a name I loved that was quite unknown at the time, and is now popular. Theres still only her in her school with the name and she is yr 6.

My ds was named by dh. I didnt like it. And at soft play, days out, everywhere i heard other parents calling their boys the same name. Hugely popular. But again never one in the past 6 years at their school (the time ive been a parent there).

Chose the name you love

Grufallosfriends · 20/07/2020 07:16

There is literally nothing wrong with a popular name.

Apart from the fact that the name doesn't identify you and that it may fall out of fashion and sound dated.