Maybe got it down to 3 girl names

[Sansa87]

We are due in three weeks and have really been struggling with names.

I think we’ve got it down to three names that we both like.

Francesca,
Paige,
Brooke.

Middle name is Vera Jean after grandmothers.

Opinions, (please don’t be too brutal 😂)

Cultural appropriation is utter nonsense as a concept, just another reason for snowflakes to be offended for no good reason.... and to suggest that somebody naming their child Francesca would be cultural appropriation is just absolutely laughable.

Get a grip.

[quote jakeyboy1]@itwillallbeok go and find yourself a real problem and stop trying to create one.

I'm so sorry OP your thread has been hijacked for a simple ask. Do stick with your beautiful name.[/quote]
Create a problem?
Your 'friscati' comment is the equivalent of when Jade called Shilpa 'ShilpaPoppadum'.
But yes you are right. I'm creating the problem.

@Bl0ndi3

Cultural appropriation is utter nonsense as a concept, just another reason for snowflakes to be offended for no good reason.... and to suggest that somebody naming their child Francesca would be cultural appropriation is just absolutely laughable.

Get a grip.

Laughable in your opinion. But not for many people who's culture/ heritage the name is taken from.

itwillallbeokay

So are you going to tell the black Jamaican family they can’t use Francesca because it’s cultural appropriation? Or would that be seen as horribly racist do you think....

@itwillallbeokay "many" looks like it's just you hun making a big deal about somebody liking the name Francesca, baffles me that it offends you. It's a nice name why does it have to be some big deal because once upon a time it came from Italy well news flash now it's everywhere and doesn't belong to only Italians ffs. Same way that hairstyles don't belong to a culture anymore that's just as preposterous.

I'd understand your point if we weren't talking about a really common name in the UK and many other countries now.

Francesca by miles.

[quote Bl0ndi3]@itwillallbeokay "many" looks like it's just you hun making a big deal about somebody liking the name Francesca, baffles me that it offends you. It's a nice name why does it have to be some big deal because once upon a time it came from Italy well news flash now it's everywhere and doesn't belong to only Italians ffs. Same way that hairstyles don't belong to a culture anymore that's just as preposterous.

I'd understand your point if we weren't talking about a really common name in the UK and many other countries now.

[/quote]
It didnt once upon a time come from Italy. It is an Italian name and used very much in Italy.

@Thewinterofdiscontent

itwillallbeokay

So are you going to tell the black Jamaican family they can’t use Francesca because it’s cultural appropriation? Or would that be seen as horribly racist do you think....

Which black Jamaican family is this?

[quote Bl0ndi3]@itwillallbeokay "many" looks like it's just you hun making a big deal about somebody liking the name Francesca, baffles me that it offends you. It's a nice name why does it have to be some big deal because once upon a time it came from Italy well news flash now it's everywhere and doesn't belong to only Italians ffs. Same way that hairstyles don't belong to a culture anymore that's just as preposterous.

I'd understand your point if we weren't talking about a really common name in the UK and many other countries now.

[/quote]
If you look back at posts 2 other people (of Italian heritage) have backed up what I've said.
But yes 'hun' it's just me.

“Which black Jamaican family is this?”

The one living in London and wants to call their daughter Francesca because it’s a lovely name.
Going to tell them it’s wrong to culturally appropriate names?

Love Francesa but not with other 2 names . it's a bit of mouthful. My friend had this name + Mary Anne. We always called her Franny Mary Anne. Her parents were italian. They ran a chipper and this was her great grandma her grandma and mother's names

Why specifically a black Jamaican family?

Just me that finds it hilarious all this talk of 'cultural appropriation' when the name Francesca means 'from France' 😂

Also, the amount of names that are popular in Italy but have originally come from Latin and Greek names, such as Alessandro, derived from the Latin name of Alexandros? Why is that okay then?

I'd learn to work out the difference between cultural appropriation and snowflake ✌️

@Sansa87 name your baby whatever you want and ignore the idiots looking to create an issue out of nothing

I have just spent a few minutes googling the origin of names in my family and back through my ancestors in my family tree. Every single name originates from somewhere other than England (where I and they were all born). All my known direct ancestors for 400 years, all with well known and widely used names in England at the time of their birth.

Quite frankly to suggest a whole nation will be upset at a name choice without their heritage is ludicrous and I'm not sure I could care what strangers think anyway. OP choose any name you like, as far as I can see there are very few names unique to England (if that is where you are, and I say England as this isn't true of Scotland, Northern Ireland or Wales). This thread has gone in a very weird direction.

Love Francesca ... Brooke and Paige reminds me of the US reality show 'Dance Moms'

Laughable in your opinion. But not for many people who's culture/ heritage the name is taken from

‘Taken from’ is only bad, surely, if there is some disadvantage to the original heritage? Cultural appropriation is when a society adopts something and makes a profit for themselves, while despising the original innovators. E.g Elvis Presley making a fortune when black music by black musicians was not allowed on the radio.

Out of interest, do British names become popular in other European countries in the same way that we enjoy names like Elodie, and Louis?

This list of French baby names gives the origins and most are from other countries. Same as in England. www.familyminded.com/s/beautiful-french-baby-names-7616dc4375cc4e5d

I guess all biblical names and many saints names that we use originate abroad

There's a London primary school named St Francesca Cabrini

Omg! This thread is hilarious, sorry @itwillallbeokay but you’re having a wind up clearly. My guess is that you’re either a keyboard warrior & beyond bored in life wanting some kind of attention, OR as English as they come with no ITALIAN HERITAGE again wanting attention. Maybe even a bit bitter for whatever reason...
It’s ok though and referring to your user name it will all be okay. Take a breath and get some fresh air.

@Sansa87 use whatever name you want, it’s your baby, your choice. I also love Frankie if you do go with Francesca.

Francesca. That would have been DS’s name had he been a girl.

I know a Jamaican family living in London with a Maria - the Italian version of Ancient Near East ‘Maryam’, a name which most people in England also know as Mary. Pretty much exactly the same as the Francesca thing. Anyway, as an adoptee, perhaps all us adoptees should have genetic testing to check we are picking names in line with our genetic history? And while we’re at it, we could go back a few years and tell all the parents of Sebastian to change their child’s names as that’s of Greek origin? And then we can really confuse ourselves as the city that was part of the root ‘Sivas’ is now in Turkey, so perhaps we should check with the Turks prior to renaming all Sebastians or disallow it for anyone who isn’t a Greek living in Turkey?

I’ll also be holding a seance to tell Princess Diana she’s forever offended the Italian’s by using a modern form of an old Italian name.

The reality is that across Europe we mainly share the same names in mildly different forms from the same root word. So, Amelia/Emilia, Ralph/Rafe/Raoul, Amy/Aimee, Gemma/Jemma, Christopher/Christophe or Alexander/Alessandro/Aleksandr/Aleksander. As they are the same root word, from the same origin and often relating to more than one country, it makes little sense to start claiming cultural appropriation at all. Unless, we wish to banish all words in our languages relating to our own history being intertwined with mainly Ancient Greek and Latin. As the English are really a mix of all sorts of cultures and languages, our names demonstrate this, as does our language. We’re an island that has no original ‘race’ and the majority of ‘English’ names are either influenced by the German and Scandinavian invaders (Ada, Hilda, Albert) that came before the Norman Conquest, or after that, we see a shift in names towards Norman names like Robert, Henry, William and Alice. As our language developed alongside our history, so did our names.

We are not talking about a name from a culture systematically oppressed by the English which is geographically distant and shares no entwining of language history, where someone is using a name with specific meaning and value within that culture that has been utterly missed. We’re talking about the name Francesca, much like Lucas or Sandra or George.

Francesca actually relates to the Italian words for freedom and France in its origins. So, if we’re being perfectly fair, then only an Italian residing in France should really use the name or vice versa - and only if they are honouring the true meaning behind the male Latin surname of a ‘free man’ or someone (‘Frances’) from France.

On that note, @Sansa87, Francesca is a beautiful name. I also love Paige!

My Vietnamese neighbour has a DD named Francesca. Lovely name

It's interestinh that all the Italians that have commented on here have said that they find it weird (although there is one person who comes across as a non-Italian living in Italy and seems to think this makes them an authority on what Italians think).
I think what people don't seem to realise is the whole culture that this is happening in, which is why so many Italians find this frustrating. People wouldn't call their child the Spanish Julio if they weren't Spanish, but non-Italians would call their kid Enzo or Elio. It would be weird for someone not Indian to open an Indian restaurant, but loads of non-Italians will open Italian restaurants and even market them as Italian family-run trattorias or pizzerias. Ignorant stereotypes wouldn't be allowed of other cultures, yet we have to see shit like the Dolmio adverts on TV constantly. I with an Italian dad and Scottish mum, living between Italy and the UK, and in the UK was bullied for having a different name, not being seen as from here, yet now that people see it as cool to use 'different' names, Italian names are seen as fairgame.
I'm not saying it's cultural appropriation (although if you take the meaning of the two words, people taking on another culture not their own then it could be argued it is, I understand Italian culture isn't one that has been subjugated by another so I can see why those of cultures who have been would say it isn't cultural appropriation if you take that meaning into account), but yeah, it does piss Italians off or roll their eyes.

People can call their kids whatever they want, and they may not say it to your face, but I do know that many many Italians find it weird when non-Italians call their kids Italian names, and names that people think aren't Italian, such as Francesca and Gabriella, are very much seen as Italian names in Italy. I used to work with a woman in Italy who if she met a British person with an Italian name, would call that person an anglecized version of the name. It wasn't out of spite, she genuinely thought she was doing the person a favour because she didn't think their actual name was Italian and assumed the anglecized version was their real name, because it would be weird otherwise.

Brilliant post magpie.

I have a friend who chose Francesca as her Holy communion name because she is Catholic. I assumed that if you were Catholic you would choose a Saint name like Frances/Francesca. So I'd view it through the religious angle rather than as cultural appropriation.

However, I have seen a rise in the popularity of Indian subcontinental & Muslim names because they are different. There seems to be an obsession about choosing a unique/exotic name for a child. Most of the people who choose these names don't have any obvious cultural/religious links to them. Names such as Zayne, Idris, Leila, Omar, Shakira, Lena etc so they're slowly becoming multicultural.