Naming your daughter a boy's name, yes or no ?

[Momto2girliess]

My sibling named her baby girl a classic masculine name ( Think John, Robert , Thomas). I am never going to say anything to her. I am just curious to know people's opinion on it.

She always wanted a boy.This is baby girl n°5. Do you think it is a bit strange to name your girl a very masculine name?

What a shame, poor child. There should be laws in place for this

Christopher? Thats awful.
My cousin named her daughter Bradleigh (at least she tried to feminize it a little with the spelling), and I thought that was bad, but Christopher is so much worse.

Yes even if the mother has a man’s name herself. The little girl will be questioned (and possibly teased) as soon as she grows up. The only acceptable exception is if it’s a translated foreign name but then you would be wise to spell the name slightly different to distinguish it from a well known normal English male name. In addition If the girl is named after a boy just because the mother is disappointed with a girl - is yet another bad reason as the grown girl will later resent her mother being selfish and not accepting of her as wanted a boy instead.

I wonder if people would wonder if the child was non binary or trans. Christopher but dresses like a girl. These days probably!

Johnny Cash - ‘A boy named Sue’.

Christopher is quite popular at the minute where I stay - for a boy. It is RIDICULOUS. For a girl and I am a huge fan of unisex names for girls.

I like it.

Perhaps she’ll be treated better in the workplace when people think they’re emailing a man. (I dare anyone to tell me this doesn’t happen)

Fwiw Shirley used to be a name used for boys.

And my son has a “girl’s” name.

@Serpenta

Christopher! Wow, that's very peculiar. Nicknames will be fine but any time she has to tell people her full name she'll get all the faces.

I agree with @SirSamuelVimes that this trend only ever goes boys names for girls, never the other way.

In Scotland they used to name girls after their fathers by giving them horrific monikers like Donaldina or Jamesina.

They still do that in the Highlands and islands! I know several Angusinas, Hughinas and a few Donaldas. Oh, and one Murdella.

My middle name is after my grandfather. My mother is a bitch. these things are connected.

I wonder if people would wonder if the child was non binary or trans. Christopher but dresses like a girl. These days probably!

It doesn't take much, DD1 (biological female) has a feminine name but has a short haircut and she regularly gets challenged about being a boy particularly when she goes to the toilet. She says adults are the worst, kids tend to ask, adults just assume and tell her off, her sister has had to defend her a few times.

If the siblings have got traditionally female names that seems really odd to do this for No 5. So you'd have for example Emily, Olivia, Jessica, Daisy and Christopher?!?!?!

Slightly different if it's (and ignore spellings): Sydney, Sam, Jamie, Rowan and Christopher.

Yes, not nice for the child at all.

I wonder if people would wonder if the child was non binary or trans. Christopher but dresses like a girl. These days probably!

As a previous poster said the mum would probably be delighted and I'd be very concerned that this was a route she tried to encourage the child down in future.

I do hope the poor child has lots of people looking out for her best interests because at the moment she seems to have parents who are already othering her and treating her very unkindly.

Hopefully the registrar will stop the parents

I think the squirmy MN staple 'horribly cruel' 🙄 is overstating it somewhat, and I can tell you the register office will accept it without hesitation.
I went to school with a 'Michael' named after a character Mimi Rogers played in a ropey detective film in the 80s - she lived her name although admittedly went by 'Mickey' most of the time.
But it's a good point that no-one is calling their make children 'Olivia' or 'Poppy'.

@Summersnake

Hopefully the registrar will stop the parents

I hope so.

Very odd if you ask me, they need to think about the impact this poor choice could have on their daughter throughout her life. I suppose she could choose to go by Chris, or change her name by deed poll. That's what I would do if my parents had called me a boys name!

Chris is a unisex name.

Better to have named her Christine or Christy or something instead IMO.

But that's purely because we have some socially constructed idea of names matching biological sex.

In all honesty a name is a name. So it really should be fine she's call Christopher.

I once read a interview with Nigel and Nigella Lawson, where this was raised. They said that Nigel’s mother cultivated Nigella plants (love in a mist) and wanted to call her baby Nigella, but had a boy and had to settle for Nigel. That doesn’t shed any light on Thomsina or Horatia, but there is also a half sister called Emily, and a half brother called Tom.

Are you kidding? That's fucking ridiculous.

My daughter has a unisex name but that's as far as it should go.

We never got to use our boys name due to having 3 daughters.

We got a dog and gave it to him.

@GU24Mum

If the siblings have got traditionally female names that seems really odd to do this for No 5. So you'd have for example Emily, Olivia, Jessica, Daisy and Christopher?!?!?!

Slightly different if it's (and ignore spellings): Sydney, Sam, Jamie, Rowan and Christopher.

I agree. I know a family that has siblings Billie, Bobbie and Jamie (all girls), absolutely not the same as Patrick, David and Keith.

Things is. I'm sure once in a while names such as

Taylor
Jamie
Billie
Bobby
Makenzie
Chris etc

We're all use predominantly for one sex. Mostly male iirc.

They began being used for female borns more frequently because someone used it and others liked it and did the same.

The same as
Nicky
Kerry etc were all once predominantly used for females but became unisex.

Names only become related to sex and gender if society decides it does. We can quite easily decide it actually doesn't matter!

@itsgettingwierd

Things is. I'm sure once in a while names such as

Taylor
Jamie
Billie
Bobby
Makenzie
Chris etc

We're all use predominantly for one sex. Mostly male iirc.

They began being used for female borns more frequently because someone used it and others liked it and did the same.

The same as
Nicky
Kerry etc were all once predominantly used for females but became unisex.

Names only become related to sex and gender if society decides it does. We can quite easily decide it actually doesn't matter!

Yep. This.

Christopher... 🙄. People will assume she was so desperate for a boy she's in denial she's had a girl.

Names only become related to sex and gender if society decides it does. We can quite easily decide it actually doesn't matter!

Which would make perfect sense if it happened both ways or if it's been done because she liked the name and or it was meaningful.

However the reality in this situation it appears to boil down to the fact the desired child was a boy and instead she ended up with a 5th daughter so as some sort of mind game punishment the child gets lumbered with a very traditionally male name.

Which would make perfect sense if it happened both ways

Like I said upthread- my son has a “girls” name.