Names from other cultures...

[poppymango]

I'm curious what people think about giving their children names from cultures they have no connection with. Personally I think Scandinavian names are beautiful, but I have zero connection with that part of the world. Is it a bit pretentious?

It struck me because I know if I met someone called Jean-Paul I would assume they were part French, or a Sioned would have some connection with Wales, etc.

Thoughts? Would you roll your eyes? Or am I overthinking it?

There's no law that bans foreign names in Britain
There's also no law that ban parents from being pretentious

I would just make sure name you're picking is correctly pronounced by parents and also check association of name not only in Britain but in country from which name is coming from

I think certain names people can get away with as they have become particularly common here but I think that sometimes it can seem very pretentious, for example calling your child Francesca if you're not Italian isn't too bad because it's fairly commonly known here but calling them Chiara seems weird.

I am not from Britain and it does grate a bit when people post up asking for 'unique' names and names from my home-country are suggested, as if all the meaning and history of the name is lost and another culture is just someone's opportunity to be unique and quirky.

Chiara - not weird IMO. I have come across two Chiaras, none of the parents had any Italian connections.

I've met Chiaras with parents with no connection to Italy as well and I definitely thought it was strange, my immediate assumption was that they were of Italian heritage because it's such an obviously Italian name. That's when I find it a bit pretentious. Just my own opinion though.

This is what I'm a bit concerned about. Someone I went to school with called her daughter Áine, but pronounces it Anya. The parents aren't Irish in the slightest, I think she just thought it was a pretty and unusual way to spell the name. I can't even quite put my finger on why it bothers me, but it does.

Two Scandinavian names I've always loved are Astrid and Freya. I'm unsure if they're common enough in the UK now as to be acceptable for non-Scandinavians!

I think it’s fine. The only downside is that if it’s a name very strongly associated with a certain country, then you could be setting up your son or daughter for a lifetime of saying, no I’m not from x country, my parents just liked the name. Not the end of the world but I think I’d find it annoying over time!

To me, I wouldn't expect a Freya to have Scandinavian heritage but to be fair I knew a British one. Astrid I'd wonder if there was some heritage there but it's a cool name, simple to spell and pronounce (hopefully I'm pronouncing it properly)

I don’t think it’s pretentious to use a name just because you like it, loads of commonly used names come from other places originally. The only thing is to make sure it’s not offensive to use it, if it has religious meaning or something.

What is a British name anyway? Aethelstan and Aelwenna?

Nearly spat out my tea laughing at the thought of baby Aethelstan 😂

I wonder this too OP, there are a couple of very obviously Irish and Welsh names I really like but we don't have connections to either country so it seems a bit odd to use them.

Astrid and Freya are both high on our list as DH is Scandinavian, but we're fairly set on going for either the Freyja or Freja spelling as the anglicised version doesn't seem Scandi enough for us!

I wouldn't bat an eyelid at a non-Scandinavian Freya. For Astrid I'd wonder if there was a connection but not be taken aback to learn she wasn't Scandinavian.

I think that what people call their children is none of anyone's else business. Nobody owns a name, nobody owns a culture, nobody owns a history.

I partly agree, but cultural appropriation is a real thing. I just don't know quite where the line is.

I would just make sure name you're picking is correctly pronounced by parents and also check association of name not only in Britain but in country from which name is coming from

And spelled correctly. So eg not Shonned or Ailie instant of Sioned and Eilidh

don't see the issue. my British niece is called Ming. Gorgeous name, she's not asian at all, never had anyone comment other than how nice of a name it is.

plenty of Chinese people are called John and no one says anything about that.

Aethelstan is definitely due a revival - I love it. (And Stan for short.)

A friend of a friend actually has a baby boy named Wulfric. Maybe old Anglo Saxon names are the next big trend!

I love it!

Depends on the culture. And how obscure into the culture you go.

A white English man called Sean? Fine. A white English man called Donnacha? I'd find a bit unusual. A white English man with a Vietnamese name like Huy? I'd find that very odd.

Aren't there stories of boys named after footballers and cricketers from other countries?

Freya is a top 10 name in the UK.

I love some Turkish girls names but have no connection to the country, and with my very Irish surname it would sound ridiculous.

There are various names I like from different cultures which I would feel I couldn't use as I think you need a connection.

Love the name Priya and also Tatiana.. ..for boys I love Italian names

I wondered this exact thing (think I even had a thread at the time 😄) when naming my kids.

I think it depends on the culture. Me and DH are as English as it gets. I LOVE the names Omari and Israel but there’s no way we would use them (definitely not Israel at the mo! I do know a young Israel too……).

But our kids don’t have ‘English’ names - one Hebrew, one Welsh, one Greek.

I’ve a well known Arabic / Persian / Middle Eastern name and both parents are English with no connection to my name….. I love my name though and seeing as I’m always told I look ‘foreign’ (whatever that is!) I think it works even better :)

Dd1 and ds have names of Hebrew original.
Dd2 has name of Latin origin.
No one in UK would think about they are British. The children in school have all kind of names.