Help on this name please!

[Mez123]

Hello Everyone,
So me and my partner have finally agreed on the name Hector for our little boy and we love it! However it has just come to our attention that Hector is slang for bully? Is this something I should worry about? I'm so annoyed as we have finally agreed on a name to then find this out.☹️

Not os you consider the opposite Sinister.

Right vs Left

I don't understand your first sentence, @Needanewname42 .
Dexter and sinister are right-hand and left-hand.

*To hector
*
verb
1 talk to (someone) in a bullyingng_ way.
*

The meaning would definitely put me off.

Also, the nickname Heck isn't exactly great

I think that you’ll find you tagged the wrong poster. Anyway, I disagree with your opinion - you’re being pedantic.

I did tag you and you have every right to be disagree, but I'm not being pedantic.

@ThatMauveRaven , I meant to tag @TabloidFootprints .

It is used both as a noun (hector) and a verb (to hector):

hector (noun)
a blusteringg^, noisyy^, turbulentt^ felloww^; a blustererr^, bullyy^.

hector (verb) (third-person singular simple presenthectorsrs^, present participle hectoringng^, simple past and past participle hectoreded*^)
1 (transitivee^) To dominatee^ or intimidatee^ in a blusteringg^ way; to bullyy^, to domineerr^.Synonyms: terrorisee^, terrorizee^

2 (intransitivee^) To behave like a hector or bully; to bluster, to swagger; to bully.

The noun usage is from the mid-17th century according to my OED so I don't think it need unduly concern the OP's DS.

My initial reaction was NO, don't do it, but then I thought, actually it's quite unusual and sort of sweet in a way, despite the harsh sound of it. So if you love it, go with it as the word meaning doesn't infringe, I don't think, - people know it's a name and don't make that association.

The majority of people have a very limited vocabulary and would never make any connection.

Those who read and have a larger vocabulary would associate the name with its classical origins (or assume you had some Scottish connection as the name has been popular there in the past) and would never think you'd inadvertently given your child a name associated with hectoring (which is not slang).

The majority of people have a very limited vocabulary and would never make any connection.

I think that most people (in the UK) would know what 'to hector' means.

And even if some don't, then a child named Hector will still probably look up the meaning of his name one day....

The majority of people have a very limited vocabulary and would never make any connection. That's a sweeping and patronising statement.

I teach a teenage Hector and I know his mum too. Never been an issue for him.

How can you know what people truly think about a name?

Even Hector himself might prefer a name that doesn't have such a negative meaning.

It probably is true that a large proportion of the UK population don't know the meaning of the verb 'hector', but there's little point arguing over this as a) we can't test the theory without a representative sample and b) it doesn't really matter what the awareness is at population level. With the greatest of respect to the OP, she wasn't aware of the verb and she was under the mistaken impression that it is a slang term. If she is representative of her social circles then her little Hector is unlikely to have an issue.

I'd also add that those people with 'hector' in their lexicon are also more likely to be aware of the classical hero, who is a pretty rare example of a genuinely positive namesake from Greek literature!

Lots of names are also verbs. Mark, Harry, Bill, Pat, Nick, Sue...

I used to get teased about my name. I doubt that my DM's friend was aware of it. My parents and teachers wouldn't have been either.

I would say to hector someone is more to badger them than to bully them, but I also don’t think people would have that immediate association with the name Hector as it’s so well established. It’s similar to how ‘to harry’ means to persistently attack someone, but nobody thinks that when they hear the name Harry.

Hector is a lovely name, I would go with it and not worry about it!

It's not 'well-established', @Ghostin , not compared to Harry.
Babies called Hector in England & Wales since 1996
Babies called Harry in England & Wales since 1996

Prince Harry's birth made it popular, and he's 40.

It’s plenty well established in Scotland, where I live, and even in England and Wales it is very clearly an easily recognisable, classical, long-standing name.

I would say to hector someone is more to badger them than to bully them, but I also don’t think people would have that immediate association with the name Hector as it’s so well established

1. according to the Cambridge dictionary, to hector means "to talkk* and behavee* towards someone in a loudd* and unpleasantlyy forcefull way, especiallyy* in orderr* to get them to actt* or thinkk* as you wantt*" that is basically to bully someone!

2. the name is definitely NOT well established (and that's probably due to the unfortunate meaning)

I mean none of the other kids have ever said anything. It’s not been an issue for him. His mum has confirmed this. What other evidence do you need to accept my not particularly factual offering of just an opinion on a not particularly consequential thread? Why is it such a big deal for you to comment?!

What do we mean by well established as a name? I’d say a well established name is a name which most people are familiar with, which Hector is. Hector is on my list for if my baby is boy and while it’s not a name I’d expect everyone (or even most) to have met one or several of, I’d be genuinely surprised if anyone had never heard the name before. Hector has been in the England and Wales top hundred names before. Unlike something like Astyanax where the name is probably unfamiliar to the point where it’s not well established as a name in the UK.

And if the definition of well established is has had a significant and sustained run of popularity analogous to Harry, then it’s the fact Hector is a less popular name which makes me want to use it.

The only famous Hector I know is Hectors House (showing my age).

@Ghostin , you were comparing it to Harry. Thousands of Harrys have been registered every year for decades.

This is one of my favourite names OP

I was comparing it to Harry because the verb ‘harry‘ has a similar meaning to ‘hector’ and nobody thinks twice about using it as a name. If the verb meaning of the word was really an issue, the name Harry would never have become so popular.

The word ‘hector’ as a verb is not particularly common usage these days, whereas almost everyone recognises Hector as a name. I know this is Mumsnet, where anyone calling their child a name which hasn’t been in the top ten names for at least fifty years is pilloried, but really this thread has been an eye opener in terms of how much of a silly fuss people will make over nothing.