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Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Original poster

What about all those American girls names that sound like boys names, place names or surnames?

206 replies

Gunnerbean · 25/03/2009 17:39

Things like Tyler, Taylor, Ashley, Ashton, Scout, Bristol, Atlanta, Harlow, Finley, Harper etc to name but a few.

They seem to be very big on it over there but it doesn't really seem to have caught on to such an extent over here yet. But I suppose it will eventually.

What do you think? I think some can sound OK but others - I mean Bristol is pushing it a bit surely?

OP posts:
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Saltire · 26/03/2009 19:43

I'm still trying to figure out how I ended up on a baby name thread, I have it on hide FGS

TheJester · 26/03/2009 19:54

why are so many people so ashamed to have a chat about names? that is one very curious piece of snootery that I've only come across on mumsnet!!

Simplysally · 27/03/2009 09:12

I was thinking about my family names last night and only one of them - my brother's - could be said to be English in origin (and probably isn't if we really looked into it). All the other names are taken from other countries/cultures/historical or mythical figures.

Saltire · 27/03/2009 09:33

I'm not ashamed - if that comment was directed at me - I have no interest in baby names because I don't need any myself

Original poster
Gunnerbean · 27/03/2009 10:44

Deary, deary me....

Do you know why I started this thread...? Well, I'll tell you. It was because I was sitting in the hairdressers the other day looking a complete twonk with a headful of foils in place, with a coffee, flicking through a a copy of Hello! (as you do) and saw a spread on Lisa Marie Presley's newborn twin girls - Finley and Harper. On another page I was alerted to the fact that Nicole Richie has a daughter named Harlow and I got to thinking that those sorts of names don't really seemed to have transferred over here yet. I thought this was a little unusual as so many things do seem to have transferred over here from the States over the years.

So, nothing more sinister than that. I wasn't being, sneerig or judgemetal or polemical but I've rapidly arrived at the concluision that people will make whatever they will of what you post around here.

Anyway...over and out!

OP posts:
Simplysally · 27/03/2009 10:46

I doubt if you'll find many people in Harlow using the name as their children would be known as 'ar-lo' half the time .

Nancy66 · 27/03/2009 10:58

Blimey - this thread has all got a bit heavy!

it's just pure cultural difference that's all. Names that are considered perfectly fine in America are, often, considered tacky and downmarket here. Popular middle class choices in the Uk are considered 'poncey' in America.

The fat that once country is about 400 years older than the other is rather significant I think - the fact we have a monarchy is significant. Tradationally - right up until the 50s infact- many families named one of their offspring after the reigning Monarch. Shakespeare gave us Cressida, Octavia and Beatrice. These names are familiar and 'normal' to most of us.

when immigrants arrived in America they became known as the place they were from: Preston, Liverpool, Ireland etc. The whole surname thing is much more 'normal' to them. II cringe when I hear the name of Lynette's kids on Desperate Housewives (!) but we're from different cultures.

expatinscotland · 27/03/2009 11:16

'Saltire, true, when I was on the name boards on babycenter and I offered up my genuinely gaelic suggestions they were roundly mocked. I was told 'Lorcan' sounded like Vulcan. But yet, Finley was ok for a girl!! And Rory! I wouldn't have said anything but comments like "we're calling our daughter Rory because we're Irish" made me feel the need to put forward a British (well, geographically speaking) perspective.

Names that would be 'new' and fresh in the US such as Diarmuid, Tadhg, Oisin, Clodagh, Orla etc... they don't fit the McIrish template. Aidan, Keegan, Logan etc..
'

Oh, yeah.

I got on a few of those sites adn told them a) you're only Irish if you are born in Ireland b) you're only half-Irish if you have an Irish parent c) no Irish person would name their daughter Rory or Scottish persno name their daughter Findlay because it's a boy's name.

And got hounded off.

Of course, it probably didn't help that I told them what ignorant eejits they were being .

expatinscotland · 27/03/2009 11:18

The other hysterical one is Jolie. Oh, yes, that's so . . . naff.

expatinscotland · 27/03/2009 11:19

And Kayleigh. Yes, it's so Scottish. Yep, it's erm, is misspelling of the term used for a party.

Eejit.

Saltire · 27/03/2009 11:58

lol expat - I'd love to meet you, you tell it like it is and I like that!.
The kayleigh one is ismilar to one which a n american friend of an american friend has called her daughter because "its so Scottish".
You will love this. She has called her daughter Aylee

expatinscotland · 27/03/2009 12:14

Oh, FGS, Salty. How did you keep a straight face?

Saltire · 27/03/2009 12:24

Well she told me in an email so I could snigger away! I did say to her, "Oh,I've never heard of that being Scottish" and she replied "of course it is"

expatinscotland · 27/03/2009 12:27

Oh, well, of course a real Scottish person wouldn't know what they were talking about.

DH gets Americans saying, 'Oh, you're Scottish, I am, too.' And he's always like, 'Are you? Where fae? I've no' heard an accent like that.'

Saltire · 27/03/2009 12:43

I do that. My friend in America has a maiden name of Kennedy. So of course she says she's Scottish. So We had a conversation like this
Her "I'm scotch(her words not mine) you know"
Me (after biting back remark saying well actually scotch is whisky) "where were you born"
Her "texas"
Me "well you're not scottish then, where were your aprents born"
Her "texas and colorado, how am I not scotch, my name is kennedy, its a clan name"

TheJester · 27/03/2009 12:44

Did they read it on behindthename.com?!

I think that crappy website has a lot to answer for!!!

lol at what part of Scotland ah yoo fae? to an American! v.funny.

I'm as bad though. I reckon I'm related to Barack Obama. His maternal grandmother's name was a sur name, and his maternal grandmother's family originate from the same county in Ireland as some of my family who still have this sur name. I've outed myself now. do you think I'll be asked to the white house on christmas day???

Simplysally · 27/03/2009 12:51

My Mum's maiden name was Kennedy but most of our ancestors (from both my parents) seemed to hail from Wales.

Go figure .

georgimama · 27/03/2009 12:51

Hoe could you be half Irish if you don't have an Irish parent? Am confused.

expatinscotland · 27/03/2009 12:52

I'd have been like, 'Scotch?! Well, of course you're not scotch, you dozy bam, how can a person be a blended whisky?! FFS.'

georgimama · 27/03/2009 12:55

Shakespeare didn't "give" us the names Cressida, Octavia and Beatrice.

Cressida is Greek
Octavia is Roman (Latin)
Beatrice is Italian

Simplysally · 27/03/2009 13:01

Wendy was invented by J M Barrie.

Nancy66 · 27/03/2009 13:02

Oh don't be so pedantic - he introduced them into our culture - that's what i meant.

georgimama · 27/03/2009 13:06

No he didn't.

I think a fair few people were already aware of Cressida thanks to er, Chaucer, amongst others.

Nancy66 · 27/03/2009 13:10

influenced our culture then - fucking hell!

georgimama · 27/03/2009 13:27

I love the name Wendy.