Baby name regret?

[Anonymous]

I have a Sophie, and it's a family name and a name DH and I both love. I was very seriously torn about using it b/c of the popularity, but there was no other name that called out to me like Sophie. And now that DD's here, I can't imagine calling her anything else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a Sophie, and it's a family name and a name DH and I both love. I was very seriously torn about using it b/c of the popularity, but there was no other name that called out to me like Sophie. And now that DD's here, I can't imagine calling her anything else.

Do you love it because you wanted to name your child for a specific person, or is it a name that just happens to be in your family that you like a lot? I'm just wondering because I really want to understand why people end up behaving like such sheep despite their best intentions. You might not have liked Sophie at all 10 years ago, and may not have thought of it as a name you would use until recently when it became so popular. I think that people just think they like names because of their own tastes, when really they are inadvertently just adjusting their tastes to trends. I'm just asking because I find all of this interesting. I don't know--Maybe Sophie is your favorite grandmother.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Do you love it because you wanted to name your child for a specific person, or is it a name that just happens to be in your family that you like a lot? I'm just wondering because I really want to understand why people end up behaving like such sheep despite their best intentions. You might not have liked Sophie at all 10 years ago, and may not have thought of it as a name you would use until recently when it became so popular. I think that people just think they like names because of their own tastes, when really they are inadvertently just adjusting their tastes to trends. I'm just asking because I find all of this interesting. I don't know--Maybe Sophie is your favorite grandmother.

You're being a little insulting, you know. To come to a forum where people are admitting their fear that they did a bad thing to their child (in giving a common name), and to call them sheep? It's inappropriate and unkind, and I wish you'd either choose your words better, or find someone else to pick on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Do you love it because you wanted to name your child for a specific person, or is it a name that just happens to be in your family that you like a lot? I'm just wondering because I really want to understand why people end up behaving like such sheep despite their best intentions. You might not have liked Sophie at all 10 years ago, and may not have thought of it as a name you would use until recently when it became so popular. I think that people just think they like names because of their own tastes, when really they are inadvertently just adjusting their tastes to trends. I'm just asking because I find all of this interesting. I don't know--Maybe Sophie is your favorite grandmother.

You're being a little insulting, you know. To come to a forum where people are admitting their fear that they did a bad thing to their child (in giving a common name), and to call them sheep? It's inappropriate and unkind, and I wish you'd either choose your words better, or find someone else to pick on.

I was just saying it would be interesting to understand why poeple who think they are just following their own tastes end up following the crowd. We all do it with out hairstyles, clothes, etc., but in those instances, I think we all know that we are trying to wear what is "in." In the case of baby names, no one ever says they are trying to pick what's "in," but names end up following trends, too. "Behaving like sheep" means following others' behavior as almost just a matter of impulse. Sorry to offend. I would think that people would want to understand the origins of their own tastes so that they don't end up with multiple kids with trendy names when they thought they were just going with personal preferences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I also named my baby Lily (though I'm not the PP). We chose it because we needed a name that would be pronouncable and meaningful in each of the three languages we speak at home. The only other names that would have worked for us were Sara or Leila, and neither of those felt right. We checked the SS name lists to make sure it wasn't too common (not in the top 25). Of course, those were the numbers for the year before her birth. For the year she was born, imagine my dismay. I still love the name, but I hate that she's going to have to go by first-name-last-initial all through school. It'll be like the Jessicas of my childhood.

You never can tell. My child's kindergarten class has two girls named Leila, and none named Lily...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Do you love it because you wanted to name your child for a specific person, or is it a name that just happens to be in your family that you like a lot? I'm just wondering because I really want to understand why people end up behaving like such sheep despite their best intentions. You might not have liked Sophie at all 10 years ago, and may not have thought of it as a name you would use until recently when it became so popular. I think that people just think they like names because of their own tastes, when really they are inadvertently just adjusting their tastes to trends. I'm just asking because I find all of this interesting. I don't know--Maybe Sophie is your favorite grandmother.

You're being a little insulting, you know. To come to a forum where people are admitting their fear that they did a bad thing to their child (in giving a common name), and to call them sheep? It's inappropriate and unkind, and I wish you'd either choose your words better, or find someone else to pick on.

I was just saying it would be interesting to understand why poeple who think they are just following their own tastes end up following the crowd. We all do it with out hairstyles, clothes, etc., but in those instances, I think we all know that we are trying to wear what is "in." In the case of baby names, no one ever says they are trying to pick what's "in," but names end up following trends, too. "Behaving like sheep" means following others' behavior as almost just a matter of impulse. Sorry to offend. I would think that people would want to understand the origins of their own tastes so that they don't end up with multiple kids with trendy names when they thought they were just going with personal preferences.

I think you're the same poster who went off in a different thread talking about how people are being trendy modern and trendy traditional. In many families, naming a child after a grandparent is expected. So we're seeing some names come around after being gone for a generation. Try to get over it, ok?

[Anonymous]

No, sorry, that wasn't me. These would be great grandparents, not the child's grandparents. You are *expected* to name your child after one of his or her great grandparents? If it were the child's grandparents, the names would more likely be Linda, Barbara, Judy, etc., as in names from the 1940s or '50s. FWIW, we actually decided to go with my husband's grandmother's name because she meant so much to him--not because we just happened to like it or because of any expectation in our families.

[Anonymous]

What I think is interesting is that the popularity of girls' names changes much more over time than boys' names. So, here's the top 10 from 2007:

Rank Male Female
1 Jacob Emily
2 Michael Isabella
3 Ethan Emma
4 Joshua Ava
5 Daniel Madison
6 Christopher Sophia
7 Anthony Olivia
8 William Abigail
9 Matthew Hannah
10 Andrew Elizabeth

With the exception of Elizabeth, which has pretty much always been popular, most of the girls' names jumped up the list in the past 10 years. With boys', Ethan is the only one that strikes me as "newer", and MAYBE Jacob. But I'd bet the rest of them have been very common names for the past century.

[Anonymous]

The poster who brought up the trends about naming after grandparents hit the nail on the head.

We are seeing a resurgence in names that OUR grandparents had, partly because we grew up with our grandparents around. Many of our parents' generation did not. They might have been more likely to name after THEIR parents and aunts/uncles. Many of us have had more relatives in our lives as a result of increased longevity. Then, of course, the trends occur.

All that aside, no one should ever feel guilty for naming a child a name simply because they like it, or because it's a name that they like that also has a family connection -- even if the former reason trumped the latter.

Also, the trends change less in male names because there is a stronger tradition of naming males after fathers/grandfathers. So it takes much longer for major shifts to appear. Think of the number of "juniors" and "thirds" -- vs. girls named after their mothers. It's just not as common.

To the OP -- my guess is that you are just uncomfortable with the fact that you had to choose ONE. It is hard to do, and perhaps you weren't completely ready yet when your child arrived. You will probably feel a lot more comfortable with it when you get to know your child better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, sorry, that wasn't me. These would be great grandparents, not the child's grandparents. You are *expected* to name your child after one of his or her great grandparents? If it were the child's grandparents, the names would more likely be Linda, Barbara, Judy, etc., as in names from the 1940s or '50s. FWIW, we actually decided to go with my husband's grandmother's name because she meant so much to him--not because we just happened to like it or because of any expectation in our families.

My mother and MIL weren't born in the 50s. Or even the 40s. In certain cultures, such as ours, yes, you are *expected* to name your child after one of the child's grandparents.

[Anonymous]

I have always loved the name Sophia and have wanted to name my future daughter that since high school- and this was in the 1980s! I was so disappointed when a couple of years ago I started hearing the name everywhere and I hadn't started having kids yet. I didn't want to use a popular, trendy name, so when my girls were born this year I chose other names- one family, one just pretty. I love their names and think they suit them perfectly, but sometimes I still have a pang of wistfulness when I hear another mom call out to her Sophia.

[Anonymous]

Same here! I had Olivia all picked out for my someday-daughter... 15 years ago! Then about five years ago it started to creep up the charts, and now it's uber-popular, so I didn't use it when the time came. I have no idea how that happened. There weren't any Olivias on TV or anything then. (Now there are lots, of course.) I think I actually encountered it first in some classic novel, and I thought it was so elegant and uncommon.

[Anonymous]

sophia and olivia were both names in The Color Purple, circa 1986. Great movie!

there is nothing wrong with naming your kids the popular names of the day. i have an unusual hebrew name, but there were always several amys, michelles, sarahs, michaels, jims, etc....that was the '70s/'80s. i named my son a family name that was popular in its day (1910s).

what's worse, to me, is trying to be unique in the spelling of a common name. ryleigh? madyson? why????? makes me want to vomyt!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, sorry, that wasn't me. These would be great grandparents, not the child's grandparents. You are *expected* to name your child after one of his or her great grandparents? If it were the child's grandparents, the names would more likely be Linda, Barbara, Judy, etc., as in names from the 1940s or '50s. FWIW, we actually decided to go with my husband's grandmother's name because she meant so much to him--not because we just happened to like it or because of any expectation in our families.

My mother and MIL weren't born in the 50s. Or even the 40s. In certain cultures, such as ours, yes, you are *expected* to name your child after one of the child's grandparents.

PP--which culture? Just wondering bc I hadn't heard of such a strict tradition and feel uninformed...thanks!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, sorry, that wasn't me. These would be great grandparents, not the child's grandparents. You are *expected* to name your child after one of his or her great grandparents? If it were the child's grandparents, the names would more likely be Linda, Barbara, Judy, etc., as in names from the 1940s or '50s. FWIW, we actually decided to go with my husband's grandmother's name because she meant so much to him--not because we just happened to like it or because of any expectation in our families.

My mother and MIL weren't born in the 50s. Or even the 40s. In certain cultures, such as ours, yes, you are *expected* to name your child after one of the child's grandparents.

PP--which culture? Just wondering bc I hadn't heard of such a strict tradition and feel uninformed...thanks!!

Jewish? How can you not know that.