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The 7 Biggest Mistakes Newbie Baby Namers Make
Filed under: Baby Names
There are few things more thrilling in life than having your first baby. But newbie baby namers are prone to making some mistakes that more experienced name choosers are able to avoid.
If you're choosing a baby name for the first time, don't make one of these seven common mistakes:
1. Believing that the names that were popular -- and creative -- when you were a kid still have the same status.
Name tastes have changed radically over the last decade or two. Goodbye, Jessica and Josh, hello Layla and Serenity, Landon and Tristan -- all top 100 names.
2. Thinking that the playground rules are the same as they were back in the day.
Kids no longer get teased for having names that are unique, androgynous, exotic or hard to pronounce or spell. Rather, name diversity is celebrated.
3. Letting your parents have too much say in the baby's name.
Baby names can undoubtedly be a fun topic of family conversation. But the person who changes the diapers at 3 a.m. gets to name the baby.
4. Clinging too tightly to the name you always swore you'd give your first child.
A lot of people -- let's face it: girls -- spend their childhoods coming up with fanciful names they want to give their children. But if that name you always loved has suddenly become uber-popular or clashes with your new last name, let it go.
5. Caring too much about how cool the name choice makes you look.
Sure, pregnancy is cooler than it used to be, with cuter clothes and celebrity role models. But putting a name's cool factor above all else won't make little Bronx's life very easy.
6. Not considering subsequent children's names.
First-time namers are likely to think about, well, their first child's name, but if you name Baby No. 1 Tallulah, then you pretty much rule out Lula, Lila, Delilah, Sula, Tally and maybe even Louis for subsequent children.
7. Not realizing that there's going to be a real live baby ... and child ... and, eventually, grownup on the other end of the naming decision.
We get it that it can seem like your pregnancy is all about you. Sometimes, it can almost come as a shock when an actual baby emerges in the delivery room, instantly asserting her own needs and personality. Try to keep that little (and eventually big) person in mind when you choose the name she'll live with forever.
Want to get the latest ParentDish news and advice? Sign up for our newsletter!
The Name Babes are Pamela Redmond Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz, founders of Nameberry.com, innovators of baby-name content on the Web. Got a name craving? Learn more about baby names at Nameberry.com.
If you're choosing a baby name for the first time, don't make one of these seven common mistakes:
1. Believing that the names that were popular -- and creative -- when you were a kid still have the same status.
Name tastes have changed radically over the last decade or two. Goodbye, Jessica and Josh, hello Layla and Serenity, Landon and Tristan -- all top 100 names.
2. Thinking that the playground rules are the same as they were back in the day.
Kids no longer get teased for having names that are unique, androgynous, exotic or hard to pronounce or spell. Rather, name diversity is celebrated.
3. Letting your parents have too much say in the baby's name.
Baby names can undoubtedly be a fun topic of family conversation. But the person who changes the diapers at 3 a.m. gets to name the baby.
4. Clinging too tightly to the name you always swore you'd give your first child.
A lot of people -- let's face it: girls -- spend their childhoods coming up with fanciful names they want to give their children. But if that name you always loved has suddenly become uber-popular or clashes with your new last name, let it go.
5. Caring too much about how cool the name choice makes you look.
Sure, pregnancy is cooler than it used to be, with cuter clothes and celebrity role models. But putting a name's cool factor above all else won't make little Bronx's life very easy.
6. Not considering subsequent children's names.
First-time namers are likely to think about, well, their first child's name, but if you name Baby No. 1 Tallulah, then you pretty much rule out Lula, Lila, Delilah, Sula, Tally and maybe even Louis for subsequent children.
7. Not realizing that there's going to be a real live baby ... and child ... and, eventually, grownup on the other end of the naming decision.
We get it that it can seem like your pregnancy is all about you. Sometimes, it can almost come as a shock when an actual baby emerges in the delivery room, instantly asserting her own needs and personality. Try to keep that little (and eventually big) person in mind when you choose the name she'll live with forever.
Want to get the latest ParentDish news and advice? Sign up for our newsletter!
The Name Babes are Pamela Redmond Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz, founders of Nameberry.com, innovators of baby-name content on the Web. Got a name craving? Learn more about baby names at Nameberry.com.
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ReaderComments (Page 7 of 14)
4-10-2011 @ 10:14PM
moe said...and you chose susan!? your first first name must have been a real doozy.
4-10-2011 @ 10:27PM
Alexandra said...Dear Susan:
I didn't realize I could just pres the "reply" button to reply to your comment. I added another comment, (April 10th at 10:21 PM)
about it. If you wish, scroll to 10:21 PM to see my comment. Many thanks!
4-11-2011 @ 12:15AM
sdlinva2 said...Actually my birth name was Gloria. I hated it (apologies to the Gloria's out there, but it just wasn't ME). Chnnged it to Sue -- not Susan -- just Sue, which is what I typed in this comments place!!
4-11-2011 @ 12:04AM
isisreptiles said...I did the same, changed my very-much-disliked first name to one I do like. That was over 30 years ago and I have never regretted it. I do get a lot of crap from some people when they find out I changed my name. I don't understand why it bothers some people so much when someone changes their name.
4-10-2011 @ 11:20PM
Abraham Domen said...Take a look at what can be done with names. Example Abdomen. Parents did not expect that to come out of Abraham Domen. Kids thought it was really cute to tell others what my name was.
Also watch what the initials spell out. Cynthia Alyse Tallman becomes CAT.
Reply
4-11-2011 @ 12:40AM
mia said...the kids at your school were a lot more creative than the kids at mine.maybe you were lucky after all?
4-11-2011 @ 6:48AM
Bill said...and let's NOT touch "Stephen Oscar Brown".
4-10-2011 @ 10:03PM
Katie said...I know I'm no where near getting pregnant anytime soon, but since I started working with kids I've had names floating around in my head like every other girl/woman has. I've always wanted a daughter named Stella Marie or Zoey London. Both a little out there but unique enough that no one else in my family has the same first name. Also, when I do get married I would talk about it with my husband. The thing is, find a name that is on the line of being unique and super out there. Or if you aren't like that, find something that just clicks. Stella hit me one night, out of nowhere when hanging out with a couple of old friends. We were out stargazing. Zoey has always been sort of a comfort name. Both middle name's are from women in my family to bring their names back to home. If I get married to the guy I have been seeing now for close to a year, he'd rather pick out boy names. :) So sometimes we go out and over dinner talk about different name ideas. Its almost like a matching game.
Reply
4-10-2011 @ 10:04PM
Aja said...Number 2 is so off. I still get called Australia, Europe, China, Japan, Eur-Asia, and Africa. "Oh, here you go Aja—I mean, China"
Because of this article, I will now name my first child Le-a It's cool, unusual, and no one will make fun of her.
Reply
4-10-2011 @ 10:19PM
moe said...is that le dash ah or lee ah?
4-10-2011 @ 10:29PM
danglingm said...EVERYONE makes fun of it. It's hystarical.
4-10-2011 @ 10:08PM
Alexandra said...Dear Amy:
The name "Asher" is also a family name for my nephew's wife.
What is wrong with it is that it CLASSIFIES a person with that name. Unlike "George", or "Phillip", the name "Asher" is not, (ahem), what may (usually), be called a "Christian" name. In fact -- just like my own (Old Testament), Biblial name, it can EASILY bring anti-Semites out of the woodwork! With all the OTHER problems in the world, why drag along even the POSSIBILITY of dredging up ugly anti-Semitism from the minds of employers, would-be employers, fellow workers, neighbours, and etc.? As the name "Guiermo" can bring out anti-Italian feelings -- why not just call yourself "George"? Prejudice in the world, indeed, may be dying....but it's sadly not dead yet. If my name were "Tayesha",
most people would think I was Black. If my name were "Tayesha", I would change it to "Patricia" -- fast. Prejudice against Jews, Italians, Blacks -- and Irish, and Hispanics, and Asians, and other minority groups.....it's STILL with us, sadly, and shows up at the most unexpected moments. Better to have the name "George", and GET your "foot in the door", and SHOW yourself to be a good person, and THEN have them ask, "Are you REALLY Italian", (etc.), than call yourself "Guermo", (or "Asher", or other ethnic name), and NOT be able to "get your foot in the door", at all!
Reply
4-10-2011 @ 10:35PM
moe said...your children will NEVER hobnob with "old money" and royalty. they don't care what your kid's first name is. it's the last name that's important, and whether or not they or their parents attended the same school, etc. your kids will NEVER fit in. get over it, and stop writing the same email over and over, for goodness sake.
4-11-2011 @ 2:23AM
Erin said...Yeeesh! Chill out woman! I have no idea how you're linking the things you're linking. It doesn't make sense. Also, please take your finger off of the capslock; it doesn't make your comments any easier to follow and yelling isn't helping you. Just as names come into use like Sadie and Isis, so do old names die out or sound dated for a century or so. You aren't going to see many girls named Sexburg or Dwynwai because these names died out before the tenth century CE. Likewise, you see people going away from some of the names that were more popular at the turn of the 20th century, or modifying them. The name George stuck around for so long, because through time it changed to what it is now. I see alot of 'y's being put into names in place of an 'i' where a thousand years ago, it was the other way around. People forget names that are plain and boring. Erin, though common and "normal", is boring. I don't stand much of a chance beind remembered when there is a Shevaun (or Siobhan if you want the more traditional spelling) around. Just like I can't remember people's names or skim over them when I see a George or John in a list. They're old and dull. Yes, there is an extreme that people take some names to, but there's nothing wrong with being a little creative, else Patricia would have stayed patrician.
4-11-2011 @ 3:31AM
Stephanie said...sounds like alexandra is the person with anti-semite/black/hispanic/italian/anthingbutcaucasianprotestant bigoted feelings. america is a melting pot of other nationalities and those nations names are as welcome as george. after all, if you want to go native for this land- you better think up some native american indian names. otherwise, your choices are also foreign.
4-10-2011 @ 10:09PM
karl andrews said...My wife and I discussed the names for our two daughters for months on end before their birth.Their names are neither strange like Le - a or trendy like Madison or Kayla ,neither are they ethnic
or "old fashioned". I guess we did a good job because our daughters like who they are and their names.Our daughters' first
and middle names honor beloved female relatives on both sides of the family. A child has to live with the name you give them for the rest of their life or at least until they are old enough and affluent enough to afford to change their name.
Reply
4-10-2011 @ 10:13PM
Tleesolberg said...My husband and I discussed and decided on our three daughters' names together. We both wanted them to have unusual but not nutty first names. We gave them each a traditional middle name so they could use that if they preferred when they grew up. All three had occasions when they were asked to spell their names and no matter how hard they looked they never found their names on the accessory turn styles that had items with preprinted names. All three are grown and still using their given names and are proud of them.
Reply
4-10-2011 @ 10:12PM
ktboom said...Don't do what I did! I let my husband badger me into naming my daughter the name he picked out, after a bird. I never really liked the name and she was badgered and picked on all through school! He even convince me to name my son after him even though I begged him to let me give him a different middle namd. But no, the baby had to be the second after him! Years later, when all the mail and phone calls started my husband mad a comment that he should have named our, "my" son a different name....DUH! I tried to warn him, because I had seen the same problem with my Dad and my brother but he claimed to know best! So ladies, stick to your guns and the name you like! Like the article says, the one who changes diapers at 3 AM gets to name the baby and my husband was never up at 2 or 3 AM, that was the womans work!!!!
Reply
4-11-2011 @ 12:36AM
Grace said...Your husband sounds charming.
4-11-2011 @ 10:46AM
greg said...Another totally clueless, off the mark, AOL article.
Reply