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My first & middle names are Joshua Luke, both inspired by the Bible as my parents are Christians.

Joshua is alright I suppose, though I sometimes wish I had a more unique name (If I'd been born a girl, I'd totally want to be called Arya).

And I suppose I should be thankful they decided not to go with their original (also Biblically inspired) choice... Something like Jebediah or Jedathan, I can't quite recall.


I do however quite like the name "Josurr", which I think I recall reading somewhere that its some sort of Scandinavian equivalent to the english form of "Joshua".

 Breotan wrote:
I suggest you choose a name that is respectful of your child. Giving your child a "funny" or "cute" name isn't very respectful. Nor is naming said child after your D&D character or some character from a novel/movie. Like Ashiraya alluded to, you wouldn't have liked growing up with xXSéphìróthXx for a name so don't do that to your child.

On the other hand, unique names can be pretty cool, as long as they're tasteful and respectful. For instance there's an actress named Fairuza who was in The Craft.

I disagree, at least on the novel/movie front. If and when the times comes to name my own child, if female I would put forward the name Kahlan from The Sword of Truth books, not only because it looks and sounds nice - and can be shortened easily to 'Kay' - but also because, in my opinion, the character she's named after has many good personal qualities; she's good-natured and gentle, but also incredibly strong-willed.

I can see why naming your children after fictional characters can be a bad thing if you only do it for an in-joke, or so you can boast to your mates about having a son called Goku, but there are plenty of times where the practice is perfectly respectable. To use an example earlier in the thread, it's like the difference between called your daughter Khaleesi, and calling her Daenerys: the former shows little to no respect for either the child or the character and displays only that the parent(s) wanted a GoT reference in their family, but in the latter the parent(s) cared at least enough to get the actual name right which, short of asking them why they chose it, shows that they put some thought into it.

Obviously there'll be some names that you can't really do, like Sephiroth - with or without the 'x's - or something like Gandalf. Sephiroth, for example, can be shortened to either 'seph' or 'roth', and I guarantee the conversation "It's Seph." "Seth?" "No, Seph." "Yeah, Seth, that's what I said." will occur - never mind trying to get people to seriously call you 'roth' without making it out to be 'ross' spoken with a lisp or some such. At the end of the day, I don't think it's possible to blanket ban names from books/tv shows/films/games on the grounds that they're all disrespectful, but more care needs to be taken in choosing them than would need to be taken in choosing a normal name.

Avatar 720,
I respect that you're at least trying to give real thought to the names you suggest, but they're still names from recent fictional sources, and ones that we really don't know how they will be viewed in a few decades. Do you really want your kid to be named after what might in a decade be remembered as "that TV series that really went downhill after season 5…"? or "that book series that never finished?
There's so many REAL human cultures with excellent names that have actual historical meanings. I always think about how the kid is going to have to explain their name, and "It means ____ in ____ language" seems much better IMHO than "It's a character from a fantasy book".

I gave this alot of thought long before either of my kids came around, but I admit it's possible that my opinion may be slanted since I met a kid named Aragorn once and his parents. Nothing about that encounter made me think it had been a wise choice.

On a different tack, I'm a bit surprised at the relatively few number of family names that parents seem to be considering these days, at least in my limited contact with friends having kids. Family legacy can be a source of pride for a child (most times) and I think many people would be surprised at the variety of names they'll find if they just work their way down the family tree a bit. Depending on the name chosen the parents can associate it with positive aspects of a given relative. for example "you're named after Great Great uncle _____ who was a ______ in the far north" or "You're named after _____ who was the first of our family to come to ______".

A family name is not necessarily the right choice, but it's unique chance to instill legacy, meaning and pride in a child of a sort that can't easily be taken away. Every family has it's own history/mythology and a name can be a strong link to that.

All this to say, names have power. The name and the meaning behind it will forever affect the child and numerous studies prove that it will impact the way they are viewed by peers, authorities, and future employers, just to name a few. With all that at stake, why risk it?

Really, just give your child a nice, normal name. A woman my wife knows named her brats Mercy Danger and Scarlett Fever. Seriously. Every parent I know that has given their offspring a "unique" or "cool" name is a total spanker. Don't be a spanker.

 Eilif wrote:
Avatar 720,
I respect that you're at least trying to give real thought to the names you suggest, but they're still names from recent fictional sources, and ones that we really don't know how they will be viewed in a few decades. Do you really want your kid to be named after what might in a decade be remembered as "that TV series that really went downhill after season 5…"? or "that book series that never finished?

Which is why I said more care needs to be taken when choosing them, not that you should never, ever do it. The option to have a normal-ish shortened version of the name helps, because it allows the child to more easily avoid situations where they can be judged for their name; my child could easily ask to be called 'Kay' which, to link in to your name explanation comment, means 'Pure' in Greek.

Obviously it'd have to be wife-approved first, but if it isn't I can always try and appeal for it as a middle name, instead.

Eh, What's in a name?

 Krellnus wrote:
Eh, What's in a name?

Mainly letters.

I was named after a dog which was named after an archangel. Hell of a dog, as I'm told.

 greenskin lynn wrote:
having worked with kids for some years, i'd say
1)avoid names that sound like a stripper
2) don't name your kids after a video game (i'm looking at you, person who named their son after a mortal combat character)
3) don't use something that sounds more like a pets name
4) changing out a y for an i doesn't make the name any fancier, neither does doing the reverse

To this I would add:

Think back to when you were a kid and remember how clever or blunt your peers were about twisting names into insults.

Then decide on your philosophy of child raising. Would you name a boy Sue or Adolph to make him tuff or would you try to protect your child by giving them a bland unassuming name?

Examples:

Initials as names like BJ is rough on both boys and girls. Names that create unfortunate initial chains should also be noted: Bradley Steven Holder would be BS Holder. Names that spell ASS, LOL, BFF could, also, make life more difficult than needed.

Have a care as to how the given name works with the sir name.
Mike Hunt might seem good on paper but when sounded out quickly it really ticks off American women.
Another instance of this was a poor girl whose first name was Twana and her last name was Dix.

Basically, it might be a good thing to avoid anything that sounds like a prank call name.


Later,
ff

 Avatar 720 wrote:

 Krellnus wrote:
Eh, What's in a name?

Mainly letters.

Hyphens too iirc?

I got what's affectionately become known of as "the old man name". I have the same name as my grandfather's grandfather so it is a bit dated. Needless to say, I will be the last of this name as I refuse to put my future kids through the torment I did.

Gradeschoolers are mean little bastards.

My name is Matthew Hopkins, I was named after this guy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Hopkins


I have no complaints, and happily tell people that I am in fact the reincarnation of a mass murderer.

 Albatross wrote:

 Cheesecat wrote:
Children with common names are more likely to get hired and/or promoted and less likely to commit crimes.

That's more because certain types of names are symptomatic of socio-economic background. I'm pretty sure it's not a causal link.

Yeah, that's probably a major factor to it plus I would imagine having a common name allows you to have an easier time socializing.

 Krellnus wrote:

 Avatar 720 wrote:

 Krellnus wrote:
Eh, What's in a name?

Mainly letters.

Hyphens too iirc?

Way too many of them...

 Cheesecat wrote:

 Albatross wrote:

 Cheesecat wrote:
Children with common names are more likely to get hired and/or promoted and less likely to commit crimes.

That's more because certain types of names are symptomatic of socio-economic background. I'm pretty sure it's not a causal link.

Yeah, that's probably a major factor to it plus I would imagine having a common name allows you to have an easier time socializing.

I would disagree.

As a young man in a new town socializing in the only way us Brits know how. The only folks who's names I managed to remember are those with uncommon names. All the Daves, Toms, and Andrews just blend into the crowd and are forever just called "mate". Of course there are advantages to being able to blend in but being the only Ernest in the pub has its own advantage and is certainly preferable then being known as fat Dave or hippy Dave or Dave 2.

I was thinking of in terms of young kids being less likely to pick on someone called Ryan or Sarah (something more familiar) vs being called Damien or Helena.

 Thorgrim Bloodcrow wrote:
I got what's affectionately become known of as "the old man name". I have the same name as my grandfather's grandfather so it is a bit dated. Needless to say, I will be the last of this name as I refuse to put my future kids through the torment I did.

Gradeschoolers are mean little bastards.

It’s worth noting that names often come and go in cycles. If you have enough people naming babies after their grandparents, suddenly it becomes a young name again. But if you are a little ahead of the curve, you get a name only seen in nursing homes.

My name is a family name but it's pretty common so I can't complain too Much (James)
except when I was about 2 or 3 I hated it (I think I associated it with being in trouble) so I was called Jamie until I went to high school when I couldn't be bothered correcting 7 teachers a day

Chancetragedy wrote:

 thenoobbomb wrote:

 Avatar 720 wrote:

 thenoobbomb wrote:
I've never met another Steven anywhere. Variations on the name, but well.

"My name is Steven."
"Stephen?"
"No, Steven; with a 'v'."
"Vtephen?"

The struggle is more real than you might think!

So weird, I'm a stephen and I've only met a few people that spell it that way. It's Steven almost 95% of the time.

Yeah, but you've also got Stephan, Stefan, Steve, and so forth here

Never met anyone with the same name as me and I love it, really helps when you're first meeting someone for the first time. There's a couple of footballers with the same name and a character on Eastenders but that's the only time I've ever heard it (I think it's pretty common in Italy though).

I like my name because it goes well with my last name. The only issue I run into is that people seem to think Stephen (my name) is pronounced Stefan - I do prefer the "PH" to the "V" though.

My Hungarian relatives call me Istvan sometimes which I find pretty cool

I used to think Steve/Steven/Stephen was a pretty common name, but I actually don't run into many very often.

I hate my name and when I put my parents in a crappy nusing home with abusive staff, I will hold up my name as justification for my lack of sympathy for their plight.

I don't care that I'm named after a siant or the guy who maybe, maybe, possibly discovered America (it was Greenland, Mom... he found Greenland, not the US). This name is virtually nonexistant in this country and is far too similar to a far more common girls' name for me to have had a happy childhood. Feth my name and feth my parents for giving it to me.

I have no opinion whatsoever on my name, it's just a name. Pisses me off when parents give their child a name that's special or different...which seems to be most of them these days



Automatically Appended Next Post:

squidhills wrote:
I hate my name and when I put my parents in a crappy nusing home with abusive staff, I will hold up my name as justification for my lack of sympathy for their plight.

I don't care that I'm named after a siant or the guy who maybe, maybe, possibly discovered America (it was Greenland, Mom... he found Greenland, not the US). This name is virtually nonexistant in this country and is far too similar to a far more common girls' name for me to have had a happy childhood. Feth my name and feth my parents for giving it to me.

Leif?

KommissarKarl wrote:

Leif?

Nope. Leif actually *did* discover America (well, Canada, anyway). I'm talking about the guy whose notes he cribbed before setting out on his journey.

I really don't care too much about my name. Just a name. I could have a number, I really wouldn't care. Unfortunately, whilst my first and surnames are fairly common, I have a pair of middle names and a number after my name (why??). My friends take great pleasure in reminding me of my full name, which coincides with my southern accent and speech pattern wonderfully: William Francis George Smith VI. Ugh.

squidhills wrote:
I hate my name and when I put my parents in a crappy nusing home with abusive staff, I will hold up my name as justification for my lack of sympathy for their plight.

I don't care that I'm named after a siant or the guy who maybe, maybe, possibly discovered America (it was Greenland, Mom... he found Greenland, not the US). This name is virtually nonexistant in this country and is far too similar to a far more common girls' name for me to have had a happy childhood. Feth my name and feth my parents for giving it to me.

Erik?
I think Erik is an awesome name! It is also a very common boys name, at least in Germanic countries. Want to trade names?

 Iron_Captain wrote:
Erik?
I think Erik is an awesome name! It is also a very common boys name, at least in Germanic countries. Want to trade names?

I wish my name was Erik, instead of what I got.

Protip for those of you who plan on guessing what it is: It's Irish.

Back to you, Iron_Captain... in the Southern US having two first names for your first name isn't all that uncommon. It may be weird in Europe, but you'd fit right in down in Alabama with all the Billy-Bobs and Johhny Rays and Robert Lees.

 focusedfire wrote:

Have a care as to how the given name works with the sir name.
Mike Hunt might seem good on paper but when sounded out quickly it really ticks off American women.
Another instance of this was a poor girl whose first name was Twana and her last name was Dix.

Basically, it might be a good thing to avoid anything that sounds like a prank call name.

A lady that I recently worked with had a teacher in high school who's name was Harold (he went by Harry) Knutt



As for my own kids and naming them, with my daughter we wanted a nice, more traditional sounding German name (as my family has a gakload of German in the tree), So we went with Adelaide (spelled like the city in Australia), the toughest bit was while we were still in the hospital in Germany, as the nurses kept trying to spell it Adelheide, or Edelheide which is the even more traditional spelling/pronunciation). Then my wife wanted to give her the middle name of Shannon, which with our last name would (at least for the first 18 years of life) give her the initials A.S.S. Which I said no to. As a compromise, her middle name is now Rose (so her initials are ARS).

My son was a bit "easier" as it is something of a family tradition that the first born men of the family are given the first name of Charles, with a middle initial of T. Again, my wife wanted a rather odd and I daresay, stupid middle name (as this is what we use in daily converstaions) of Tyr. Luckily, again I prevailed and now my son is Truman.

Well there was a boy at my school called Feilim Daily, so it could always be worse.

I have the coolest and best name in the world.


Call me bear.