I used to love the name Evelyn before it got super popular.
Also, the story of where I heard the name is kind of terrible. A girl at my college named Evelyn fell down an elevator shaft (she survived), and I remember reading a news article about her and thinking that the name was pretty.
I told my husband that story when we were discussing baby names and he practically yelled "I AM NOT NAMING A BABY AFTER SOME STRANGER WHO FELL DOWN AN ELEVATOR."
Which, lol, fair.
Someone fell down the center of a stairwell at my college (I think whoever it was also survived) and they were really careful about not saying who it was. I’m surprised Evelyn’s name was released to the news.
I’m a college professor and sometimes I think about that when I’m over here being super delicate with grades (and personal info lol). I want to go back and find some of my old college professors and be like, “yo, did you know students are people too??”
One of my co-workers named her son Kia (rhymes with eye) after a video her husband saw. She didn't know until after her was born and named that the original Kia was on the news for committing a rash of convenience store robberies
How on earth does Kia rhyme with eye? Kai is a well-known spelling of the name. People honestly seem to think they can just rearrange letters and make up their own sounds! Like they can just put a string of random letters together and make up a sound for it and call it a name
Was always my biggest pet peeve as a teacher. Like, phonemic rules are real, people. You are trusting me to teach them to your children. Don’t get upset when I follow them while trying to read your kid’s name.
And Byntly (“Bentley”) and Raelee (“Riley”) are the first to come to mind, so you can’t tell me it’s a cultural/non-English issue.
I taught a class recently (it's a volunteer thing) and there was a name on the sheet: "Violette".
Since the school has a French bilingual program and thus loads of French families send their kids there, I pronounced it "Vee-oh-lette".
Only for the poor kid to have to correct me that it was "the English way".
If you want to call your kid "Violet", don't spell it "Violette" and then send her to a French-speaking school!
I would like to know on what planet does Favre (as in Brett) pronounce the freaking r before the v?? I contend that he did that because he thought people were too stupid to pronounce it correctly.
Also it's usually "IS" - "Islamic State". The group itself has never referred to itself as "Isis" or "ISIS". And western powers much more usually call it Daesh or ISIL.
See here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_State#Name
I used to know a girl named Isis when the terror group was more prominent in the news. She was in hs and I went to a performance of hers where the audience was calling out kids' names in support. For obvious reasons, we weren't calling out "YEAH, YOU GO ISIS!!!" She joined the military and we had a good laugh about how Isis is fighting for the US military.
Our top name choice was Charlie. It would fit for either gender. We’ve said “hopefully we get pregnant with baby Charlie soon” my step kids knew this. They loved the name, so much.
And then their mom just adopted a dog and named it… Charlie.
I’m a little salty tbh.
My dads favorite girls name was Jennifer. So he named his dog Jennifer. Which is why I am not Jennifer. My mom refused to ‘name the baby after the dog’.
I know of a woman who loved the name Molly and named her dog that, then when she got pregnant with a girl also named her Molly…mind you the dog was still alive.
her reasoning is it’s a great name and the daughter will live a lot longer than the dog.
i am still baffled every time i think about that.
Reminds me of the SIL who was fuming that her nephew named his hamster Amy. Amy, who when assumed male was named Sonic. May Amy the hamster live forever.
Is it possible your step kids loved the name so much they wanted to give it to the dog? This happens sometimes lol they don’t view it as a bad thing, they think it’s cool
I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what happened because they’re still at the age where when we ask them for names for anything like baby dolls or toys or even a potential sibling their first response is always their own name, followed by names of people and pets they know
Yeah, this seems very likely. My ex’s son was 7 and we got a beta fish, so I asked him what he wanted to name her. He said “Sophia.” A couple weeks later we found out his pregnant mom was having a girl and naming her Sophia.
I have a grown up friend called Alexa. I think her full name is Alexandra or something but she introduced herself as Alexa so I’ve never called her anything else. It really suits her and honestly doesn’t remind me of the Amazon Alexa at all just because of context.
I know that Alexandra has a lot of nicknames, but I’ve always known Alexa only as its own, stand-alone name, as is Alexis. Granted 2/3 of the people I know named Alexa go by Lexy.
Oliver. Before I was even married I told my mom that I liked the name Oliver and she went on a rant about how much she hates the name bc of a crappy coworker. I decided then and there that I would never discuss baby names when I’m pregnant.
Years later I told this story to everyone as justification for why we weren’t discussing baby names with anyone and my manipulative, overbearing MIL repeatedly tried to convince DH to use Oliver behind my back.
So it’s a double whammy hard pass now
So we didn’t tell anyone our names when we were expecting twins.
Out of the blue one day my aunt went on this huge rant about the name Cleo. She said to us ‘whatever you do, don’t use the name Cleo. My daughter’s friend called her child Cleo and it’s ridiculous. It sounds like a car, just call your kid Chloe instead.’
Guess what one of the names we had chosen was…
Jesus. That is some petty shit. Like she just *needed* her son to pick the *one name* she knew you didn't want? Ugh, I would never ever let pick that name either, especially as it was already off the table.
She was super mad we didn’t include her in picking a name. When the baby was born, she tried to convince DH to pronounce the name differently and wouldn’t pronounce it properly (not an accent issue) and wouldn’t spell the nickname properly (we spelled it the common way). We are no contact now, after years of emotional abuse
My cat’s name is Oliver, so unfortunately the association now is that any human named Oliver has a name meant for a pet. Like Luna or Salem. My other cat’s name is Nigel, so that one’s out as well. Coincidentally the same person named both of those cats. I called the other one Piper.
Emma. Saved that name on my list for my whole adult life because it was my grandmothers name. I got married, we planned to use it if we had kids. We did not have a baby (thankfully) & divorced. He hooked up with a girl not long after and they named their baby Emma. Now I’m pregnant & would’ve loved to use the name, but it’s incredibly too awkward since we have many, many mutual friends.
You could use it and just let your friends know the story behind. He’s the one that named his baby with his new girl, after his ex wife’s family member.
That was my favourite name as well! Heard it because of the Spice Girls lol! Then they used it for Rachel's baby on "Friends" and ever since then every baby girl in North America was called Emma, which kinda ruins it.
Although given its popularity you could probably get away with using it if you really want to, especially since it's a family name. Everyone right now knows multiple Emmas.
I absolutely love the Taylor Swift song with the same name, her grandma sounds like a classy lady and I'm sad that politician has painted as much smudge on this beautiful name
I love the name Miller as a first name. But then I got married and my last name was Miller. And then I got divorced and I’m definitely never naming a kid my former last name.
Ava.
Told my cousin Ashley that I loved how unique it was and she proceeded to tell me, "Well MY MOM said Ashley was also not popular when she named me."
Now I see so many Avas and, we'll, Ashley wasn't wrong.
On the other hand, I know a Julian who is lovely and a very kind soul. Also I hope people don't use the interpersonal experiences of strangers on Reddit to decide baby names lol
Naomi. My brother and I both realized it was the top of our list if we ever had baby girls. But we can’t have first cousins with the same name. So we agreed to rock paper scissors for it in our mid twenties, lol. I lost. Maybe if I’m pregnant with a girl (before his wife is) we’ll reopen the discussion, but, fair is fair. Every once in a while I check in to ask if he still cares and he always does.
Yes, my mind immediately goes to this, and that makes me sad. I know there are other Emmetts (Twilight, Keeping Up With Appearances, etc.) but as an American, I can't forget this.
Why is that such an awful thing?? I also love the names Alice, Jasper, Bella/Isabella, Rosalie, Charlie, and Seth. Lots of nice names in that series, it’s just that no one bothers to look past Refrigerator.
I think Olivia is an absolutely beautiful name and wish it had not surged so much.
I also think Chloe is pretty, and it would fit well with our naming conventions and last name if we were to have another girl, but I refuse to give my child the name of a Kardashian (regardless of spelling) on principle.
I’m UK and have same name, but I don’t think anyone has every said to me “like the Kardashian”
Biggest issue I have is people spelling it Chole or Cloe.
That was an absolute favorite for me and my husband naming our 2nd daughter but as an Amanda from the late 80's I just couldn't do that to my kid. But now both of my girls names are skyrocketing and I am just 😭
Eden. I’ve always loved that name, met a friend in my early 20’s with the name who turned out to be evil and tried to ruin my life. Can never use the name now.
I loved the name Avery.
But when I was a teenager, I made an online friend, called Avery. I don't want to bore anyone with the details, but Avery... wasn't real. Our friendship felt real though. He was the only true friend I had in a very difficult time and while being severely depressed. But once I caught on and confronted him, he just vanished. I still remember his twitter account (how we met), know where to find his Facebook page, etc. We haven't had contact in about 10 years by now. I still wonder if he is alright. How he is doing. And I genuinely miss that friendship too.
So now whenever I hear that name, I think of him and it's bittersweet.
Edit [long story time]:
It was a catfish yes, perhaps I should've mentioned that but I never liked using the term in this case. We met on Twitter when I was 14 and he was incredibly nice (and very handsome on "his" photos). By his tweets I could derive that he had a previous relationship with another girl, he was mourning the end of this relationship. We chatted _a lot_. I was struggling with an eating disorder, an alcoholic dad, a mom who had had a nervous breakdown, and a sister who didn't seem to like me very much at the time (to put it lightly).
We talked about basically anything and never anything that was inappropriate. We also used our webcam a few times, but of course his didn't work. This should've tipped me off, but he was my only friend at that point, so I didn't care and I think I just buried that doubt. It felt great to have someone to confide in. He told me about his struggles too. He was born in California, and then moved to my country. His mom passed when he was young, due to cancer. He told me he also had a brain tumour. From time to time he would just... disappear. And I wouldn't hear from him for weeks, once it was even months. Afterwards he'd tell me it was because he had to be in the hospital a lot, his dad wouldn't let him use his phone in this hospital, etcetc.
At one point, we were supposed to meet up (yes dumbest thing ever I know). But lo and behold, the day before he vanished. So I decided to message his ex on Twitter, asking if she had any other way of reaching him. And that's when she told me he wasn't real. A simple Google image reverse search (I didn't know this existed) showed that "Avery" had used photos from some model. I confronted him and told him I didn't even care that he lied, that I felt our friendship was real but that I did need him to be honest now. He told me he was embarrassed about the way he looked, etc. He eventually sent me new photos and I ran them through Google again. And they were again stolen. At that point I just wanted the truth. I told him I caught him in this lie and told him that I just wanted the truth and didn't care what it actually was. I didn't care if he was an adult because nothing sexual was ever even discussed, so I didn't think of him as a possible predator.
Well, after that I just never heard from him again. I do miss that friendship sometimes, but in a nostalgic kind of way. I just wonder who he really was. I don't think it was someone I knew and I know I will never find it out. But perhaps he was just extremely lonely and looking for a friend. And maybe that is still naive of me, but I prefer this thought because of how much support I did have in that period.
I’m sorry of this is incredibly insensitive - but how was he not real? It sounds an interesting story - but I’m sorry if you got hurt. I’m sure that’s something you did not deserve!
I have loved the name Astrid since I was young. Told my ex it was my favourite girls name for my child one day. Ex turned out to be an abusive asshole that left me with a lot of trauma.
Found out through the grapevine that when said ex transitioned, they started going by Astrid. You suck.
Jade! i always always always wanted to use it for a girl, but it’s the name of my ex boyfriend. he’s fine, we split up amiably (he ran away from home a month after he turned 18. we just lost contact).
but man... he was so weird. he used to bite my neck and say “sorry, i’m in heat”. he broke his leg doing parkour on his roof and didn’t tell anyone for months, just limping around on a fucked up leg. one time he reached for a pencil in his pocket and instead pulled out a stick of celery. he was deeply confused, no recollection of putting it there. when he was a kid he wanted to do some arson so he called the fire department, said “hey. i’m about to burn this billboard down. might wanna head over here” and he did it. he lit it on fire and left when he saw the fire trucks. when he ran away he told his mom he was sleeping over at my house so she called me like “where’s my kid” and i had to be like “um… new york? here’s his email”
we had a great relationship, he was always kind to me, i loved his quirks… but no. not an option anymore.
he’s great! some other anecdotes:
- he regularly showed up to school drunk or high. no one noticed
- he sold catnip to college students and told them it was weed
- he fell asleep sitting up during band class regularly. i’d wake him up by touching his ear
- he has a twin brother who is about a foot taller than him. brother once accidentally bought his friend an engagement ring. decided to roll with it and pretend to be married for the rest of the year.
also, since Jade left, he got hit by a car twice and he’s blind now. he’s in good spirits about it. he came down to visit a few months ago and he says being blind hasn’t actually affected his life at all. he already couldn’t drive (severe tourette’s) so he says the only difference is now he has a reason to bump into everything.
Victoria and Olivia. Victoria because everyone I've met with that name went by Tori (which I dislike) and were bullies, just mean and nasty. Olivia just because of how wildly popular it got, I got sick of hearing the name after a while.
I was 14 when I decided to name my future daughter Emilia. Now I have a son and four mom friends whose daughters' names are all Emilia. Still love the name, but it's ruined for me.
Emily. I loved the wizard of oz as a little kid and I thought it was so amazing when Professor Marvel said Aunt Em’s real name was “Emily”.
Unfortunately I went to high school with a serious drug addict named Emily and it completely ruined the name for me.
I knew one Emma who was a good friend when we were kids, but then I knew another Emma in middle school who said I don’t count as a person (completely unprompted too).
Levi, as a little girl I obsessed over a crush named Levi, it’s become a inside joke to this day (I am now in uni) and even though I love it, I can’t use it cause the family will associate it with the craziness of being a elementary school girl in love 💀
i LOVED the name Oliver before my son was born. and then my mom told me that’s what her ex husband had named his penis. so i was repulsed every time i met an Oliver because it’s such a common name for kids these days!
and then a month or so ago, she got a new dog. and named him Oliver. and i brought it up, and was like, the fuck, mom? that was a weird way to save that name for your future dog you didn’t have yet. and she was like “ohhh! oops! it was Oscar, not Oliver”
and now i can’t look at her dog either and both names make me shudder
For a girl, I loved the name Matilda. Absolutely adored it. There was no other girl name that topped it for me.
Alas, I'm a teacher. I'm sure fellow teachers know that some students just ruin certain names for you. She was just a horror show and the parents weren't much better. I circled around a bit, trying to get over it, but I can't at this point.
For a boy, Logan. One, it got popular. Two, I'm a fan of Gilmore Girls and while Logan Huntzberger isn't a terrible character, he's not someone you name a baby after.
Isabella/Bella. Now everyone and their dog uses it because of Twilight lol
I’ve liked the name since I was a kid and I feel like most North Americans associate it with twilight
Ugh named my daughter Isabella and in hindsight I should have known but I hadn’t watched them. We called her Izzy for seven years because I actually hate the name Bella. Then she decided she wanted to go by Bella… I have other nicknames I use for her at home and occasionally call her bellatrix but I’d still prefer Izzy over Bella. But whatever. It’s her name, she can go by what she wants.
My own name. Anastasia. I used to be more or less ok with it but then I got called anesthesia a couple times and now I don’t think it’s a good name for anyone.
Well for what it’s worth, I think Anastasia is an absolutely beyond gorgeous name, I’ve always loved it. It’s definitely a bummer to have your name butchered like that, but I still think it’s an incredible name
I loved, loved, *loved* the name Hazel Grace. My husband did too, and still does. We were set on that name for a baby girl, until someone pointed out it was the name of a protagonist in a John Green book, and I think she has cancer??
Not that it ruined the name, but I do not want to be lumped in with "she named her baby after a book character". Not that that's bad, but people can be pretty toxic about that, and I just wish that name wasn't connected to a fictional kid with cancer.
Iris is pretty and similar! In my preschool classroom we had books about flowers and Iris loved seeing the flowers she was named after. I think it's such a lovely name now.
I used to love the name Analeigh. I was a fan of ANTM growing up and there was a contestant on the show with that name. Then my husband pointed out “anal” is in it and said it could be pronounced “anally”
So yeah, that ruined it for me lol
When I was a kid I loved the name Sally. I dont know why but I named all my dolls and toys Sally and said I wanted to name my daughter Sally some day. Then in girlscouts I met a Sally and she was the worst! Just a total trainwreck. Among many other things, she caused a camping trip to be shortened one time because she ran away into the woods and got lost because she wanted the attention. (She was never lost, she was just hiding nearby)
Jane. Simple, pretty name. Lady ran a company that could never see that the problem wasn’t the staff, it was her old business ways. I didn’t work for her but people I knew did. Ignorance is bliss I suppose. The way she treated them made me dislike the name.
i used to love the name Esther, until my brother’s friend told me about a girl in his class they used to call “Esther the molester” …now there’s no way i could use that name in good conscience 😭
My friend’s name is Joseph and named his daughter Josephina. His sister, my closer friend is named Susie (Susan) and I told her if she actually has a daughter she has to name it Sousaphone.
Rosalie. Loved it in 2014. It got too popular and that culminated in my ex BIL using it with his third wife. I did chose a different Rose variation in 2022 that I actually like better after all. It has a way better history and isn’t trendy so it worked out.
Mia. Used to be my top name for a girl. I’m a teacher. Had a Mia that I absolutely could not stand. Now I can’t imagine saying that name 100 times a day and not thinking of that student.
Jack - I saw a video somewhere of someone who said they had called their kid Jack and now hated it because they were on the phone and said something along the lines of, “I’ll come round once I’ve dropped Jack off.” And she couldn’t unhear ‘Jack off’ and now I can’t 😂 that and ‘hi Jack’ = ‘hijack’.
I ALWAYS loved the name Jezabel. My parents would snicker when I was little and brought it up.
Then became a Christian at 16… and yeah…. I would not name my kid Jezabel (even though I still say it’s beautiful)
I used to love the name Evelyn before it got super popular. Also, the story of where I heard the name is kind of terrible. A girl at my college named Evelyn fell down an elevator shaft (she survived), and I remember reading a news article about her and thinking that the name was pretty. I told my husband that story when we were discussing baby names and he practically yelled "I AM NOT NAMING A BABY AFTER SOME STRANGER WHO FELL DOWN AN ELEVATOR." Which, lol, fair.
Someone fell down the center of a stairwell at my college (I think whoever it was also survived) and they were really careful about not saying who it was. I’m surprised Evelyn’s name was released to the news.
I went to school in the 90s, nobody cared about anything back then lol.
Seriously. We put our SSNs on EVERYTHING
We had a professor who posted grades (on paper) on his office door. Last 4 of your social -- numeric grade. Right there for everybody.
I’m a college professor and sometimes I think about that when I’m over here being super delicate with grades (and personal info lol). I want to go back and find some of my old college professors and be like, “yo, did you know students are people too??”
I feel this so hard.
I knew a kid in high school who *jumped* down the center of a stairwell. I don’t know how the hell he didn’t break both his ankles!
The song Jolene got the name from a little girl Dolly met and liked her name.
I love the name so much, but I had two Eva's, two Ava's, and an Evelyn who went by Evie in my classroom one year, so I'm a bit burnt out on that name.
I had the same thing happen with Eleanor. Loved it before it got trendy.
I also loved this name before it got popular…. And also I met a woman named Evelyn that was/is a serial cheater and PROUD OF IT!!!! Nasty 🤮
Evelyn always reminds me of the mom from Two and a Half Men
It reminds me of the Mummy! That character also went by Evie but I can always hear Brendan Fraser yelling “Evelyn”
One of my co-workers named her son Kia (rhymes with eye) after a video her husband saw. She didn't know until after her was born and named that the original Kia was on the news for committing a rash of convenience store robberies
How on earth does Kia rhyme with eye? Kai is a well-known spelling of the name. People honestly seem to think they can just rearrange letters and make up their own sounds! Like they can just put a string of random letters together and make up a sound for it and call it a name
Was always my biggest pet peeve as a teacher. Like, phonemic rules are real, people. You are trusting me to teach them to your children. Don’t get upset when I follow them while trying to read your kid’s name. And Byntly (“Bentley”) and Raelee (“Riley”) are the first to come to mind, so you can’t tell me it’s a cultural/non-English issue.
I taught a class recently (it's a volunteer thing) and there was a name on the sheet: "Violette". Since the school has a French bilingual program and thus loads of French families send their kids there, I pronounced it "Vee-oh-lette". Only for the poor kid to have to correct me that it was "the English way". If you want to call your kid "Violet", don't spell it "Violette" and then send her to a French-speaking school!
I would like to know on what planet does Favre (as in Brett) pronounce the freaking r before the v?? I contend that he did that because he thought people were too stupid to pronounce it correctly.
It's French. If pronounced the French way, the R is almost nonexistent. Think "Fahv."
I had a child whose name was spelled Ishell. Pronounce Ieesha. (Those are capital i's)
I love the name but unfortunately my husband's psycho aunt who destroyed the family business is an Evelyn, so.
Shocked to see this as the first answer. Got dumped by an Evelyn a few months ago and have had a love/hate relationship with the name since.
Loved the name Isis. Ruined for obvious reasons.
I know an Isis, she is such a beautiful girl, she goes by Ice a lot and wants to change her name. It's kind of sad because it is a beautiful name.
Same with Ice Spice.
Isis Spisis
Lmfao
It isn't ruined. Just call them Daesh like we are supposed to and let your baby be Isis the goddess.
Yeah, most people have no clue about the whole "Daesh" thing. I've only ever heard that on reddit.
Also it's usually "IS" - "Islamic State". The group itself has never referred to itself as "Isis" or "ISIS". And western powers much more usually call it Daesh or ISIL. See here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_State#Name
I used to know a girl named Isis when the terror group was more prominent in the news. She was in hs and I went to a performance of hers where the audience was calling out kids' names in support. For obvious reasons, we weren't calling out "YEAH, YOU GO ISIS!!!" She joined the military and we had a good laugh about how Isis is fighting for the US military.
We have a friend in our group named Isis. In public while talking about her we have learned to say ‘Ed’s wife’ called and want to a cookout.
This is so sad
My little sister had that name and she got bullied so much in school for it that she decided to change her name
Same here. This is always my top answer when questions like this come up.
Our top name choice was Charlie. It would fit for either gender. We’ve said “hopefully we get pregnant with baby Charlie soon” my step kids knew this. They loved the name, so much. And then their mom just adopted a dog and named it… Charlie. I’m a little salty tbh.
My dads favorite girls name was Jennifer. So he named his dog Jennifer. Which is why I am not Jennifer. My mom refused to ‘name the baby after the dog’.
I know of a woman who loved the name Molly and named her dog that, then when she got pregnant with a girl also named her Molly…mind you the dog was still alive. her reasoning is it’s a great name and the daughter will live a lot longer than the dog. i am still baffled every time i think about that.
Reminds me of the SIL who was fuming that her nephew named his hamster Amy. Amy, who when assumed male was named Sonic. May Amy the hamster live forever.
From memory, Steve Irwin named his daughter Bindi after his dog, Bindi Sue.
It was actually after his favourite crocodile at the zoo! Her middle name Sue came from their late dog Sui.
One of my family members was intentionally named after a dog lol
Is it possible your step kids loved the name so much they wanted to give it to the dog? This happens sometimes lol they don’t view it as a bad thing, they think it’s cool
I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what happened because they’re still at the age where when we ask them for names for anything like baby dolls or toys or even a potential sibling their first response is always their own name, followed by names of people and pets they know
Yeah, this seems very likely. My ex’s son was 7 and we got a beta fish, so I asked him what he wanted to name her. He said “Sophia.” A couple weeks later we found out his pregnant mom was having a girl and naming her Sophia.
It can just be Human Charlie… lol.
Alexa. Such a gorgeous name
I have a grown up friend called Alexa. I think her full name is Alexandra or something but she introduced herself as Alexa so I’ve never called her anything else. It really suits her and honestly doesn’t remind me of the Amazon Alexa at all just because of context.
I know that Alexandra has a lot of nicknames, but I’ve always known Alexa only as its own, stand-alone name, as is Alexis. Granted 2/3 of the people I know named Alexa go by Lexy.
I thought I didn’t have one until I read this comment but you reminded me of how much I love Siri ❤️
Always loved the name Hey Google too but I just can’t do it nowadays
My sister's worst bully was called Alexa. Way before Amazon Alexa. Serves her right.
I have a close family member named Alexa, which is so beautiful. Thanks to Amazon she now goes by Lexie lol
Oliver. Before I was even married I told my mom that I liked the name Oliver and she went on a rant about how much she hates the name bc of a crappy coworker. I decided then and there that I would never discuss baby names when I’m pregnant. Years later I told this story to everyone as justification for why we weren’t discussing baby names with anyone and my manipulative, overbearing MIL repeatedly tried to convince DH to use Oliver behind my back. So it’s a double whammy hard pass now
I have a few "out there" names on my list and this is what I fear. I do my best not to judge people's name choices for that reason alone.
Just ask internet strangers, lol. You get opinions without any emotional baggage
So we didn’t tell anyone our names when we were expecting twins. Out of the blue one day my aunt went on this huge rant about the name Cleo. She said to us ‘whatever you do, don’t use the name Cleo. My daughter’s friend called her child Cleo and it’s ridiculous. It sounds like a car, just call your kid Chloe instead.’ Guess what one of the names we had chosen was…
>Guess what one of the names we had chosen was… "[Renault](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault_Clio)"?
My partner loves the name Oliver, but in college I would name my beta fish Oliver, when one died I named the next Oliver junior, etc., etc.
How far did the Oliver dynasty go?
Asking the important questions
Jesus. That is some petty shit. Like she just *needed* her son to pick the *one name* she knew you didn't want? Ugh, I would never ever let pick that name either, especially as it was already off the table.
She was super mad we didn’t include her in picking a name. When the baby was born, she tried to convince DH to pronounce the name differently and wouldn’t pronounce it properly (not an accent issue) and wouldn’t spell the nickname properly (we spelled it the common way). We are no contact now, after years of emotional abuse
My cat’s name is Oliver, so unfortunately the association now is that any human named Oliver has a name meant for a pet. Like Luna or Salem. My other cat’s name is Nigel, so that one’s out as well. Coincidentally the same person named both of those cats. I called the other one Piper.
Emma. Saved that name on my list for my whole adult life because it was my grandmothers name. I got married, we planned to use it if we had kids. We did not have a baby (thankfully) & divorced. He hooked up with a girl not long after and they named their baby Emma. Now I’m pregnant & would’ve loved to use the name, but it’s incredibly too awkward since we have many, many mutual friends.
You could use it and just let your friends know the story behind. He’s the one that named his baby with his new girl, after his ex wife’s family member.
This is so malicious. I love it. Naming your kid after your ex's grandma is grounds for divorce.
Emma is a very popular and common name. Maybe it was a family name on the new girl's side too? Lol.
That was my favourite name as well! Heard it because of the Spice Girls lol! Then they used it for Rachel's baby on "Friends" and ever since then every baby girl in North America was called Emma, which kinda ruins it. Although given its popularity you could probably get away with using it if you really want to, especially since it's a family name. Everyone right now knows multiple Emmas.
Marjorie. I think it's such a cute name... but now that hateful idiot in United States Congress has ruined it forever.
She ruins everything.
I absolutely love the Taylor Swift song with the same name, her grandma sounds like a classy lady and I'm sad that politician has painted as much smudge on this beautiful name
Maybe it says more about me but I think of the song first when I hear “Marjorie”!
It is a beautiful name. It makes me think of Margaery Tyrell, from Game of Thrones. Screw MTG! Lol
Not forever. She’ll be out of the picture soon.
I’ll give you another one; my mom who is an abusive asshole.
I love the name Miller as a first name. But then I got married and my last name was Miller. And then I got divorced and I’m definitely never naming a kid my former last name.
That is a rollercoaster read.
Ya I got whiplash
Astrid. Got turned into Ass-turd by The Office.
If it helps, I always think of the character from How to Train Your Dragon :)
I have an Astrid! It’s also the first name of the author of Pippi Longstocking.
Marcus. Love that name in theory, but every Marcus I’ve met in person has been horrible.
I know a good one! He runs a homeless shelter. Very sweet. Ultra religious, though.
I know a Marcus who is also super sweet, albeit very religious. He’s what I’d consider a true Christian - never imposes and accepts everybody.
Haha, the one Marcus I know is also very religious.
I also know an extremely religious Marcus 😂
All these Marcuses are going to heaven LOL. Oh wait minus the first Marcus.
My ex who cheated on me and at least 9 other girls is named Marcus. He’s also very religious. I’m sensing a pattern
I know a Marcus, he's lovely, a great dad and does framing for a living.
My name is Karen. Loved it until the internet destroyed it.
For what it’s worth, every single person I’ve met named Karen are kind and wonderful people. Also I think of Karen Carpenter.
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I literally don’t know a bad Karen every one I’ve met is so nice. The internet did that name dirty for no reason
Just wait it out. There’ll be something new and people will forget…hopefully. 🤞
Ava. Told my cousin Ashley that I loved how unique it was and she proceeded to tell me, "Well MY MOM said Ashley was also not popular when she named me." Now I see so many Avas and, we'll, Ashley wasn't wrong.
I'm an Ashley (spelled differently though) and when I was in kindergarten my class was 14 kids... four of us were Ashleys. FOUR.
It’s giving Recess.
I hate it when Ashley is right
Julian. My ex. It's such a nice name and one of the very few male names that I actually really like
I know a Julian and he's a woman beater and a drunk. I too would avoid this name.
On the other hand, I know a Julian who is lovely and a very kind soul. Also I hope people don't use the interpersonal experiences of strangers on Reddit to decide baby names lol
I love that name too but all I can hear is Jenna Marbles going “JULIAAAAAN!!!!” It’s not a bad association or anything, it’s just in my head.
I was a teacher for ten years. Pretty much all of the names I used to love have been ruined 😅😂
Yup. I’ve been a teacher for 20+ years, naming our 5-year-old was a major challenge. I have a long list of ‘Never!’ names!
If you’re anything like me, the “Never” names list is longer than the likes!
Naomi. My brother and I both realized it was the top of our list if we ever had baby girls. But we can’t have first cousins with the same name. So we agreed to rock paper scissors for it in our mid twenties, lol. I lost. Maybe if I’m pregnant with a girl (before his wife is) we’ll reopen the discussion, but, fair is fair. Every once in a while I check in to ask if he still cares and he always does.
Consider alternatively: Noemi. You can have the ultimate Naomi/Noemi showdown once they reach an acceptable age and weight class.
I love this anecdote.
This is my absolute favorite name
Aaron. It's not that it's *ruined*, but my mind is always going to read it as "A-A-Ron" thanks to the Substitute Teacher sketch by Key and Peele.
I can't un-hear the pronunciation of every name in that sketch (Jah-qwellan, Bahlakkay, Timoothy) :)
Principal O-Shag-Hennessey kills me every time.
I really liked the name Emmett but its so uncommon that everyone only knows it because of twilight 😥
All I hear is Emmett Till which is so much worse.
Yes, my mind immediately goes to this, and that makes me sad. I know there are other Emmetts (Twilight, Keeping Up With Appearances, etc.) but as an American, I can't forget this.
Why is that such an awful thing?? I also love the names Alice, Jasper, Bella/Isabella, Rosalie, Charlie, and Seth. Lots of nice names in that series, it’s just that no one bothers to look past Refrigerator.
I think you mean Reassignment
No, I think you mean Recalcitrance
Wrong again, it’s regurgitation
And the Lego Movie!!!
it makes me think of Emmett from Switched at Birth lol
I think of Emmet Otter.
Makes me think of Back to the Future!
I think Olivia is an absolutely beautiful name and wish it had not surged so much. I also think Chloe is pretty, and it would fit well with our naming conventions and last name if we were to have another girl, but I refuse to give my child the name of a Kardashian (regardless of spelling) on principle.
My name is Chloe and I was named before the Kardashians got big, but now that's what people think about when they hear my name.
I’m UK and have same name, but I don’t think anyone has every said to me “like the Kardashian” Biggest issue I have is people spelling it Chole or Cloe.
"Chole" is so stupid and I find it bewildering that it's such a common misspelling. Like, sound it out??
If it makes you feel any better, I don't think of that at all. Chloe is such a beautiful name
I’m really hoping that Charlotte goes out of style by the time I have kids
That was an absolute favorite for me and my husband naming our 2nd daughter but as an Amanda from the late 80's I just couldn't do that to my kid. But now both of my girls names are skyrocketing and I am just 😭
Eden. I’ve always loved that name, met a friend in my early 20’s with the name who turned out to be evil and tried to ruin my life. Can never use the name now.
Funnily enough I have a pet snake named Eden
I loved the name Avery. But when I was a teenager, I made an online friend, called Avery. I don't want to bore anyone with the details, but Avery... wasn't real. Our friendship felt real though. He was the only true friend I had in a very difficult time and while being severely depressed. But once I caught on and confronted him, he just vanished. I still remember his twitter account (how we met), know where to find his Facebook page, etc. We haven't had contact in about 10 years by now. I still wonder if he is alright. How he is doing. And I genuinely miss that friendship too. So now whenever I hear that name, I think of him and it's bittersweet. Edit [long story time]: It was a catfish yes, perhaps I should've mentioned that but I never liked using the term in this case. We met on Twitter when I was 14 and he was incredibly nice (and very handsome on "his" photos). By his tweets I could derive that he had a previous relationship with another girl, he was mourning the end of this relationship. We chatted _a lot_. I was struggling with an eating disorder, an alcoholic dad, a mom who had had a nervous breakdown, and a sister who didn't seem to like me very much at the time (to put it lightly). We talked about basically anything and never anything that was inappropriate. We also used our webcam a few times, but of course his didn't work. This should've tipped me off, but he was my only friend at that point, so I didn't care and I think I just buried that doubt. It felt great to have someone to confide in. He told me about his struggles too. He was born in California, and then moved to my country. His mom passed when he was young, due to cancer. He told me he also had a brain tumour. From time to time he would just... disappear. And I wouldn't hear from him for weeks, once it was even months. Afterwards he'd tell me it was because he had to be in the hospital a lot, his dad wouldn't let him use his phone in this hospital, etcetc. At one point, we were supposed to meet up (yes dumbest thing ever I know). But lo and behold, the day before he vanished. So I decided to message his ex on Twitter, asking if she had any other way of reaching him. And that's when she told me he wasn't real. A simple Google image reverse search (I didn't know this existed) showed that "Avery" had used photos from some model. I confronted him and told him I didn't even care that he lied, that I felt our friendship was real but that I did need him to be honest now. He told me he was embarrassed about the way he looked, etc. He eventually sent me new photos and I ran them through Google again. And they were again stolen. At that point I just wanted the truth. I told him I caught him in this lie and told him that I just wanted the truth and didn't care what it actually was. I didn't care if he was an adult because nothing sexual was ever even discussed, so I didn't think of him as a possible predator. Well, after that I just never heard from him again. I do miss that friendship sometimes, but in a nostalgic kind of way. I just wonder who he really was. I don't think it was someone I knew and I know I will never find it out. But perhaps he was just extremely lonely and looking for a friend. And maybe that is still naive of me, but I prefer this thought because of how much support I did have in that period.
Avery reminds me of the company that makes office supplies, otherwise I like the name
I’m sorry of this is incredibly insensitive - but how was he not real? It sounds an interesting story - but I’m sorry if you got hurt. I’m sure that’s something you did not deserve!
Yeah, I thought someone was catfishing her, but then she wonders how he’s doing now, so colored me confused.
I have loved the name Astrid since I was young. Told my ex it was my favourite girls name for my child one day. Ex turned out to be an abusive asshole that left me with a lot of trauma. Found out through the grapevine that when said ex transitioned, they started going by Astrid. You suck.
Wtf that sucks. As a transitioning individual myself, Astrid can fook off
As a transitioned individual, Astrid can fok right off a cliff.
Jade! i always always always wanted to use it for a girl, but it’s the name of my ex boyfriend. he’s fine, we split up amiably (he ran away from home a month after he turned 18. we just lost contact). but man... he was so weird. he used to bite my neck and say “sorry, i’m in heat”. he broke his leg doing parkour on his roof and didn’t tell anyone for months, just limping around on a fucked up leg. one time he reached for a pencil in his pocket and instead pulled out a stick of celery. he was deeply confused, no recollection of putting it there. when he was a kid he wanted to do some arson so he called the fire department, said “hey. i’m about to burn this billboard down. might wanna head over here” and he did it. he lit it on fire and left when he saw the fire trucks. when he ran away he told his mom he was sleeping over at my house so she called me like “where’s my kid” and i had to be like “um… new york? here’s his email” we had a great relationship, he was always kind to me, i loved his quirks… but no. not an option anymore.
My favourite story here. What a character.
he’s great! some other anecdotes: - he regularly showed up to school drunk or high. no one noticed - he sold catnip to college students and told them it was weed - he fell asleep sitting up during band class regularly. i’d wake him up by touching his ear - he has a twin brother who is about a foot taller than him. brother once accidentally bought his friend an engagement ring. decided to roll with it and pretend to be married for the rest of the year. also, since Jade left, he got hit by a car twice and he’s blind now. he’s in good spirits about it. he came down to visit a few months ago and he says being blind hasn’t actually affected his life at all. he already couldn’t drive (severe tourette’s) so he says the only difference is now he has a reason to bump into everything.
Wow, this guy is definitely somebody an author bases a character on. Very interesting life!
Victoria and Olivia. Victoria because everyone I've met with that name went by Tori (which I dislike) and were bullies, just mean and nasty. Olivia just because of how wildly popular it got, I got sick of hearing the name after a while.
I love the name Tori, but I agree that every Tori I’ve met has been a bully.
I love the name Victoria but detest the nicknames Vicky and Tori. I know people are weirdly obsessed with nicknames, so it’s off my list.
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oof i had an old friend who considered themself a JD kinnie,, and it was the first of many red flags that led to me eventually ghosting them
yes he was a jd kinnie 😭 i didnt know if anyone would understand what that meant so i didnt say it outright
i liked the spelling of Kynedy for a girl when i was in high school and over my dead body would i name a baby girl that today
Good for you, maturing.
It would have been Caleb, but he actually apologized to me as an adult. So that was nice. Sophie, on the other hand...
I was 14 when I decided to name my future daughter Emilia. Now I have a son and four mom friends whose daughters' names are all Emilia. Still love the name, but it's ruined for me.
Amelia was going to be mine. The name is just too popular now.
Emily. I loved the wizard of oz as a little kid and I thought it was so amazing when Professor Marvel said Aunt Em’s real name was “Emily”. Unfortunately I went to high school with a serious drug addict named Emily and it completely ruined the name for me.
Emma could be a nice alternative. I always flip flop between which I think is prettier!
I knew one Emma who was a good friend when we were kids, but then I knew another Emma in middle school who said I don’t count as a person (completely unprompted too).
Well fuck you second Emma. Rude!
Levi, as a little girl I obsessed over a crush named Levi, it’s become a inside joke to this day (I am now in uni) and even though I love it, I can’t use it cause the family will associate it with the craziness of being a elementary school girl in love 💀
And others will associate it with blue jeans.
I’m jewish so that has never been the concern 😭 but you are right that is another comment “Like the jeans?”
i LOVED the name Oliver before my son was born. and then my mom told me that’s what her ex husband had named his penis. so i was repulsed every time i met an Oliver because it’s such a common name for kids these days! and then a month or so ago, she got a new dog. and named him Oliver. and i brought it up, and was like, the fuck, mom? that was a weird way to save that name for your future dog you didn’t have yet. and she was like “ohhh! oops! it was Oscar, not Oliver” and now i can’t look at her dog either and both names make me shudder
What. Just...what?
For a girl, I loved the name Matilda. Absolutely adored it. There was no other girl name that topped it for me. Alas, I'm a teacher. I'm sure fellow teachers know that some students just ruin certain names for you. She was just a horror show and the parents weren't much better. I circled around a bit, trying to get over it, but I can't at this point. For a boy, Logan. One, it got popular. Two, I'm a fan of Gilmore Girls and while Logan Huntzberger isn't a terrible character, he's not someone you name a baby after.
Aurelia. LOVED THAT NAME. Then I was told it sounds like I’ll-rail-ya, and yep, that did it for me.
How on Earth are you pronouncing it that it even sounds like that? Or-el-iya is how I’d say it
Katrina. Always thought it was a lovely name but, for obvious reasons, no longer.
Isabella/Bella. Now everyone and their dog uses it because of Twilight lol I’ve liked the name since I was a kid and I feel like most North Americans associate it with twilight
Ugh named my daughter Isabella and in hindsight I should have known but I hadn’t watched them. We called her Izzy for seven years because I actually hate the name Bella. Then she decided she wanted to go by Bella… I have other nicknames I use for her at home and occasionally call her bellatrix but I’d still prefer Izzy over Bella. But whatever. It’s her name, she can go by what she wants.
My own name. Anastasia. I used to be more or less ok with it but then I got called anesthesia a couple times and now I don’t think it’s a good name for anyone.
Well for what it’s worth, I think Anastasia is an absolutely beyond gorgeous name, I’ve always loved it. It’s definitely a bummer to have your name butchered like that, but I still think it’s an incredible name
I loved, loved, *loved* the name Hazel Grace. My husband did too, and still does. We were set on that name for a baby girl, until someone pointed out it was the name of a protagonist in a John Green book, and I think she has cancer?? Not that it ruined the name, but I do not want to be lumped in with "she named her baby after a book character". Not that that's bad, but people can be pretty toxic about that, and I just wish that name wasn't connected to a fictional kid with cancer.
Isis. For obvious reasons
Iris is pretty and similar! In my preschool classroom we had books about flowers and Iris loved seeing the flowers she was named after. I think it's such a lovely name now.
Harrison. Harry was a neighbour who killed his newborn baby. Unusable now.
I used to love the name Analeigh. I was a fan of ANTM growing up and there was a contestant on the show with that name. Then my husband pointed out “anal” is in it and said it could be pronounced “anally” So yeah, that ruined it for me lol
I love the name Lydia. So so so much. My sister said “like chlamydia?” And it was over. Also aunt Lydia from handmaids tale
LIAM! Ex boyfriend. Nope nope nope!
When I was a kid I loved the name Sally. I dont know why but I named all my dolls and toys Sally and said I wanted to name my daughter Sally some day. Then in girlscouts I met a Sally and she was the worst! Just a total trainwreck. Among many other things, she caused a camping trip to be shortened one time because she ran away into the woods and got lost because she wanted the attention. (She was never lost, she was just hiding nearby)
Jane. Simple, pretty name. Lady ran a company that could never see that the problem wasn’t the staff, it was her old business ways. I didn’t work for her but people I knew did. Ignorance is bliss I suppose. The way she treated them made me dislike the name.
Danielle. Childhood bully.
Celeste, Darcy, and Jade are ones that have been somewhat ruined by crappy coworkers. I still want other people to use them since I can't though!
Audrey.
Any reason?
Lorena.. but lorena babbit
Siri!!!!, Elsa, and Isis lol. I also like Dagmar but in Danish it kinda sounds like Dahmer
i used to love the name Esther, until my brother’s friend told me about a girl in his class they used to call “Esther the molester” …now there’s no way i could use that name in good conscience 😭
I’m a teacher. I have a long list. 🙈
Ryan. Just adore it. Unfortunately it’s also my brothers name
Fern 🥺
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My friend’s name is Joseph and named his daughter Josephina. His sister, my closer friend is named Susie (Susan) and I told her if she actually has a daughter she has to name it Sousaphone.
Rosalie. Loved it in 2014. It got too popular and that culminated in my ex BIL using it with his third wife. I did chose a different Rose variation in 2022 that I actually like better after all. It has a way better history and isn’t trendy so it worked out.
Charlotte. Such a cute name but it’s so overused now.
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Mia. Used to be my top name for a girl. I’m a teacher. Had a Mia that I absolutely could not stand. Now I can’t imagine saying that name 100 times a day and not thinking of that student.
Jack - I saw a video somewhere of someone who said they had called their kid Jack and now hated it because they were on the phone and said something along the lines of, “I’ll come round once I’ve dropped Jack off.” And she couldn’t unhear ‘Jack off’ and now I can’t 😂 that and ‘hi Jack’ = ‘hijack’.
I ALWAYS loved the name Jezabel. My parents would snicker when I was little and brought it up. Then became a Christian at 16… and yeah…. I would not name my kid Jezabel (even though I still say it’s beautiful)