So the name I have mostly decided upon for future-son-of-mine also happens to be the name of a luxury department store chain that was founded in [name_f]England[/name_f] (I live in Australia). I didn’t know about the store when I first decided upon the name, and it’s not a store we have here, but having had it pointed out by a couple of family members I’m now wondering if I should think about changing my choice.
(And when I say it’s also the name of the store, I mean that it’s identical, spelling and all. [name_u]Baby[/name_u]'s first name and last name would be exactly the same as the store’s name. To give an example, think “[name_m]Calvin[/name_m] Klein” or “[name_m]Jack[/name_m] [name_m]Daniels[/name_m]” though not as well-known as those names/brands are.)
I love the first name I’ve chosen. It ticks all boxes for me (except one – no obvious nickname), and none of the other names on my shortlist feel as right as this one does. It has history but I don’t think it’s uber-traditional, and while it’s not popular, it’s not unheard of. I can see it easily on a little boy, a teenager, an adult, and an old man. It works with the surname (obviously), and is easy to spell.
Honestly, I would think that most people in AU wouldn’t recognise the connection (we have a couple of other companies here that use the same first name, but not last name, that usually come to mind first when I mention the name). And part of me can also appreciate that when you google the name, the first half-dozen (if not more) pages that come up are links back to the store (less chance, I hope, that he will find himself as a highly-trafficked google search result in the future).
Thoughts? Would having a child with the exact same name as a brand (even if said name is a completely normal first/last name combo) put you off?
If it were a name associated with a different country than I live in and not many people know it, then I may still consider it. Where I see the hiccup is that… and correct me if I’m wrong… don’t many people from [name_f]England[/name_f] live in Australia? In that case, it may be a little different because more people may recognize it either by direct association or having friends who know about it. By the sound of it, you’re saying they already do if some family members pointed it out. In that case, I would probably nix part of the name (either first or middle) and pick a different one. If my assumptions are correct, I would keep [name_m]Harvey[/name_m] as the first name and find a new middle?
I would think we have a lot more people moving to Australia from other parts of the world than [name_f]England[/name_f] these days, but I get what you’re saying. The middle name I’ve already chosen is not associated with the store at all, so this is completely based on the combo of the first name and last name. So changing the middle name wouldn’t really change anything, and changing the last name is not an option (for obvious reasons, heh).
As an Aussie, I probably wouldn’t make the connection, most of the population that are migrating these days are from [name_f]Africa[/name_f] and [name_f]Asia[/name_f]. While in the past it was obviously mostly Europeans that settled in Australia, that is kind of changing, I remember until I was probably about twelve, I’d never even met an African person before. I know that sounds strange; but there just wasn’t any in the area I grew up in. While at my school, caucasian students were the minority, and [name_f]Asian[/name_f] students the majority. I think it would be the older population that would notice the name more so than the younger Australians. I mean, it’s like naming your son [name_m]John[/name_m] Martins for example, few young adult/middle-aged Australians would know that it was a South Australian department store. Honestly, I think you can get away with, since it’s a foreign chain.
I’m from [name_f]England[/name_f], so I think I know which store chain you are talking about. If it is, I love the name! I wouldn’t worry too much about it if the store isn’t well-known in Australia. If you love that name, you should just go for it
Personally I wouldn’t worry about it. It would be different if you were using [name_m]David[/name_m] [name_m]Jones[/name_m] or something like that. If you love the name, go for it
One thing you might consider is how likely, if at all, it is that this department store will expand to other countries as the world becomes increasingly globalized and older economies specialize more and more in exporting luxury.
Then there’s the point you raised about Internet traffic - while the increased liklihood of anonymity is appealing in many ways, later your son might need to be able to have a google-able identity for professional reasons. [name_m]Just[/name_m] another small thing to think about.
Ultimately, only you can say whether the association is troubling enough to forego the name. But if people in your country are generally not familiar with the store, it’ll likely be fine.
