Due in a few weeks - please help!

Seeking your advice on one of our shortlisted boy names:

[name_m]Homer[/name_m]

I have Greek heritage and studied the Classics, so to me this will always be a literary name.

But I’m also a big fan of the Simpsons and appreciate that [name_m]Homer[/name_m] [name_m]Simpson[/name_m] may be the first thing many people think.

So - if we name him [name_m]Homer[/name_m], will we be drawing on his Greek culture with an unusual if not somewhat hipster name that he will grow into and people will come to love?

Or - are we setting him up for a life of ridicule, especially in the playground with some particularly [name_m]Homer[/name_m]-phobic nicknames?

Please help! [name_f]TIA[/name_f]

(Alternative name suggestions also welcome)

I think with how popular [name_m]Homer[/name_m] [name_m]Simpson[/name_m] is in the pop culture zeigest and that he isn’t a good character it’s a no. [name_m]Apollo[/name_m]?

That’s tough. I never watched the Simpsons, so [name_m]Homer[/name_m] is definitely the poet first to me. Unfortunately most people, especially kids are definitely only going to associate that name with the Simpsons before a Greek poet. I don’t think you can realistically say that there won’t be some teasing, but sometimes teasing is character building if you help him though it. I wouldn’t discount the name entirely just because of a cartoon character. Hey, [name_m]Matt[/name_m] Groening, himself, named his son [name_m]Homer[/name_m]. Your son would be named after one of the most prominent authors of human history, and [name_m]Homer[/name_m] the author will last a lot longer than [name_m]Homer[/name_m] the cartoon character. If other people can’t get past [name_m]Homer[/name_m] [name_m]Simpson[/name_m], I think that reflects poorly on them, not on you or your son.

If you really don’t want to deal with the association, which is understandable, [name_m]Odysseus[/name_m] / [name_m]Ulysses[/name_m] might be an alternative. Or, if you don’t mind crossing over to the [name_m]Roman[/name_m] side of classics, [name_m]Virgil[/name_m] or [name_m]Ovid[/name_m] could work.

[name_m]Ulysses[/name_m] was my first thought for you. Unfortunately, I do think that [name_m]Homer[/name_m] could be kind of tough to carry. Other ideas are [name_m]Pericles[/name_m] nn [name_u]Perry[/name_u] or Herodotus nn [name_m]Harry[/name_m]. Or maybe [name_m]Aristotle[/name_m]? Or [name_m]Archimedes[/name_m] nn [name_m]Archie[/name_m].

I think it could lead to some teasing potential, but every name can. As long as you wont be bothered when people make the association with the tv show, I say use it.

I love [name_m]Homer[/name_m]!

It will absolutely lead to teasing, but, if [name_m]Homer[/name_m] is teased for his name and link to the character it is much less likely that he will be teased for his looks or lack of athletic ability or whatever else kids want to tease people for.

You can prepare him for it, he will learn to have some great comebacks on his own, and you can assure him that you absolutely did not name him for The [name_m]Simpson[/name_m]'s, teach him the greatness of his name :slight_smile:

My soon to be nephew will be [name_m]Patrick[/name_m], even if he has red hair (his mum has red hair) and we absolutely know that he will get never ending leprechaun/Irish jokes, but it’s an honour name and a fantastic name anyway so that hasn’t deterred my sister from using it.

I totally understand your feelings. For me the [name_m]Simpson[/name_m] connection was too much to keep it on the shortlist, even though I love the poet, but I don’t think it’s completely unusable. I do think that children of his age are less likely to be familiar with the Simpsons, but it’s very likely their parents will always make that connection.

That said, there are people who share a name with worse characters, and I doubt the parents would make a big deal of it after getting to know your little one. I would not worry too much about the teasing, children will come up with any number of ways to tease each other, if it’s not for a name it’s for something else.

I’m usually all about using your favorite name and ignoring unfortunate references (particularly when the name has other, sturdier references). But I don’t think I could do it with [name_m]Homer[/name_m]. As much as I love [name_m]Homer[/name_m]'s works and all that’s derived from it, The Simpsons is too saturated in American culture, I think. Unlike most pop culture ties, the show has been around for decades, and as someone who can’t stand the show or it’s patriarch, I can’t imagine being able to see anything else when meeting a baby [name_m]Homer[/name_m]. Which sucks, because I love the Iliad and Odyssey. For many people, the show will be their only familiarity with the name.

But if it’s truly “the one,” I’m sure you can find a way around the teasing potential. (I like the previous suggestion of having your son be well-equipped with comebacks.) I’d just also pair it with something safer in the middle so that your son has options, since [name_m]Homer[/name_m] doesn’t lend itself to nicknames.

I would imagine adults will make the connection with the Simpsons, but for a baby who is born now, I wonder whether the Simpsons will still be around by they time the baby’s peers become aware of the show. Or if it is around, kids won’t think it’s cook because their parents watch it.

My kids don’t even know who the [name_m]Simpson[/name_m]'s are, so I agree that his peers may not get the connection. Honestly, I didn’t at first. I don’t think it’s unusable.