I was reading an article on a blogging site about ‘hipster’ names - and while I completely accept that my style is seen as hipster, there were some comments made that drove me insane. I mean, I know [name_f]Doris[/name_f] and [name_f]Edna[/name_f] are certainly not to everyone’s tastes, but that doesn’t exactly give someone the right to claim that they are names that might ‘make your teenager try to kill you in your sleep’.
Regardless of the comment that was made in post; are the following names THAT bad?
None of them are BAD, they just bring up certain images in many people’s minds - namely old ladies, so they cannot see them used for little babies. Obviously, you see them differently - if you love them, use them and screw what people think! Once they see a little [name_f]Doris[/name_f] or [name_f]Edna[/name_f] and see how cute they are and how well it fits them, they’ll forget all about their preconceptions. I personally wouldn’t use [name_f]Doris[/name_f] (prefer [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]), [name_f]Edna[/name_f] (can only think of Simpsons) or [name_f]Muriel[/name_f] (not a pleasant sound). But, I love [name_f]Agatha[/name_f] and [name_f]Mabel[/name_f]! [name_f]Ida[/name_f] is a family name, so is always in the back of my mind, and I’m neutral on [name_f]Maude[/name_f] and [name_f]Vera[/name_f].
And I don’t think you’re being too sensitive, all name nerds are protective of their favourite names - we want people to see them the way we do, and it hurts when they don’t. [name_m]Just[/name_m] stick to your guns! x
Thank you! Haha, I’m glad you understand where I’m coming from on it - I didn’t really love [name_f]Doris[/name_f] myself at first, until I saw a picture of a little [name_f]Doris[/name_f] from [name_f]England[/name_f] (the baby sister of [name_m]Louis[/name_m] [name_m]Tomlinson[/name_m], actually, haha!), and it suits her so well from pictures I’ve seen - it really made me like it. I’m not bothered at all by comments about how ‘horrendous’ they are, or whatever, I’ve learned to get past that, but, it’s the comments that compare them to child abuse, and the ones that claim it’ll cause your child to become a raging psychopath who murders their parents as revenge for their name. I’m working on sticking to them though, [name_f]Sophie[/name_f]! I still love them, just bothered me that the comment was made, and [name_f]Edna[/name_f] was one of the names listed in it.
[name_f]Vera[/name_f]'s a family name, so I’m not going to drop that one [name_f]Maude[/name_f]'s actually the 99th most popular where I live, so maybe I’m not as concerned there, and isn’t [name_f]Mabel[/name_f] making a comeback? Haha. The only one I can’t defend is [name_f]Edna[/name_f], but I have my reasons.
Sorry, I dislike everything on that list. I have a special distaste for [name_f]Doris[/name_f] although I couldn’t say why. I’ve known one [name_f]Doris[/name_f] and she was very nice.
[name_f]Ida[/name_f] (ee-dah) is very popular in Scandinavia and most of the [name_f]Ida[/name_f]'s I know have been under 22 years old. I’m 21 and at one point I had eight (!!) [name_f]Ida[/name_f]'s in my class which consisted of 30 people (where 15 were girls). [name_f]Ida[/name_f] is personally not my favourite name, but I do think it’s very fresh and young (definitely not horrendous, haha).
[name_f]Maude[/name_f], [name_f]Agatha[/name_f] and [name_f]Vera[/name_f] are names I personally view as “old lady names” and I find it hard to imagine them on a baby. However, I think they sound very refreshing and could be good choices. They are not at all ugly in my eyes, but I can see why people might dislike them.
[name_f]Doris[/name_f], [name_f]Edna[/name_f], [name_f]Mabel[/name_f] and [name_f]Muriel[/name_f] are personal dislikes of mine. I feel they are too heavy-sounding and outdated. [name_f]Doris[/name_f] is the worst one in my opinion and the only name I would call horrendous.
Well, [name_f]Ida[/name_f], [name_f]Muriel[/name_f], and [name_f]Agatha[/name_f] aren’t exactly terrible. The rest, I put in the possibly cruel category. I picture a group of little girls with [name_f]Emma[/name_f], [name_f]Sophie[/name_f], [name_f]Ava[/name_f], [name_f]Grace[/name_f],…and [name_f]Doris[/name_f]. She sticks out like a sore thumb. Very different than sticking out with a name like [name_f]Clementine[/name_f], [name_f]Genevieve[/name_f], and [name_f]Penelope[/name_f].
[name_f]Doris[/name_f]- I see the appeal of this name and honestly, I can see it making a comeback in a few years!
[name_f]Edna[/name_f]- I don’t find this name very attractive
[name_f]Muriel[/name_f]- this is very serious, and not the prettiest but I don’t find it bad
[name_f]Mabel[/name_f]- very usable, I find it sweet. It’s making a bit of a comeback
[name_f]Vera[/name_f]- I love this name, sweet and spunky
[name_f]Maude[/name_f]- not the prettiest
[name_f]Ida[/name_f]- I think this is definitely usable. Fits in (with [name_f]Ada[/name_f] and [name_f]Isla[/name_f]) but stands out
[name_f]Agatha[/name_f]- I love this too, very vintage sounding but in a good way
Actually, in my area, [name_f]Clementine[/name_f] and [name_f]Penelope[/name_f] would be the ones who stick out - the elementary school in my area has an abundance of little boys named [name_m]Charles[/name_m], [name_m]Kenneth[/name_m] and [name_m]Albert[/name_m], and little girls named [name_f]Sylvia[/name_f], [name_f]Kathleen[/name_f] and [name_f]Genevieve[/name_f]. Also, [name_f]Maude[/name_f], [name_f]Florence[/name_f], [name_f]Lillian[/name_f], etc are all in the top 100 where I live - so I have a hard time imagining that [name_f]Doris[/name_f] would stick out thaaaaaat much, and I certainly wouldn’t align it with ‘possibly cruel’, but, to each’s own.
I think I worded my original post incorrectly - I wasn’t exactly looking for comments on how cruel the names are, more like comments on whether or not they’d actually turn my child into a murderous teenager who wants to kill her parents, as the blog I was reading mentioned.
See, I actually think [name_f]Vera[/name_f] and [name_f]Agatha[/name_f] are the prettiest AND most currently usable on the list, so just goes to show there’s no accounting for taste. You have to just go with what YOU love, because there will always be people to both support and oppose your opinion.
Thank you! haha, I think most of these are actually in the top 1000 either in the UK or in the US, and some (like [name_f]Maude[/name_f]) are in the Canadian list. ([name_f]Canada[/name_f]'s top 100 is like a cross between [name_f]France[/name_f], UK and the US).
@daphodil - I think I missed your post, so I’ll reply now! That’s awesome that you went to school with so many! I’m still torn on whether or not I prefer the ‘ee-dah’ or ‘eye-dah’ pronunciation though I can totally see why some may dislike them, I don’t really care that they do - it’s the way that they say it that bothers me.
[name_f]Maude[/name_f]'s actually the 99th most popular where I live, so maybe I’m not as concerned there, and isn’t [name_f]Mabel[/name_f] making a comeback? Haha. The only one I can’t defend is [name_f]Edna[/name_f], but I have my reasons. 