I’m just interested in a few opinions on how much you are bothered by a name ‘ageing’ well.
Personally, one of the biggest things I just don’t get in the naming community is people under the impression that no grown women could possibly be named [name]Pippi[/name] or no teenage boy could ever be named [name]Bear[/name]. The most annoying one is ‘Can you imagine a Dr. [name]Poppy[/name]?’
I’ve known lots of professional people with very cutesy names - our Vet is a young women named [name]Daisy[/name] for a start.
So what’s your take on this? I’m not trying to offend anyone, and I’ve never had to name a child so I can’t say from experience - I’m just curious of anybody else’s opinions and/or experiences regarding the subject. Thanks!
I think it’s a bit different in the UK from here… I know names like [name]Evie[/name], [name]Charlie[/name], [name]Sam[/name], etc., are very popular as given names where that is not quite the case here. It’s done, but not nearly as often. I do see your point in a way because I can completely see a [name]Poppy[/name] of any age doing anything with her life (especially due to [name]Poppy[/name] [name]Montgomery[/name]), but there are some names that just don’t age as well as others to me, and there are very few nicknames that I would actually use as a given name. There’s [name]Jack[/name], [name]Tess[/name], [name]Kate[/name], and [name]Magda[/name]. And I think that’s it. I don’t even consider [name]Poppy[/name] as a nn as a given full name because it’s a flower name.
I do lean toward giving fuller names because I think they’re more versatile and grow with a person. Of course, the person does define the name but really, I like that an [name]Isabelle[/name] could be anyone she wants to be… [name]Bella[/name] seems cutesy, nicknamey, and a bit trendy to me. If I ever do have an [name]Isabelle[/name], she will likely be nn’d [name]Bella[/name] as a baby but as she grows I’m sure she’ll also use [name]Izzy[/name], [name]Isabelle[/name], [name]Belle[/name], [name]Elle[/name]/[name]Ella[/name], etc., too. It’s not just that it ages well (or doesn’t, or whatever), but I think it also provides personality, too. I mean, I am quite a feminine person and I have a traditionally unisex name. I don’t like it because I feel that it limits my femininity, in a way. I think I would have been much happier being a [name]Lily[/name] or a [name]Grace[/name] rather than an [name]Ashley[/name] (which, consequently, is also why I don’t plan on using unisex names for my daughters).
I think [name]Lucy[/name] and [name]Daisy[/name] and [name]Poppy[/name] are fine names… and I can see them on grown adults. I just wouldn’t want to be limited by being just [name]Daisy[/name]. If I was [name]Adelaide[/name] nn [name]Daisy[/name], then I’d have so many more options, and, when it comes down to it, that’s what matters to me.
It bothers me in the sense that one reason we give kids cutesy little nn’s like Pippi or Bear is because theyre still kids, they dont have grown up attitudes, tendencies or responsibilities which are all signs of maturity so we call them cute affectionate babyish names. It’s probably not fair but it would be hard for me to imagine a President Pippi Smith or Supreme Court Justice Bear Smith because these arent names I associate with adult accomplishments and life experience.
It bothers me because I want my child to have a beautiful and sophisticated name that works well in any profession without her co-workers giggling that her name is [name]Pippi[/name] or [name]Queenie[/name] or something. I want my son to be a doctor or CEO without anyone ever thinking “[name]Bear[/name]? Really? [name]Doctor[/name] [name]Bear[/name]?”
I love cutesy nicknames on children, but children grow up and they need a name that can mature with them.
I’m mixed. I think a lot of the names we say don’t age well are similar to names people said wouldn’t age well when we were named. We may think someone named [name]Pippi[/name] is weird and cutesy, but it could end up being totally normal for people her age. So I don’t necessarily get the “aging well” argument.
However, I do think there are names that might give people a hard time in the professional world. It shouldn’t be that way, but it is. I’m mostly thinking of misspellings and totally weird made up names though.
Personally, that’s why I plan on giving my kids names that may be uncommon but are still known and “normal”. I can make up a cute nn if I really want to, but I’d like for them to have a more… professional? name to fall back on. Like I would name a kid [name]Elizabeth[/name] and call her [name]Lizzie[/name]. But I wouldn’t name her [name]Lizzie[/name]. She would have a longer name to fall back on if she chooses to.
[name]One[/name] of the BIGGEST priorities for me when thinking about names is how well it will age. I think of all the possible ages and occupations: toddler, teenager, lawyer, grandparent, etc.
On the one hand, I think people often say a name won’t “age well” just because they don’t know many adults with that name. I remember as a kid thinking how funny it would be to meet a grown man named “[name]Josh[/name],” but now all the Joshes have grown up and it seems completely normal.
On the other hand, if the name is really out there and cutesy, I get why people worry about how it will be received in certain adult professions. I think the problem there is not as much other people thinking “President [name]Pippi[/name]?” but [name]Pippi[/name] herself feeling like her name doesn’t fit her profession. I am a lawyer and I have lawyer friends named [name]Brandy[/name] and [name]Misty[/name] and they are embarrassed by their names because they think they sound like strippers rather than lawyers.
Before anyone says it, somebody named [name]Pippi[/name] or [name]Misty[/name] or [name]Buddy[/name] or whatever can become anything they want, a person isn’t defined by their name, all that’s true, blah blah blah.
But I do think that certain names are just incongruous with adulthood. It’s like when someone has a name that just doesn’t fit them- a super tomboy named [name]Anastasia[/name], for example. To me, names like [name]Candi[/name] are exactly like that. They just don’t seem like adult names. And sure, there are adults with names like that, but they don’t fit. They don’t seem like that should be their name. I have this issue with [name]Oliver[/name] for some reason- I love the name, it’s not a nickname, but for whatever reason I just don’t like how it ages. A baby or child [name]Oliver[/name] is adorable, but it seems weird when I picture him as a teenager or adult.
I understand all the points made here, and I’d like to say thanks for giving your opinions.
Sure, meeting a Dr. [name]Bear[/name] would unusual, but there is no reason why I would think any less of him or how capable he was in his profession because he had a name which would be cute on a little boy. [name]Just[/name] because a certain name would be cute on a child, why does that make it inappropriate for an adult?
It’s also an interesting point that it’s a bit different in the UK. I suppose it is, actually, which is surprising because Americans seem much less conservative in naming, and are far quicker to use ‘made up’ names from what I can tell (Braydee, [name]Harlen[/name] ect.)
Looking at the 2010 most popular girls names, [name]Ruby[/name], [name]Lily[/name] and [name]Evie[/name] are in the top 10 alone. [name]Lucy[/name], [name]Phoebe[/name], [name]Isla[/name], [name]Holly[/name], [name]Millie[/name], [name]Lola[/name] and [name]Ellie[/name] are all in the top 50 too (and some more ‘American’ style ones, like [name]Lexi[/name] and [name]Lacey[/name]). I know more than one little girl named [name]Pippa[/name], 2 Elfies, an [name]Edie[/name], 2 Ivys and 3 Tallulahs! SO many Archies, Alfies and Charlies for the boys.
I never stopped to think about it before, but how well a name ages is actually one of my most important considerations. It’s so much a part of what I find appealing or unappealing in names to begin with, names that I think don’t age well don’t even survive the “first cut” with me. Babyish pet names, like [name]Bear[/name], Boo, and Peanut, are rejected out of hand, and nicknames like [name]Ellie[/name] and [name]Millie[/name], though they might be used at home, would never be considered for my child’s birth certificate.
It’s probably part cultural (I’m in the US) and part personal taste/experiences.
I’m constantly told that I gave my girls old lady names, but I don’t care. I want my kids to have names that they aren’t embarrassed by or that they wish they could change. I think my kids all have names that sound good for any stage of life. Of course we have silly little nicknames for all of them, but I don’t even think my mother knows some of them, so I’m not worried about them being used outside our little family. ([name]One[/name] of my boys likes to call [name]Nina[/name] “Neener-Neener-Carabeener.”)
Before I had kids I worked in an office where the receptionist was constantly paging people for phone calls. I would always think about that when picking names for my kids. [name]How[/name] would it sound being broadcasted to an enormous office.
I’ve also always used the playground trick when unsure of a name. Go to a busy playground and call out the name you’re thinking of using. If anyone looks at you like you’ve got 6 heads, it’s probably not a good idea!
I have to admit, it’s definitely something I consider when choosing names for my future child(ren). I hate the idea of them being limited in any way, especially by their name.
As awful as it is, most of us tend to judge people based on their names. [name]How[/name] many times do we hear or see a name and think ‘That sounds like a stripper name’ or what have you. And even if we’re not the ones judging people, others are.
Sometimes I think that people don’t really put that much thought into naming a child. That cute little baby, if lucky, is going to grow up at some point and probably have to get a job at some point in his or her life. What if [name]Kayley[/name] wants to be a doctor? Is she going to be proud of her name or feel hindered by it? I’m betting that at some point, she’ll shorten it to [name]Kay[/name], because [name]Kay[/name] sounds considerably more professional than [name]Kayley[/name]. Or what if she goes on to marry a politician who’s eventually elected as president (or a member of the royal family, for those of you across the pond)? First Lady [name]Kay[/name] or [name]Princess[/name] [name]Kay[/name] sounds a lot more respectful than First Lady [name]Kayley[/name] or [name]Princess[/name] [name]Kayley[/name].
