Jemima - thoughts?

[name]Hi[/name] [name]Jill[/name]

[name]Happy[/name] New Year!

Thanks for taking the time to give me that long explanation. I view this as a kind of cultural exchange, this kind of discussion makes it easier to understand ones neighbours, even though in this case my neighbour lives thousands of miles away.

[name]Hi[/name] [name]Rollo[/name], and [name]Happy[/name] New Year to you, too! :slight_smile: (Random comment, but I thought of you tonight when I bought some Rollos. :slight_smile: )

I think this is a fascinating topic, and I’m really glad you bought up the issue of [name]Tom[/name]/[name]Thomas[/name]. I view it as a cultural exchange, too, and am wondering if there are any names in Australia that are viewed as off-limits by some.

I hope you’re daughter is doing well! :slight_smile:

[name]Hi[/name] [name]Rollo[/name], and [name]Happy[/name] New Year to you, too! :slight_smile: (Random comment, but I thought of you tonight when I bought some Rollos. :slight_smile: )

I think this is a fascinating topic, and I’m really glad you bought up the issue of [name]Tom[/name]/[name]Thomas[/name]. I view it as a cultural exchange, too, and am wondering if there are any names in Australia that are viewed as off-limits by some.

I hope you’re daughter is doing well! :-)[/quote]

Thanks about the rollos I assume that they are lollies of some kind. My daughter had to go to hospital on [name]Christmas[/name] [name]Day[/name] but is well now and we have just come home from a swim at the beach. Her daughter has her birthday today!

And no I can’t think of any names in that category but if I do I will post another time.

I see. I still think younger people-- and I’m generously lumping myself into this category-- are less likely to be scared off by the American history of the name. The name is more likely to be disliked simply because of its evocative pancake imagery. I think it’s older generations that have a harder time shaking the racial stereotype, but I could be wrong.

Honestly, I’m guessing that it’s just a matter of time before the name takes off in the U.S. It might not ever be popular or trendy, but all it would take is for some devil-may-care celebrity to name her adorable designer-clad kid [name]Jemima[/name] and then we’d all take the name a little less seriously, which would be good because I think the graveness of this poor name is being dwelt on a little too fervently.

Well said caaaaaaaaaitlin

I absolutely love the name [name]Jemima[/name] and it is on my list :slight_smile: Having said that i live in [name]England[/name] and so have no idea about the Syrup side of things, the only thing i think of is [name]Jemima[/name] Puddleduck which i think is cute! I think it is feminine and in no way overused - definately one worth considering :slight_smile:

I see. I still think younger people-- and I’m generously lumping myself into this category-- are less likely to be scared off by the American history of the name. The name is more likely to be disliked simply because of its evocative pancake imagery. I think it’s older generations that have a harder time shaking the racial stereotype, but I could be wrong.

Honestly, I’m guessing that it’s just a matter of time before the name takes off in the U.S. It might not ever be popular or trendy, but all it would take is for some devil-may-care celebrity to name her adorable designer-clad kid [name]Jemima[/name] and then we’d all take the name a little less seriously, which would be good because I think the graveness of this poor name is being dwelt on a little too fervently.[/quote]

[name]Hi[/name]! I’m in my 30s, and I personally don’t consider myself to be part of an “older” generation. (Granted, I may be fooling myself, but when I think of older generations, I think more along the lines of my parents or grandparents. I guess it’s all relative…) :slight_smile:

[name]Happy[/name] New Year!

[name]Hi[/name] [name]Rollo[/name], and [name]Happy[/name] New Year to you, too! :slight_smile: (Random comment, but I thought of you tonight when I bought some Rollos. :slight_smile: )

I think this is a fascinating topic, and I’m really glad you bought up the issue of [name]Tom[/name]/[name]Thomas[/name]. I view it as a cultural exchange, too, and am wondering if there are any names in Australia that are viewed as off-limits by some.

I hope you’re daughter is doing well! :-)[/quote]

Thanks about the rollos I assume that they are lollies of some kind. My daughter had to go to hospital on [name]Christmas[/name] [name]Day[/name] but is well now and we have just come home from a swim at the beach. Her daughter has her birthday today!

And no I can’t think of any names in that category but if I do I will post another time.[/quote]

I’m so sorry to hear she was in the hospital, [name]Rollo[/name], and am so happy she’s well now. :slight_smile:

Rolos are chocolate candies filled with caramel, and I love them!

[name]Happy[/name] Birthday, [name]Chloe[/name] [name]Skye[/name]! :slight_smile:

Take care…

I see. I still think younger people-- and I’m generously lumping myself into this category-- are less likely to be scared off by the American history of the name. The name is more likely to be disliked simply because of its evocative pancake imagery. I think it’s older generations that have a harder time shaking the racial stereotype, but I could be wrong.

Honestly, I’m guessing that it’s just a matter of time before the name takes off in the U.S. It might not ever be popular or trendy, but all it would take is for some devil-may-care celebrity to name her adorable designer-clad kid [name]Jemima[/name] and then we’d all take the name a little less seriously, which would be good because I think the graveness of this poor name is being dwelt on a little too fervently.[/quote]

[name]Hi[/name]! I’m in my 30s, and I personally don’t consider myself to be part of an “older” generation. (Granted, I may be fooling myself, but when I think of older generations, I think more along the lines of my parents or grandparents. I guess it’s all relative…) :slight_smile:

[name]Happy[/name] New Year![/quote]

I don’t think you’re old either. :slight_smile: I’m not sure what age groups might be more lenient on the name, or if there’s a delineation along age lines at all. It was just a weak theory. I noticed that mnemosyne commented several times and was more turned off by the syrup factor than the racial issues and she had given her age. Knowing that the Aunt [name]Jemima[/name] image had evolved over the years and was currently pretty harmless looking, I just made the assumption that younger people might hot have the same associations with it. Though I’d like to pretend otherwise, I’m old enough to be uncomfortably aware of the problems this name might pose, but I think as time goes by and people a little younger than us begin to have kids this name might have a chance. I didn’t mean to imply that anyone who disagreed was just old, but that’s probably how it came off. Lol. Sorry about that.

[name]Happy[/name] New Year, everyone!!

[name]Jill[/name], you are the best thank you for remembering [name]Chloe[/name]'s full name. I will pass on your birthday wishes and your well wishes to my daughter.

Wishing you the best of everything in the coming year!

No problem, Caaaaaitlin! I just thought you may be interested in my age. I totally agree that kids who haven’t been exposed to the old image of Aunt [name]Jemima[/name] are probably much more likely to just think of the syrup association as opposed to the history. (And had I not written a paper or two on the topic when I was in school, I may have thought less about the old image.)

I think the name [name]Jemima[/name] has a beautiful sound, and I wish I hadn’t grown up seeing that bandana image over and over again. :frowning:

I hope you’re closer to finding the perfect name for your baby! :slight_smile:

[name]Happy[/name] New Year! :slight_smile:

Thanks for passing on the good wishes! I could never forget the name [name]Chloe[/name] [name]Skye[/name], because it’s so pretty and unexpected. :slight_smile:

I can’t remember if your daughter is due soon, but I’m guessing she is! :slight_smile:

I’m glad they’re all doing well, and I hope you are, too.

[name]Happy[/name] New Year!

I just named my daughter, born ten days ago, [name]Jemima[/name] [name]Rose[/name]. “[name]Jemima[/name]” for a British cousin and “[name]Rose[/name]”(despite the overuse) for a grandmother. It has already been a rocky road and I have cried several times about the decision. We even considered doing the paperwork to change the name. We have not, though, and won’t; we will “stay the course” as one family member encouraged us. We have been shocked at the many rude responses we have gotten. At the very least people tend to say, “Well, I like [name]Jemma[/name]…” We love the name though and with her gem-like red hair the name completely suits her. We are reclaiming the name from a racist past. The truth is, of course, that it was a name brought to [name]America[/name] by English slave owners and slaves appropriated it (perhaps because it is so beautiful). I do not believe that the name furthers racial stereotypes, but rather by using it we will help eliminate the stereotype and give new/old meaning to the name. Everyone who grows to know [name]Jemima[/name] will have a new association with the name.

The previous post was my first on this site and I pulled the trigger after reading one page, not realizing this discussion has gone on for six pages! Excuse my simplistic and inaccurate explanation for [name]Jemima[/name] as used by slaves. (See [name]Pam[/name]'s explanation around page three.)

I will add that [name]Jemima[/name] is a bold three-syllable alternative to the flat-footed two syllable trend. (I say this with a [name]Henry[/name] and [name]Cora[/name] of my own.) [name]Jemima[/name] also incorporates the attractive repetition of a consonant with a strong vowel, like [name]Lila[/name]. Not to mention, a bunch of sexy Brits wear the name, including [name]Hugh[/name] Grants ex.

Let me be the first to say I love you for naming your kid [name]Jemima[/name]. I also like your other children’s names. [name]Jemima[/name] [name]Rose[/name] is a beautiful combination. I’m sure as your friends and family watch her grow up, they’ll grow more accepting of the name. My younger sister had a baby last year and she named her [name]Audrina[/name] after a reality TV star. My whole family hated the name-- especially me-- but now we are so crazy about [name]Audrina[/name] herself that we’ve all gotten over it. [name]Do[/name] you mind if I ask where you’re from?

I guess I’m late to the discussion, but I honestly just think it’s a syrup thing. I’d no more likely name my child pop-tart or lysol or sunkist. I actually tend to forget the image on the bottle or really think about it too deeply. This may be why that syrup company still sells so well and hasn’t changed the name - the name just sounds like syrup. It’s a pretty name and if people are going to use it, and “reclaim” it from a slave era typical name… I mean, yeah, if I think about it deeply, why would they pick [name]Jemima[/name] of all names to sell syrup? It’s a friendly name. Why not a bland kind of “every person” name like [name]Mary[/name], why a slave name in the first place? If white people are so racist, how did they sell syrup with the image of a black person on it in the first place and become such a national brand success? I am just thinking abstractly.

In a lot of cases I see where a name becomes unusable, for instance, let’s go with “that’s a dog name!” is where people dig up obscure old-fashioned names that can’t ever be stylish again and put it on their dog - it’s quirky and seems safe. Then those names start to come back in style, but some are too commonly used on pets to sound serious on a person. We’re kind of prejudiced against dogs in that they aren’t good enough to be people. I know lots around here like to give their dogs names they would use on a baby if… They aren’t having any more children so use up another good name, or the name might get teased or doesn’t sound up to the certain careers, things dogs have no worries about, but people do. Then your neighbor has to cross it off their list because you had to use an interesting name and now they just think it’s “too dog.” I have no choice but to think that about [name]Daisy[/name], who was my dog, but not [name]Jessica[/name], who was my grandmother’s dog, as [name]Jessica[/name] was also a popular name for some of my friends at the time, and [name]Daisy[/name] was not used at all for people. I guess my point is that people in marketing might scoop up an interesting name if it’s their vision this name will never see the ink on a birth certificate again anyway. Like [name]Jemima[/name]. Oh, we see that it has taken a while, but people are digging the old sound of it now.

I really do not or have not considered the name [name]Jemima[/name] “too black” or “too slave.” It’s, to me, really honestly, “too syrup.” Not a euphemism. It sounds like a great name, and if I had to get into social studies here, I might also think too deeply, my next objection would be “too biblical.” A lot of biblical names are also classic names, while some sound like the bible means something to you. I don’t mind if it means something to someone else, then use those names, but if it’s a namesake I’m looking for, I personally am not looking for one in the bible. I know, since I’m not all conscious of or intimidated about causing the racial tensions by using [name]Jemima[/name], I might seem ignorant, but I would go ahead and use it if it weren’t for that it’s the name of a syrup. Now let’s go round and round again while we wonder why it’s ok to use the name [name]Ben[/name], after all, Uncle [name]Ben[/name] was a slave image too (to go with the hypothetical Uncle [name]Tom[/name] product and why [name]Tom[/name] is ok to use).

If [name]Ben[/name] is ok, then [name]Jemima[/name] is not going to upset anyone. My ex-boss, a black man from [name]Georgia[/name], named his son [name]Benjamin[/name]. I think [name]Jemima[/name] is just “weird” because everyone knows it’s syrup. It’s the “there’s only one [name]Aretha[/name]” (there is another one, I know, actually) thing that (I think it was) [name]Jill[/name] mentioned.

Thanks, [name]Caitlin[/name]! Your [name]Audrina[/name] example is reassuring and what I hope/expect will happen with [name]Jemima[/name]. I live in [name]Maine[/name] now, but I have lived in [name]England[/name] off and on for parents’ sabbaticals and long visits to family. With that said, aside from one British family, my relatives are all Southern. None of them have commented on my use of the name, but I know when my British [name]Jemima[/name] cousin was born 35 years ago, they were horrified. So it is not without baggage, for sure.

Part of what happened was that when we saw our baby in the hospital many of the names we were considering flew out the window. [name]Audrey[/name], [name]Alice[/name], [name]Lydia[/name] seemed too airy fairy for this ruddy, 9 lb, red-head. My husband came upon [name]Gemma[/name] in a name book at the hospital and we liked it, but I (and some other family members) were concerned that it wasn’t a full name–too nick-namey. We then remembered that it is sometimes short for [name]Jemima[/name]. Turns out, [name]Gemma[/name] is a full Italian name for gem and my husband is part Italian; it could have worked. I am glad to have the family name association though and we/she has options. She may end up being [name]Gemma[/name]. Though the more rude comments I get, the more I want to use [name]Jemima[/name]–at least half of the time.

Well, I’m relieved that you don’t live in the South. I currently live in [name]Alabama[/name], where my husband’s whole family is from. I don’t necessarily want my child to grow up here, but we’re here now and my in-laws will always be here. This is one of the deciding factors that made me give up on [name]Jemima[/name]. If we lived in [name]Miami[/name], FL or [name]Eugene[/name], OR [other places I’ve lived] I think this name would be a little easier to wear, but in a small town in [name]Alabama[/name], I’d really be asking for it. I think my husband’s family would be embarrassed to even say her name. If we end up using a conservative or classic first name, I think my husband might let me use [name]Jemima[/name] as a middle name. However, I have yet to run across a first name that I really like that goes well with it. Anyway, I’m glad there’s a beautiful little red-head out there with the name. Best of luck with it!

Well, I’m relieved that you don’t live in the South. I currently live in [name]Alabama[/name], where my husband’s whole family is from. I don’t necessarily want my child to grow up here, but we’re here now and my in-laws will always be here. This is one of the deciding factors that made me give up on [name]Jemima[/name]. If we lived in [name]Miami[/name], FL or [name]Eugene[/name], OR [other places I’ve lived] I think this name would be a little easier to wear, but in a small town in [name]Alabama[/name], I’d really be asking for it. I think my husband’s family would be embarrassed to even say her name. If we end up using a conservative or classic first name, I think my husband might let me use [name]Jemima[/name] as a middle name. However, I have yet to run across a first name that I really like that goes well with it. Anyway, I’m glad there’s a beautiful little red-head out there with the name. Best of luck with it![/quote]

[name]Claire[/name] [name]Jemima[/name]

We’ve decided to go for it for our next baby if she is a girl…
[name]Will[/name] be [name]Jemima[/name] [name]Lucy[/name]…
I think it goes really well with [name]Tabitha[/name] [name]Rachel[/name]…