Why Don't You Retire These Names?

[rosemarion]

I love classic names. They always sound good to me whereas some of the newer names just don’t sound as solid or as attractive. I love the name [name]Jennifer[/name] BTW. Some of my fave names are classics like [name]Joseph[/name], [name]Rose[/name], [name]William[/name], [name]Elizabeth[/name]. I like some newer names as well, but I don’t think classics should be retired ever.

[aj_bear]

I’m offended by your post- not because I happen to disagree with your opinion, but because you’ve been so rude about it. No, I don’t think I would ever use [name]Michael[/name] or [name]Elizabeth[/name], but that doesn’t mean they should be retired. They’re beautiful names that have managed to stand the test of time. Despite all of the [name]Maya[/name]'s, [name]Sophia[/name]'s, and [name]Kaleigh[/name]'s, [name]Elizabeth[/name] is still in fashion. Sure, [name]Jennifer[/name] is a bit tired sounding, but the parents who choose to use it are not one of the “scared naming cows” that “just need to be slaughtered.”
People who chose those names aren’t lacking effort, they probably have meaning to them. I could use a lot of the names you’ve listed to honor beloved family members or the saints they were named for.
Obviously, a lot of excellent points have been made (by @mischa especially) so I’m going to stop now, because if I keep thinking about slaughtering names or whatever, I’ll get angry.
If you’re a troll, you’ve got attention. Congrats.
Now take your negativity elsewhere.

[adamas]

@celianne

Does the world really need another judgmental hag? There’s a frumpy feeling I get with every word you type on here, as if you’re just being rude to be rude. I just hear blah. Why not choose to be more positive and less full of yourself? I understand why you feel the need to express your opinion and feel like a nonconformist. It’s easier to pick a contrary, obviously unpopular opinion to stir up trouble than it is to have a real hobby or passion. You can’t win if you refuse to be open and accepting.

Celianne for the win.

Honestly, what is wrong with an “overused” classic name, a name that doesn’t link to any particular generation and won’t be dated 10, 20, even 50 years from now? The answer to that is NOTHING. Nothing at all. A name doesn’t make a child unique or stand out (in a good way). A child and their own personality is what does that.

None of the names you’ve listed are the new “[name]John[/name] and [name]Mary[/name]'s of the world”. As common as you may think [name]Katherine[/name], [name]David[/name], and [name]Emma[/name] are, they’re statistically nowhere near as popular as [name]John[/name] and [name]Mary[/name] were 100+ years ago (go ahead, look it up).

Yes, picking a name simply because it’s common is unimaginative but many people also use one (or more) of these names because they’re significant due to literature, family connections, or something else. There isn’t anything wrong with that. Am I unimaginative for choosing the name [name]Henry[/name] simply because it was given to a whopping .2784% of babies born the same year as my son? No. It just means that close to 6,000 other parents found the name attractive and perhaps had a personal reason to use the name. For the record, I’d rather meet 10 little well named [name]Henry[/name]'s than 10 children named J-k-r-d-z-ayden.

[celianne]

Ohboyohboyohboy, TWO ignorant, snobbish posts I get to respond to with wit and sarcasm! YAY!

@basicsand

There’s a book called Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal? Some people just want a name that can be anything. Others want it because they project no specific personality. Some are sick of fashion or fed up with fads. Why ask if it’s chic? Perhaps all the creativity and invention with names is taking its toll on them. Sure they’re a little flat-footed and prefer being just common. No-frills classics fill that need for redundant visibility and ready-made significance ideal to the average. Despite some unfortunate personal comments, I feel that baby naming is often taken too seriously and borders on a unyielding solemnity. With little to no style, I believe still they are the new John and Mary.

This makes no sense. Who are you talking about? You first insult those who use classic, popular, common names, saying that they lack imagination and creativity, and then turn right around and say that we who put so much thought into the name are taking things to an extreme. Could you pick a side, please? Have you found your perfect balance in this thread, perhaps, with your lack of thought and care for others, their names, and their tastes? All of the effort, with none of the brain power! Congratulations, you’re a winner!

@basicsand

Why don’t you look at other forum posts to see which names I do like?

Because you obviously have terrible taste, if you can’t at least appreciate a name like [name]Alexander[/name].

@basicsand

There are things that have become overly familiar or common. These are elements that are overused to the point of losing their original meaning to the point of being irritating and trite since at some previous time they were considered meaningful and novel. They are called cliches.

I appreciate the English lesson, but names don’t work like cliches. Sorry to burst your bubble, but a name is more than words on paper, more than parents handing a child a label. A name is a human being, flesh and blood, unique in their biology and their mind. Giving that unique person a name that many other unique people have does not make them any less unique, except on paper. Tell me, Basic Sand, why have you decided to call yourself one of the most common tangible objects in existence, yet reject the idea of doing such a thing to a truly unique person?

@basicsand

It’s kind of obvious who among here lack a sense of style as well as civility and decorum. Although I’m not thin-skinned, I’ve kept to the topic of what are the new John or Mary of today. It has been interesting to note who quickly reveal themselves to be so unbecoming.

Yes, it is. But you have gone out of your way to bring out the worst in us. This behavior is called ‘provocation,’ to educate you a bit. You are doing things to deliberately rile us up, and then insulting us for producing the result you worked for. This is called ‘bullying.’ Bullying is the lowest form of raising yourself us, as you must have learned in elementary school, since you know what a cliche is; a bully finds solace in putting others down, stepping on them, crushing them beneath their fingers and toes. But like most other activities that involve hurting others, it is fake; your height is an illusion created by your own desperate mind. The internet is a good place for this illusion, certainly, because it is almost an illusion itself. You are creating a world within a created world, and it is very difficult to succeed in reality when you put all your efforts into the realm of fantasy.

We don’t have to take your backhanded remarks, your nonsense reasoning, and your bullying. We can ignore you, as some have so adequately suggested, or we can use you as you use us. Enjoy the fury of woman. You certainly deserve it.

[basicsand]

LOL. Why on earth would I care what some of you think of me? Please feel free to look at the entirety of my forum posts and public lists. God bless.