I'm getting a lot of stuff from the algorithm about baby names. Which is far better than the usual stuff targeting my demographics. Stupid anti-aging creams. At least names are something I'm interested in. But I digress....
Most of it is about unusual spellings and created names. Some of them include names that have simply fallen out of use. Which frankly speaks more to the lack of research by whoever wrote the article/list than it does about the layman who bestows the name on the child.
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To use an example from my own life: My grandmother was Lura. She went to her grave believing a couple of Lauras running around were named after her. The only time it was a problem was when she got a new store credit card with Laura on it. We had to speak to a supervisor to get it fixed, because the customer service guy insisted we were wrong and/or she should change her name.
But in truth, the names are not related. One is Germanic and one is Latin. One refers to the mermaids of the Rhine and the other to a type of tree. These articles like to claim Lura is a new variant of Laura.
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There's a phrase I see a lot: This name is a Trajedeigh. It's mostly about creative spelling, so I'll focus on that first. I take no issue with creative spellings as long as I can still tell how the name is pronounced. Ashley can be Ashleigh or Ashlee. Both spellings are phonetically sound and the first is based on the traditionally female Leigh. My own name has several standard spellings.
Trajedeigh is also about a rumored trend of people naming kids words they like the sound of, but do not know the meaning of. Things like Chlamydia. (Why is anyone using a word they don't know the meaning of? I can't even deal with not knowing what a word played in Scrabble means. But I digress...) I know and even previously blogged about how people rarely choose a name for its traditional meaning. "I just like the sound of it" is even a valid reason in my book. BUT... this is why we tell our loved ones what names we're considering. So someone can warn us off.
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Another theme I see a lot of is the theft of a name. Sometimes it's pretty egregious... Sister-in-law is eight month pregnant with a girl she has always planned to name Henrietta, so I have a girl and name mine Henrietta. Or adopt a pet and name it Henrietta. But often it isn't a theft at all. Suppose Henrietta is named after Grandma... and both mothers were keeping the name as a surprise....
Intent is important. When I was in my early teens, I announced to my family what I intended to name my children. Everyone knew Artemis and Tanner were my names. If anyone in my family had used either of those names without at least talking to me about it, that would have been a name theft. As it is, now I keep hoping someone will "steal" them.
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Race and Religion all play a role in the naming of children. Those get ignored a lot in the articles that spawned this blog post. I've seen the author called out on more than one for dissing traditional naming practices... again, that goes back to the author's lack of research. Sometimes I think I put more research into these blog posts than these professionals are putting into their work.
But I digress...
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My primary suggestion is to share your name choice before birth, if only with trusted friends. They will give you a heads-up on the following possible issues: Short forms, nicknames, availability on souvenirs, variant spellings, pop culture associations, and many more.
Oh, and think twice before calling her by her middle name. Explaining that becomes tedious real fast.
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