Is it a common name for African American females? I live in Australia, so I would be lucky to meet half a dozen African Americans in my life time! That's why it seems normal on a white girl to me.
I'm not sure (I'm European =P), but almost every time I turn on the tv and there are black people involved, at least one of them is called Ebony! Maybe it was just coincidence, but it got me thinking.
Considering i know a really awesome black girl named Lily, I don't see why. Naming her IVORY on the other hand might be a little weird as might Ebony... but I suppose either could still work.
Ivory maybe more typical for the oxymoron, but then it's something quite exotic (I'm thinking elephant horns, as well), so it wouldn't be a mismatch for a black girl!
Ebony is wood, on the other hand, so although it doesn't make sense, it makes me think of forests.. and forests are next to Ireland in my mind, and basically only albino is whiter than Irish.. so there :P
i think ebony on a white girl is weird, but that's just me. it would be no different than naming a white girl shaniqua, and i actually knew one of those a few years ago. ebony is a classy name and everything, but whenever i hear it, i expect a black girl. like if i did meet a white girl named ebony, i would think it was strange but it wouldn't necessarily be a problem.
lily on a black girl would be fine though. i think more of the flower when i hear that, rather than a skin color connotation. in that movie cloverfield, one of the main characters is a woman of mixed race (i'm not positive but she looks either black/white or black/indian to me) and her name in the movie is lily.
Yeah I'm not a fan of the name Ebony either, but I was just wondering =) Especially since I really like the name Lily, and if I ever happen to adopt a black child...I mean, chances I'll ever use the name Lily are small since it's not on my top list, but it got me thinking.
No way around it. I can't imagine a black girl being named Lily (this comes from a black girl) and a white girl named Ebony (it seems wrong, like it doesn't match).
Anybody who blinks at naming a white baby Ebony or a black baby Lily and says it's because of a clash in meaning should also please publicly frown upon the following:
* All color names, unless they mean "somewhere on the spectrum between ivory and dark brown, with pinkish and peachy tones" * All size/height origin names, unless the parents are certain that the baby will grow to the appropriate name (example: Brady, stemming probably from a word for "large-chested") * All occupation names, unless baby is bound legally to enter said field
... etc.
I find it interesting that there's more of an "issue" with naming a white baby Ebony than naming a black baby Lily. Is it some purely subconscious judgment that trying to appear more white is okay, but trying to appear more black is not?
Very good point. I know a lot of black girls named Britney, Ashley, Lauren, etc and it's normal/acceptable. I've yet to meet a white girl named Latoya, Shaniece, or LaQuan. I think people would look down on that, and maybe there is some subconscious reasons for that.
Very interesting. When I hear a name like Shaniqua/LeToya or whatever I automatically assume it's a black girl, simply because I've heard those names only on black girls so far. Names with an overload of apostrophes remind me of girls from the Bronx. Maybe that's wrong, but I can't help it, it's what comes to mind first. And I think that's what people don't like about it.
Here, field hockey is pretty much an elite sport. Many children who play hockey are called Fleur or Claire or something like that, so when I hear the name 'Fleur' I immediately think of a slightly elitist girl who plays hockey. I guess that's pretty much the same.
One of my friends is a black girl named Bianca, and there's another at my school and I never found it weird. I think Lily could fit pretty much any appearance.
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They are both nice names regardless.
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I live in Australia, so I would be lucky to meet half a dozen African Americans in my life time!
That's why it seems normal on a white girl to me.
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Ivory maybe more typical for the oxymoron, but then it's something quite exotic (I'm thinking elephant horns, as well), so it wouldn't be a mismatch for a black girl!
Ebony is wood, on the other hand, so although it doesn't make sense, it makes me think of forests.. and forests are next to Ireland in my mind, and basically only albino is whiter than Irish.. so there :P
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lily on a black girl would be fine though. i think more of the flower when i hear that, rather than a skin color connotation. in that movie cloverfield, one of the main characters is a woman of mixed race (i'm not positive but she looks either black/white or black/indian to me) and her name in the movie is lily.
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Especially since I really like the name Lily, and if I ever happen to adopt a black child...I mean, chances I'll ever use the name Lily are small since it's not on my top list, but it got me thinking.
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No way around it. I can't imagine a black girl being named Lily (this comes from a black girl) and a white girl named Ebony (it seems wrong, like it doesn't match).
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Both of these names are fine for anyone.
I also like Blanca and Bianca.
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* All color names, unless they mean "somewhere on the spectrum between ivory and dark brown, with pinkish and peachy tones"
* All size/height origin names, unless the parents are certain that the baby will grow to the appropriate name (example: Brady, stemming probably from a word for "large-chested")
* All occupation names, unless baby is bound legally to enter said field
... etc.
I find it interesting that there's more of an "issue" with naming a white baby Ebony than naming a black baby Lily. Is it some purely subconscious judgment that trying to appear more white is okay, but trying to appear more black is not?
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When I hear a name like Shaniqua/LeToya or whatever I automatically assume it's a black girl, simply because I've heard those names only on black girls so far. Names with an overload of apostrophes remind me of girls from the Bronx. Maybe that's wrong, but I can't help it, it's what comes to mind first. And I think that's what people don't like about it.
Here, field hockey is pretty much an elite sport. Many children who play hockey are called Fleur or Claire or something like that, so when I hear the name 'Fleur' I immediately think of a slightly elitist girl who plays hockey. I guess that's pretty much the same.
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I'm not a fan of the name Ebony in general.