Naming a baby

[girlsteve.livejournal.com]

Part actual question, part amusing anecdote.

My firend was talking to her boss about a guy they know called Nigel.

Boss: you know what I thought the other day?
Friend: No, what?
Boss: Nigel's parents named a baby Nigel.
Friend: ... What?
Boss: WHo looks at a baby and thinks 'Nige'

I mostly jus thought that was funny, particularly as they had been talking about stock taking at the time. But it did get me thinking, do you think you would ever fall into the trap of naming a baby rather than a person?

Also, I often see people in this community advising against a name because they don't think the kid could grow up with it - does it work the other way around? Would you advise against a name because you couldn't see it on a little kid?

Comments

[morphinae.livejournal.com]

Haha, I used to think this about my great grandmother Ethel. Who the HELL looks at a brand new baby and things, 'awwww, Ethel!!!!'. I don't get it.

[sweatydog.livejournal.com]

I don't think of names in terms of children or adults. I think of them as people.

I can understand wanting an informal name for a baby and something they can grow into.

"Jonny" Jonathan
"Maggie" Margaret

[aballard23.livejournal.com]

I have to agree with you here, I'd rather give my child a real name and then use a nickname while they're cute and little that they can drop when they grow up.

[decembermalice.livejournal.com]

In most cases, you can "child-ize" a name, but it's much harder to make a childish name adult.

For example, John - Johnny
Michael - Mikey
Calista - Callie
Cecile - CeCe

On the other hand, it's hard to make childlike names into adult names
Tiffany: Tiff, Tiffy - doesn't work.
McKayla - Micki, Kayla. The only real option, in my opinion, would be Kay.

[glitterberrys.livejournal.com]

One of my best friends is named Simon. It's very hard to imagine this guy as ever having been a baby, but sometimes it occurs to me that someone looked at a baby and thought, "He looks like a Simon."

...though I'm kind of secretly convinced that he was born thirty years old.

[ifancylust.livejournal.com]

i decided to nix clementine because i can't imagine a 45 year old clementine. =/
i think it works both ways. i can't imagine naming my newborn baby girl barbara.

[freezemyazaleas.livejournal.com]

It's a stretch, but Ann could be a nickname for Tiffany.

[freezemyazaleas.livejournal.com]

I like compromises. When I think of names, I base my liking of them on whether I would enjoy having that name. So, I wouldn't want to be named Edna right now when I'm a teenager, but I also wouldn't want to be named Mackenzie when I'm 40 and a lawyer. (not that I actually want to be a lawyer, lol)

I think that a lot of my names would sound good on both adults and children, like:
Blair
Janna
Leslie
Tara
Bradley
Elliot
Patrick
Sean

Some of my other names are more adult-sounding, but have cute nicknames for children, like:
Alexandra (Ally)
Jane (Janie)
Katherine (Katie)
Stephanie (Stevie or Steffie)
Andrew (Andy)
Jonathan (Jonny)
Timothy (Timmy)
William (Billy or Will)

[xpaniic.livejournal.com]

Honestly, I think that all the names that are too cutesy to be an adult, by the time were all older, those names aren't going to seem that way because there will be adults with those names.

[flightybynature.livejournal.com]

That's great...I can't imagine a young Clementine :P Probably because one of my great aunts was Clementine, Clem for short :)

Clemmy

[crossingthesea.livejournal.com]

Too bad. I so love the name Clementine-- although admittedly it is a theoretical name only.

What would you pair a name like Clementine with?

[hadschpotential.livejournal.com]

I used to babysit a little girl named Babara Isabella, and they called her Bella. It was so cute on this adorable little pigtailed four-year-old, but it's good that she isn't JUST named Bella, because that won't be as cute when she's an adult.

But I agree with a lot of the other comments, I wouldn't worry about picking a name that works on a baby, I would pick a name that they can stand as an adult and then find a nickname from that for when they're small and cute.

Re: Clemmy

[ifancylust.livejournal.com]

i thought something simple like clementine jane could work.

[dustkitty.livejournal.com]

I generally agree, but I know that a lot of Misty's I grew up with hate their names now because it sounds childish and there's no way to make Misty sound more professional. So, there are exceptions. Although, by the time another generation goes by, even Misty will probably seem perfectly normal.

[admirari.livejournal.com]

i think of this the other way around: in 100 years, people could think, 'who would name their baby that old name britney'.

ethel is cute. it's the association with older generations. cause at one time, people did say that. they also would look at a baby girl in the 50s and go, 'awww Linda,' where i think of middle-aged people when i see Linda.

[admirari.livejournal.com]

nigel would work in UK i imagine

[admirari.livejournal.com]

i agree

[bluedano.livejournal.com]

When I was 8 I met a girl named Margot. My step-mom's name was Margot and I had never met another person with that name (and still haven't to this day, twenty years later). I remember that girl and her name because at the time it struck me as so odd that she had a grown-up name. I still think of Margot as an adult name and have a hard time imagining it on a baby. :P

[yourethedancer.livejournal.com]

my brother's name is Nigel. I think it's great.