(no subject)

[morningapproach.livejournal.com]

At what distance of relationship would you consider using a name for your own children that someone else has used? Would you use a name that a co-worker has named a child, but not a cousin's child? Or a friend's child? Would it depend on how long you have had your mind set on a name?


Also, what do you think of the name Alivia? My co-worker's daughter (1yr) is named this, and I find it interesting.

Comments

[th3-unicorn.livejournal.com]

I would not feel comfortable using the same name of a coworkers' kid, nor as other kids in the family. In fact, I'd rather use a name that my family has never pretty much encountered, so it can be fresh and new and free of associations to this or that person.
Not to mention I'd be pretty pissed if my coworker basically "stole" my daughter's name. I know not everyone agrees with this concept because of course names are not property, but you would know if someone was trying to be the copycat.

In the case of Alivia, since it's not even a legit name (Olivia and Livia are), that would be one more reason to discourage from using it.

[sweetest-asylum.livejournal.com]

why not just spell it correctly.

[sleepy-tears7.livejournal.com]

I would only use a name that nobody I knew at all had- And that was hard because I had the name Abigail picked out and then a friend of ours used it and I couldn't anymore =[

If its a common name like Alivia, I would say it wouldn't be SO tacky since its a coworker, butt ask first if they mind if you use that name.

[morningapproach.livejournal.com]

I don't actually want to use Alivia, but I was curious to see how everyone felt about it :)

[sleepy-tears7.livejournal.com]

i know a ridiculous amount of people who have named their children alivia, in my area, it is so common, its basically a legit name.

[morningapproach.livejournal.com]

Oh, I am not thinking about using it myself, just interested in the name :) Also, since my cousin is pregnant, I am worried that she will take a name that I love.

[sunshinefleur.livejournal.com]

it depends, really. most names I wouldn't use if someone close to me used it, such as a cousin. but I've already told my mother and grandmother that I will use my #1 girl's name no matter what, even if a cousin uses it first because I've had it picked out since I was 16. and besides, all of cousins live 1800 miles away :P

[penguiny7.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't use the same name as anyone in my family or who I'd talk to on a fairly regular basis, such as a coworker or friend. And even if it's a family member you never really see or talk to, I know from experience that it's still weird because there are other people in your family who will talk about both children.

My nephew's name is Elijah nn Eli, and my cousin named his son born a few months later Elias nn Eli. We live far away from my cousin and Eli2, but we have to call them their full names (which are really the same name) or Eli1 and Eli2. Not good, and I think it's annoying to find out that someone in your family who knew your kid's name named their kid basically the same thing anyway.

I think Alivia is kinda ridiculous, same as I do any other misspelled version of a name.

[thejoysofjess.livejournal.com]

I would not use the name of someone related to me that I see a lot. So Anna is out, because that's a first cousin that I see often. Jamie is out because she's a second cousin that I see often. Zachary would be fine, since I've never even met him. Friend's child would probably be out, but idc about a coworker's child. I won't work there forever.

Olivia is a beautiful name. Alivia is spelled wrong.

[th3-unicorn.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, the fact that everyone is doing it doesn't suddenly give the name a proper meaning/origin if it doesn't have one.
I understand your reasoning, and in fact some names have originated as legit versions that way, but I don't support it. I'm kind of a purist lol

[hwar.livejournal.com]

I feel like there are enough names out there that I would probably pick another name. However, if it was a name that was really connected to me (for example, my grandfather's name) and it was really important to me to honor that person, I might use it anyway regardless of who had used it. Names that have been used by family that we'd otherwise consider:

Lydia
Martin
Elijah
Elias
Charles/Charlie
Aaron
Tobias

[rockstargrrrlie.livejournal.com]

It would depend on how frequently I see the child, if it were a co-worker or a friend's child. If I liked the name Mckenna, I wouldn't use it because I see my friend's baby fairly frequently. If it were a relative's child (including my ocusin's kids, because I see them a lot), I wouldn't use it because I wouldn't want two kids in the family to have the same name.

I like Olivia a lot. Alivia not so much.

[duckduckcaboose.livejournal.com]

I have a huge, very extended family. My grandparents all came from stereotypically large immigrant families. I would try not to repeat a name, but when it comes down to it, if I have never met the person, I would probably still use the name, as in:
Me: I want to name my son Landon.
My mom: Oh, I think my cousin David's daughter Laurie named her son Landon.
I wouldn't care because I have met David once, don't even remember meeting him, and have never met Laurie.

But, if my second cousin once removed, Lisa, who I see regularly, named her kid Landon... well, I will just have to beat her to the punch.

As far as non-family, it really depends on the amount of contact I have with the person. A close friend's sister, who I have never actually met, has a daughter named Natalie. I wouldn't use it because I spend so much time with my friend and her parents that it would be weird for my kid to have the same name. A co-worker, I probably wouldn't care because I don't hang out with any of my co-workers.

I like Olivia, but not Alivia. Alivia looks like a cholesterol medication.

[morningapproach.livejournal.com]

My issue is that I love the name Madeline but our BFF's cousin named his daughter Madeline. We never see them except through our BFFs at their kids' parties, but I am worried that it would still be weird.

[grasshulaskirt.livejournal.com]

Depends how much I love the name.

I doubt I'd repeat something chosen within my nuclear family but it doesn't feel like an issue because I like uncommon names: Annouk, Patille etc...If a friend had it first I don't think I'd mind.

Wonder who came up with Alivia? I like Olive as a name but not Alivia.

[stormqueen280.livejournal.com]

Agree with you, depends on how often you see the relative/co-worker and their child. As for Alivia, it does look like medication, and it's a horrible way to butcher a name so nice like Olivia.

[stormqueen280.livejournal.com]

I don't think it will be that weird, especially if the kids have different nicknames.

[ee-eye.livejournal.com]

This. I don't understand why you would want to misspell it.

[snoglobel.livejournal.com]

I can't stand Olivia, and Alivia is even worse.

As for names - I would avoid names of my first cousins, and would shy away from (but not totally rule out) names of my dad's first cousins (he's got 21 of them, so it's hard to avoid all the names), while I don't even know names on mom's side so I wouldn't care. (See DuckDuckCaboose's example) I wouldn't care about co-worker's kids either - because I don't really hang out with them and don't plan on working here forever. If I was friends with a co-worker then it would be weird.

[duckduckcaboose.livejournal.com]

Well, to me, it would kind of depend on which child would be "THE Madeline" to your BFF. As in, BFF's boss says "Do you know any Madelines?" Does BFF say "Yes, my cousin's kid" or "Yes, my BFF's kid"?

Do you know what I mean? At least to me, it's important that my child leaves a unique impression on friends and family.

[a-tergo-lupi.livejournal.com]

I try not to repeat names. It's part of my whole name philosophy.

[roseofjuly.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't use a cousin's child's first name for my own because I'm close to my cousins and I see them all the time. That would be confusing for all the little cousins. My cousin is debating using a name that I mentioned I liked for a first name as her son's middle name (Ethan), so I would still use that for my son's first name if she used it. I wouldn't use it if she used it as a first name, though. If a co-worker named their child a name that I had already picked, I would still name my child that.

I like Olivia but not Alivia.

[roseofjuly.livejournal.com]

I've got 19 first cousins on my mom's side and another 8 on my dad's side, so I have a lot of names to avoid as well. I really like the names Josiah and Joshua, but I have two first cousins named those names. And I liked Elijah but one of my first cousin's children is named Elijah. I also liked Sophia and Nina but two of my first cousins' children are named those, too.

[lind-saay.livejournal.com]

I'd rule out names used by close family members (cousins, aunts, uncles, siblings are out; anything more distant than the children of my first cousins is fair game) or friends I see regularly. If the name is a family name, I think it's still okay to use, though. For example, if I had my heart set on naming my first daughter after my grandmother (which I do, sort of, though I'd probably use it as a middle name) and then my best friend went and named her daughter Margaret, I'd say "Screw politeness" and I'd still name my daughter that. I might use a different nickname, though.

Co-workers' children aren't off limits unless you're friends. Like, if it's just someone you work with but you don't socialize with outside of the break room, I don't see why it matters. I wouldn't "steal" a name, though, if you know what I mean. Like, if they said "Oh, hey, I'm pregnant and we're going to name our daughter Aurelia," or some other really uncommon name, and I'm also pregnant and I thought, "That's a really pretty name!" I wouldn't then go and use it before them or immediately after. I feel like it's kind of rude, you know?

That said, there are certain names that aren't "stealing." If I name my kid Michael and it also happens to be the name of one of my co-worker's kids and they say I stole it, I'll point to the SSA's list of the most popular names and say, "Are you serious?"

I don't know if that makes any sense.

[morningapproach.livejournal.com]

perfect sense :)

I am thinking that even cousin's kids are okay - I am not very close with any of them, and I don't really have a problem using one of them if I really loved it. I also will use the name Hannah for my daughter after my Oma, regardless if anyone else uses it, and also Sylvie/Sylvia after my Aunt.

[velkoria.livejournal.com]

as per usual... I agree with you completely! I makes me sigh internally when people basically come up with the whole 'it IS a name since everyone uses it...' nope, that doesn't make it a legitimate name.

Reminds me of reading this book once, baby name book while killing time in a book store, and came across the most ridiculous names... they had names like Shanika, combination of Shalynn and Monica... then you look up Shalynn and it gives you something like Lynn with the prefix Sha... and I... put the book down.

[harinakshi.livejournal.com]

This pretty much exactly. I pick names I've never heard on anyone else. I have two with one on the way and I've never met anyone with those names and if I had I wouldn't have even of considered it for my kids.

And Alivia annoys me. Olivia is much prettier.

[02895.livejournal.com]

i like olivia, and alivia.
but then again, my daughters middle name is Elyvia, which i dont think its "legit" but i think its pretty anyways.

[bluedano.livejournal.com]

I think the age gap (between your child and the child who already has the name) can make or break whether it's ok to reuse it. My mom's older sister had a teenager named Ariel when my youngest sister was born. My aunt didn't seem to have a problem with my sister being named Ariell. Now if they were the same age or only a year or two apart I think it would have been weird.

Edited to add: Family names are kind of exempt from this too, in my opinion. For instance my grandparents had 6 kids and 21 grandkids. Everybody loved my grandpa and his name has been used (or people are planning on using it) as a middle name across three generations.

[harinakshi.livejournal.com]

Maybe if it was your BFF's sister or something like that, but a friend's cousin is pretty removed from you, I don't think it would be weird.

[harinakshi.livejournal.com]

I always go back to the example of my in laws. My FIL is Alex and his daughter named her son Alex. They even live in the same city, heck, they LIVED with him for quite awhile.

I call the boy Alex and avoid using my FIL's name, normally I'll just say "john's dad" because if I say "Alex" it confuses who I'm talking to. It's just SO annoying. I wish she would have at least named him Alexander so there could be an actual difference in the names.

[morphinae.livejournal.com]

I would use it, so long as it's not my brother or sister. You can't "steal" a name, none of them are original. You aren't guaranteed to know someone for life, especially friends and coworkers. Your children, however, are pretty much static.

[morningapproach.livejournal.com]

Couldn't they do Sr/Jr? Or call him Al or something?

My brother's name is Alexander, my middle name is Alexandra. I am planning on naming a daughter Alexandra and have her go by Alex. *shugs* we'll just call him Uncle Alex, and our daughter Alexie, or Alex, or Lexi.

[penguiny7.livejournal.com]

Did she name her son after her father, though? Because that would make it okay, even though they should've thought of something different to call him to differentiate.

[arbus.livejournal.com]

i am pretty touchy about names. i wouldnt want to use a name anyone else in my life had used. its kind of understood that none of the cousins (and there are a lot of us) will use the same names on their kids. i might reconsider it if say, a co-worker i am not close to used our number one name or something, yes.

my new niece (on my husbands side) was just named viviana marie. marie is my middle name, as it was also my mothers middle name, and was my mothers mothers name. i always thought i would pass it down also. i am not entirely positive now. i am not devastated by it at all, since i plan to use colleen (my mothers first name) as our first daughters middle.

alivia is a travesty. i do like olivia, however.

[arbus.livejournal.com]

i dont think thats too close or weird at all. with a name like madeline, they probably wouldnt be the only two madelines at the party, you know?

its not a super unique name (it IS beautiful though, i love it) so its not strange at all, imo.

[brandious.livejournal.com]

I had always wanted to name my son- if I had a son- Brenden Chasen. But my SO's cousin named her son Chasen and one of my close friends named her child Brenden and that kind of killed any desire to use either name.
I am going to try and avoid using any name that I hear a lot- as in close friends, co-workers and relatives with kids of the same name.
My cousin is dating a girl with the same name as me and he brought her to Christmas dinner to my grandparents and spending the day being called my full name annoyed me. I don't want my kid to go through that at family functions.

As far as Alivia I don't like the way it looks or sounds. But then again I'm not a fan of Olivia either. Lol.

[frost.livejournal.com]

Friend's child: No.
Cousin's child: Maybe, but only because I don't really know any of them. Heck, I don't even know all of -their- names, let alone their children's.
Co-worker's child: Depends on the job- my co-worker might not always be my co-worker. If we're both planning on being employed at the same place for an extended period of time, then no; if the job is obviously a temporary one for one, or both, of you (and you'd cease to see them anymore), then I'd go for it.

Alivia: Should have just gone with Olivia.

[harinakshi.livejournal.com]

Yea, she did. I don't think the siblings have ever thought of it though cause they just call him "dad" and "alex" and my FIL calls him Big Al, as does his mom when they're together...but as the only real outside person I find it annoying as hell.

I had to ask my husband, too, because he was named after his grandfather and they were REALLY close and I was asking how they differentiated and he said they really didn't, they were both John. But he did have the nickname Johnny growing up, but an outside person who wouldn't be close enough to use nicknames, it would be John and John, and I was like, what if I came along and said "hey John"? And he said "well, we'd be confused"

I really prefer naming kids after dead relatives, heh.

[thellamaqueen.livejournal.com]

My husband has a cousin named Martin who has a son named Martin... they go by "Big Marty" and "Little Marty". it is so annoying. :\

[harinakshi.livejournal.com]

Sr/Jr is for kids named after their father.

[satunian.livejournal.com]

It really depends on how close I am to the individual person - you could hasve 2 cousins and be best friends with one and estranged from the other. Same thing with co-workers and classmates and heck, even facebook friends.

[satunian.livejournal.com]

PS - I only have 1 cousin, and he's 13 and I'm 26. My brother is gay and anti-child (for himself anyway) and my cousin is still far more into Nintendo DS than girls and probably will be for a while yet, so as far as family goes, I think I have complete and total freedom. Oh, and my friends and I have totally different tastes in names so i highly doubt there'd be any clashing there.

[satunian.livejournal.com]

Its soooooo true about Michael too... everyone and their mother is named Michael! at least for me, anyway, my brother and my boyfriend are both Michaels, my co-worker's boyfriend is also Michael... and just so many more than that that I know....