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How do you feel about the meanings of names? Could you not care less? Obsessed with it (as I am)? Or is it just a nice bonus if a name you like has a cool meaning?

Would you name your child Claude or Claudia knowing what it means or would you think twice?

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I don't care about meanings at all. Bonus points if it has a great meaning, but not necessary.

I like Claudia, so I'd use it.

I agree

My dad's middle name was Clyde. I had considered Claudia but vetoed it because of the meaning. It was completely lame of me (lol). But, that's a good illustration. I won't look for names based on meaning, but I will veto.

I actually posted about this maybe a month or two ago. I was surprised that overwhelmingly most people don't care about the meaning. For me, I used to like names based on the meaning. Now I pick names for sound/practicality first, but the meaning still carries weight. I would not name my child Claudia or Alexia.

What do Claudia and Alexia mean?

Claudia means "crippled" and Alexia is a form of dyslexia.

Ahh, I see. I think Alexia sounds made up. My friend named her baby that a few years ago and it was the first time I'd ever heard the name. I was like HUH?!? Alexis? Noooo...Alexia. :/

Meaning of names are very important for me, I will veto a name based on meaning but I will no pick a name SOLELY based on meaning.

A name doesn't have to have a profound meaning for me to like it, but it can't mean anything undesirable either.

Meaning is the first thing I look for.

Meaning isn't a deal breaker for me(I'm the one who wants two girls called Desdemona and Ophelia) but I do take it into account, for sure.

And I wouldn't use Claudia because I just hate the name.

Edited 2010-01-19 04:31 (UTC)

The meaning of a name is what makes it click as the right name for me. My first means golden one, and she is in every way. My second is the same way, it just felt right once it all came together. Meaning is an important part in that. I think I wouldn't care about meaning if there were other significant factors, though.

Meanings are kind of important to me, since my future child(ren) will have kanji for their names, and stupid kanji is sad. So I don't care about what the name means, but rather, how my husband and I will choose characters for the name. Meanings are more important for him: he wants names that are (or we can make, with kanji) related to Christianity.

While I wouldn't name my kid something that meant "asswipe" or "devil's testicle", my liking how the name sounds is my #1 priority.

Hah.

It doesn't bother me too much about meaning, it's not like many people would care (or realise!) if my child was named the equivilant of "crippled".

However, if a name has a cool meaning then it's a bonus! One of the first reasons I fell in love with Asher so long ago was that it meant "happy".

I could care less about meaning. I have no idea what any of the meanings of my three children's names are even.

Yes I'd name my kid Claudia if I liked it, regardless of it's meaning.

It's only a bonus for me; I'm much more interested in how a name sounds.

I dislike both Claude and Claudia, so they'd be out anyway.
Cameron doesn't have a pleasant meaning ("crooked nose"), but I like the way it sounds well enough and (years ago) have even considered using it.

*had

Meaning is not the most important criteria for me but if a name has a particularly negative meaning (like Claudia!) I would not use it. However, I don't need a name to have an interesting meaning in order to like it.

I would only name my kid a name with a meaning that I liked.

I too am obsessed w/ the meaning of names and I try to have the decisions I make based on that balanced with associations I make with names as well as how much I like the sound or look of a name. Now I want to know what Claude/Claudia means. I have 3 Claudes in my family.

I'm very interested in the meaning, but it won't put me off from a name I like. It's just a bonus if it happens to have an awesome and/or fitting meaning.

I'll use Cecilia as my example, since I don't like Claude/Claudia. The meaning would be kinda funny if the kid ended up having eyesight as poor as mine, but I love the name, and I'd still consider using it.

Cecilia means that? That's one of my middle names, and it was used because she's the saint of music... but I DO have very poor eyesight, haha!

Yep, it means "blind one." But I think it's beautiful anyway!

If I find a name I like and it means something that I don't want to represent, I wouldn't use it.

Meaning isn't that big of a deal to me. I love looking up the meanings of names - and a nice meaning is a definite plus! - but unless the name meant 'piece of crap' or something in another language, then I would probably use it regardless of meaning.

Meaning is of some importance to me. That is, if a name has a very nice meaning I like it even more, and if it has an awful meaning I like it a little less. Then again, if a name I LOVE has a bad meaning it won't stop me from using it.

As long as the meaning isn't something completely horrible then I don't really mind. If I search for a name by meaning and like a name I see then I will probably choose that over one I just like the name but not the meaning, iykwim, but it's not a major factor.

Two of my favourite names for both name and meaning are Faye (meaning - Fairy) and Rhiannon (meaning - Nymph) but they were both vetoed by DH :(

I don't care at all. I have no idea what the vast majority of my favourite names mean.

I really couldn't care less. Most people don't know the meanings of names, and I've never heard it brought up outside of the internet.

If the meaning is obscure enough that most people wouldn't recognize it, then I probably won't have a problem using it. If it's something with a blatantly negative association that everyone would immediately pick up on, I'll avoid it.

I think Claude's kind of cool as a middle name--interesting to learn that it means "crippled," I had no idea!

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