Piggybacking on the last post...

[becomingun.livejournal.com]

My mum and I were discussing the last post's article about a name meaning "unwanted" and she reminded me of a story I wanted to get your thoughts on:

My friend growing up had a mom whose name was Hughnie. We're Afrikaans, but we'd never heard that name before, so one day my mom asked her about it and she said:

"My dad always wanted a son he could name after himself(Hugh), and my mom found out that I would be the last child she could have, so when I was a girl, my dad got really angry and named me Hughnie, which means 'not Hugh.' because I wasn't the boy he wanted."

So basically her dad named her "not Hugh" because she wasn't what he wanted and basically made sure that for her entire life, she'd know she wasn't wanted.

Have you ever heard of something like that? I could barely believe it, TBH. That's just kind of awful.

Comments

[juniorfan29.livejournal.com]

What about your other great aunt, the other sister? What was her name? Which one was the older daughter?

[quinnthevixen.livejournal.com]

That's terrible! I wonder why the mom let that fly.

[harinakshi.livejournal.com]

Never heard of that, seriously cannot fathom it, at all. Just...wow. And the story commented above me, too. WTF is wrong with some people? D:

[vanish.livejournal.com]

This and this! wth?? I can't wrap my head around that mindset.

[ikielove.livejournal.com]

I knew a lady named Michael. Her dad said he wanted a boy. Isn't Anne Rice named Howard because her dad wanted a boy?

[sweetest-asylum.livejournal.com]

i can't believe it didnt know that. i knew her real name wasnt anne
Howard Allen Frances O'Brien all kinds of not a girl name.

[sweetest-asylum.livejournal.com]

my neighbors growing up had 5 girls. they named the 5th girl paula cause they gave up on having a boy.
then they had a boy. so they have a paula and a paul.

[qtshorty1625.livejournal.com]

:(.

It makes me think of in Anne of Green Gables, when Anne says, "You don't want me? You don't want me because I'm not a boy?"