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Strollerderby
Really? Jazzmyne? No No No No
When it comes to baby naming, most people are either traditionalists, trendoids, or just totally whacked out “kreativz” – those people who name their kid Frodo or spell Xavier with a Z just to be different. Being friendly with a kreative can be a challenge when they are choosing baby names, because there’s lots of polite smiling and nodding when they share their latest whackjob name idea.
A reader wrote in to the Name Lady on Parent Dish (which should totally be my job, by the way) asking if there’s a tactful way to suggest her friend not use the creative spelling she was planning on for her baby. It’s likely to be misspelled, and also is associated with a celeb with a bad reputation (I’m thinking Britney).
Of course, the Name Lady said to do the only thing you can unless you’re enormous jerk – you can’t come right out and say “your name choice is white trash and unseemly.” You can, however, mention that someone you know on a message board has that name and they hate it being misspelled all the time, or play up the celebrity connection. I don’t agree with her suggestion to say “I did an image search on Jazzmyne and it came up with some inappropriate images” because I know my reaction would be “why in heaven’s name was she doing an image search on my kid’s name?”
Have you ever weighed in on someone else’s name choice? If so, how did they react? Did you change their mind?
Photo: Christiansphotography.com
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5 Comments
zaksmom commented on Jul 20 09 at 1:47 pmWhy not just ask the reason for the non-standard spelling? Some folk may be surprised- what seems to be a kreatyv spelling may be an entirely different name, a family spelling, or something other than mere fancy. My son’s name is Zakaria, and I didn’t pull that out of my nose, despite assumptions to the contrary.
Marj commented on Jul 20 09 at 2:31 pmI usually just keep my opinion to myself if I don’t like it. They usually hate the traditional names I like, and I appreciate them keeping their opinions to themselves in that case. Then I cheer myself up by reading this website, which I do not mention I saw their kids name on.
http://www.notwithoutmyhandbag.com/babynames/
Mistress_Scorpio commented on Jul 20 09 at 5:22 pmThis reminds me of the time I put my foot in my mouth… big time. A friend of mine was going to have a baby girl and when I asked if they settled on a name, she said “Esther” and her husband rolled his eyes. For whatever reason, I interpreted that as they were joking and I said, “Oh you mean like ugly Aunt Esther from “Sanford and Son???” and she looked right at me and gave me the death stare. I felt HORRIBLE. Therefore, if somebody wants to give their kid a name with a non-traditional spelling, a symbol or a series of clicks or hoots, I keep my yap shut.
Stephanie commented on Jul 21 09 at 2:01 amCan’t help but feel like that it’s not really anyone else’s business what parents name their children. As a teacher in the Bay Area, I’ve seen all kinds of names, variations and spellings, and it is challenging, but it’s not my business.
Becks commented on Mar 05 10 at 9:41 pmI don’t usually say anything either. Just cringe inwardly and change the topic. It was tough to bite my tongue the other day when I met a little Gaydon, though, especially since his mom was talking to me about how she had such a hard time with bullying in school and so they were thinking about homeschooling. Not a hint of irony either. *headdesk* *headdesk* *headdesk*
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