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Zoe Car Angers Parents
Growing up, I thought that people who named their daughters Mercedes were doing so in a nod to the German luxury car. In reality, Mercedes is Spanish for ‘mercy’ and was a common girl’s name well before 1902 when Emil Jellinek named his car company after his 13-year-old daughter, Mercedes. But by this point, it doesn’t matter which came first. The name Mercedes will forever be associated with the automobile.
Naming a car after a girl worked out so well for Mercedes that now French car maker Renault is doing the same thing. Their latest car, a two-door electric model, will be called The Zoé. Renault thinks the name “evokes values of femininity, of youth, a playful spirit and vivacity.” Parents of girls named Zoé think it stinks.
The name Zoé comes in at number 17 on the list of popular girls’ names in France. That’s a whole lot of girls with names that will soon be synonymous with a cute little economy car. But many of those Zoé parents are fighting back. They are complaining to Renault, launching petitions and generally making a lot of noise trying to convince the car maker to choose another name.
As someone with a name that popular is among dog owners, I understand their consternation. But Renault says they have no plans to re-think their decision and these parents are just going to have to get over it. Perhaps a brand new Zoé for each of them might smooth things over a bit?
Image: dailymail.co.uk
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1 Comment
Amanda commented on Nov 27 09 at 9:09 pmI’m sure if a parent decided to name their child, dog, or even fish Zoe you wouldn’t have other parents of a child named Zoe protesting or demanding that they change the name or to choose another one. It’s not like any parent or anyone owns the name Zoe… those parents should find something else to do with their apparent abundance of free time.
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