# Given names these days **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 10, 2017, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424 "2017-10-10T00:48:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/21 "2017-10-11T19:35:01Z")
> [@](#): > > Our local newspaper still prints births every week, as released by local hospitals. I read with amusement every week at what people name their babies. Just this week we have… Karsyn, Kinsley, Jayda, Oaklyn, Becca, Paxton, O’rion and the winner… Sereneetee. Ever notice the lists of “production babies” at the end of the credits on CGI movies? [Here are a handful](https://imgur.com/a/zqJse) from movies I happened to have on my HD at the moment. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/22 "2017-10-11T20:00:30Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > One factor: for centuries, Catholics were expected to give their children the names of saints. When I was a kid, I saw nuns giving classmates the third degree if their names didn’t immediately sound saintly. (“Was there a St. Jennifer???” “Sob! I don’t know, Sister!”) > > That was never a rule, just a tradition. Regardless, it FELT like a rule, which is why all the Irish boys in my class were John, James or Patrick while all the Italian boys were Peter, Paul, Vincent or Anthony. And all the girls were Mary, Elizabeth, Catherine, Anne, or some combination of those. > > Now, nobody cares about rules or traditions, so Catholic parents name their kids Sierra and Dakota and Skyler or \_\_\_\_ just like everyone else. I used to substitute teach (and my husband used to live) in Italian-American neighborhoods. Lots of Josephs! One Italian-American girl I knew was named Stacey, and wished it “meant something”, since she couldn’t find a source for the name. She was thrilled when I explained it came from the name “Anastasia”, which means “resurrection.” ---
**Author:** ![Orwell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/dfb087/32.png) [@Orwell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orwell)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/23 "2017-10-11T20:05:19Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Ever notice the lists of “production babies” at the end of the credits on CGI movies? [Here are a handful](https://imgur.com/a/zqJse) from movies I happened to have on my HD at the moment. I never heard that term “production babies” before. Interesting that one movie had two boys named Silas and two girls named Vivienne. There was a Silas in my school, and kids made fun of his name year after year. I’m seeing a lot of “Jax” and “Jaxson” now. I suppose from Sons of Anarchy. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/24 "2017-10-11T20:13:11Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > And then there is the situation where old-fashioned sounding names are coming back in trend. I personally know little boys named Elliot and Theodore. Evelyn and Charlotte are currently having a huge resurgence, as well. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/25 "2017-10-11T22:18:51Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > And then there is the situation where old-fashioned sounding names are coming back in trend. I personally know little boys named Elliot and Theodore. I have a three-and-a-half year old niece named Alice. She’s already growing up in a house full of cats. I can’t wait to start introducing her to Alice in Wonderland, and the great Cheshire Cat himself. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/26 "2017-10-11T22:24:53Z")
> [@Orwell](#): > > I never heard that term “production babies” before. Interesting that one movie had two boys named Silas and two girls named Vivienne. There was a Silas in my school, and kids made fun of his name year after year. I’m seeing a lot of “Jax” and “Jaxson” now. I suppose from Sons of Anarchy. Anecdotally, I, too, notice a lot of Jacksons (and spelling variations) among my 4 year old son’s social circle. … The book Freakonomics did a part on naming conventions. As I recall, the trend was that the names of the wealthier class tended to trickle down to the lower classes in subsequent generations. I think, too, that the African American examples of unusual names may be a reflection of a portion of the culture that originally sought to separate itself from slave legacies (of which “Christian” names are one relic). As for my kid…his first and middle names are from his mother’s family name. His first name is a last name that works as a first name (and is both his great-grandmother’s maiden name and his grandfather’s middle name). ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/27 "2017-10-11T22:39:51Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > One factor: for centuries, Catholics were expected to give their children the names of saints. When I was a kid, I saw nuns giving classmates the third degree if their names didn’t immediately sound saintly. (“Was there a St. Jennifer???” “Sob! I don’t know, Sister!”) > > That was never a rule, just a tradition. Regardless, it FELT like a rule, which is why all the Irish boys in my class were John, James or Patrick while all the Italian boys were Peter, Paul, Vincent or Anthony. And all the girls were Mary, Elizabeth, Catherine, Anne, or some combination of those. > > Now, nobody cares about rules or traditions, so Catholic parents name their kids Sierra and Dakota and Skyler or \_\_\_\_ just like everyone else. I lived down the street from an Oh, so very Catholic family, where all the kids went to Catholic school, and they had about 11 of them. All the girls (I think 7 of them) were Mary Something. Mary Theresa, Mary Catherine, Mary Bernadette, Mary Josephine &c (I don’t remember them all). Of course, they were Terrie, Cat, Dee and Jo, IRL. Cat and Dee both babysat for my brother and me a handful of times. My son’s name is John. His Hebrew name is Yochanan. We call him Johnny. He just turned 11, and I keep expecting him to come to us and ask us to just call him “John,” or even “Jack,” but not so far. He is very big for his age, so maybe he likes being a “Gentle Giant,” I don’t know. Or maybe it’s just because he likes _The Big Bang Theory_, so as far as he is concerned, he has a TV star name. Anyway, you would not believe how many people compliment us on his “classic” name. He is named after a very old childhood friend of mine, who sadly passed away at age 34, and _he_ was named after his grandfather, but we take all compliments as intended, and smile. ---
**Author:** ![papaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@papaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/papaw)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/28 "2017-10-12T02:15:37Z")
I really appreciate all the responses ! ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/29 "2017-10-12T02:59:02Z")
> [@Orwell](#): > > I never heard that term “production babies” before. Interesting that one movie had two boys named Silas and two girls named Vivienne. There was a Silas in my school, and kids made fun of his name year after year. I’m seeing a lot of “Jax” and “Jaxson” now. I suppose from Sons of Anarchy. The thing is, judging by the kids in my son’s school, every other child has an “unusual” name nowadays. So it’s not that big a deal. When every name is strange, then none are, and it’s no longer something to be made fun of. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/30 "2017-10-12T04:33:56Z")
> [@papaw](#): > > I guess I am asking the wrong question. > Without any disrespect to African-Americans, the names I am asking about are the ones that in the last 25 years or so have surfaced with odd to me spellings and unknown origins. > Some examples are- > Jedeveoon, Bonquisha,Tanisha, T’a nay, Deshaun, Tayshaun, Deron, Rau’shee, Raynell, Deontay, Taraje, Jozy, Kerron, Hyleas, Chaunte, Bershawn, Lashawn, Sanya, Trevell, Sheena, Ogonna, Dremiel , and many others. > “it is largely and profoundly the legacy of African-Americans,” writes Eliza Dinwiddie-Boyd in her baby-naming book “Proud Heritage.” Shalondra and Shaday, Jenneta and Jonelle, Michandra and Milika – in some parts of the country today, nearly a third of African-American girls are given a name belonging to no one else in the state (boys’ names tend to be somewhat more conservative). > Why is this so ? Forget about ever getting a job with a name like that, assuming you stay out of jail long enough to ever apply for one. (well, it’s true) ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/31 "2017-10-12T04:34:53Z")
My lil’wrekker’s real name is a season and our last name is an object, so she gets double takes on her name all the time, but they are really very common words. Just not names, generally speaking. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/32 "2017-10-12T05:00:08Z")
The only reason old fashiond names sound old fashioned is because they were popular a long time ago, and the people who have those names are elderly now. There’s nothing inherently old about them. And at the time that many of them were created, they were new-fangled and unusual. Apparently there was a time when most people were called either Mary, Elizabeth, Henry, or John. You have to start distinguishing yourself then, so you create Rosemary, Betty, Harry, and Jack, or Marybeth, Lizzie, Hank, or Johnny. Names ideally should reflect character, but they rarely do, even though a lot of times people seem to grow into them like destiny draws them that way. There was a kid I used to know whose name was Arthur Whittleston. Imagine what kind of person fits that name. Yes, that is exactly what he was like. I don’t have any kids, but I would be tempted to choose a name for them that would be unique enough that there wouldn’t be three others in their class at School, but not so unusual that they would need to spell it out every time. I have a niece named Briar who I think fits that rule very successfully. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/33 "2017-10-12T05:03:07Z")
What would Johns Hopkins think? Or Salmon P. Chase? Or Cotton Mather? Or even Mathew Brady? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/34 "2017-10-12T05:09:17Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > My lil’wrekker’s real name is a season and our last name is an object, so she gets double takes on her name all the time, but they are really very common words. Just not names, generally speaking. Her name is Spring Spring? Is she a panda? ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/35 "2017-10-12T05:22:08Z")
I have three great nieces (ages ten and under)- Ione, Fiona, and Matilda. Just more names I’d associate with my grandmother’s generation. The strangest names of people I have personally met have to include Maleria (she said it was pronounced Mallory, but it sure didn’t read that way on her cashier’s name tag), Euretha, and Chimera (pr. Sha-mare-uh). ---
**Author:** ![Grumbacher\_Red](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85e7bf/32.png) [@Grumbacher\_Red](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumbacher_Red)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/36 "2017-10-12T05:29:12Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > The only reason old fashiond names sound old fashioned is because they were popular a long time ago, and the people who have those names are elderly now. There’s nothing inherently old about them. And at the time that many of them were created, they were new-fangled and unusual. I hear ya, but some names just sound old. Who would look down at a newborn and say they want to call their kid Gladys? Or Ralph, Agnes or Stanley. I get it names go through fads and phases. I was born in the early 60s, and I knew tons of Lisas and Teresas. Nobody is naming girls Lisa too much right now, but it will swing back around. My sister was born in the early 70s when the movie Love Story was popular and her name is Jennifer Lynn. She complains that in her generation there are enough Jennifer Lynns and Jennifer Leighs to fill a dozen stadiums. Alot of people really liked Love Story. I taught at a Technical College for a number of years, and I encountered 3 girls’ names over and over. Ashley. Tiffany. Brittany. In every spelling incarnation imaginable. Equally popular among various races. I was guaranteed every class was going to have multiples of each. And despite my own Irish heritage, I do find this latest batch of plays on Gaelic names like Aislynn, and the over-used Kaitlyn and Kayley and Hayley to be just redundant and annoying. ---
**Author:** ![BobBitchin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ea924/32.png) [@BobBitchin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobBitchin)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/37 "2017-10-12T07:24:31Z")
Born in 1968…you know, 9 months after the summer of love:cool: Would you be surprised to know I went to school with a pair of sisters named… Rainbow and Sunshine.:smack: And the made up spelling of names like Kaitlin, Katelynn, Kaitlynn etc, I always thought it was like the metal bands in the 80’s:D Dragunnzmyyth Wyld Stallyns Savatge ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/38 "2017-10-12T10:28:38Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > My lil’wrekker’s real name is a season and our last name is an object, so she gets double takes on her name all the time, but they are really very common words. Just not names, generally speaking. Poor Rainyseason Hammer. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/39 "2017-10-12T11:49:11Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > The strangest names of people I have personally met have to include Maleria (she said it was pronounced Mallory, but it sure didn’t read that way on her cashier’s name tag), Euretha, and Chimera (pr. Sha-mare-uh). Aren’t those three of the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse? ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2017, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424/40 "2017-10-12T12:22:53Z")
When a co-worker told us his newborn’s name was Samuel, I had to suppress the urge to say “your wife gave birth to an 80 year old man?” . And it’s _Samuel_!!NOT Sam! Oh, please :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-these-days/798424.md?page=3)