# Given Names -- What were they thinking? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 14, 2012, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759 "2012-04-14T14:32:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![eclectic\_wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ac91a4/32.png) [@eclectic\_wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eclectic_wench)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/141 "2012-04-15T23:20:05Z")
I went to primary school in Africa, and a lot of the local kids had names that sound very weird from a European perspective. I didn’t even think of them earlier in this thread, because in context they didn’t seem odd, but ‘Princess’ upthread reminded me. There were two sisters called Queen and Beauty. Fortunately they were both stunningly, regally beautiful, but if they’d turned out to be full-on ugly, the names probably wouldn’t have worked in any context. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/142 "2012-04-15T23:38:36Z")
> [@Terra1041](#): > > I used to live across the hall from a family with a little girl named Miracle. I also knew someone with the first name Evans (not Evan, but Evans). I saw a Lewaynia and a female Dominek back when I lived in Detroit, amidst many other similar names. Was the Miracle a name perhaps that didn’t translate or travelled well? _Milagros_ is the Spanish form of Miracle, and it is a commonly uncommon name, either as a first or as a middle name. That is both of my aunts’ second name, and one of my teacher’s first name. ---
**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:** [April 16, 2012, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/143 "2012-04-16T00:10:41Z")
> [@eclectic\_wench](#): > > There were two sisters called Queen and Beauty. Queenie was quite a common name amongst the Maori of New Zealand in the early to mid 20th C. and probably a few other places as well. ---
**Author:** ![SticksAndString](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3bc359/32.png) [@SticksAndString](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SticksAndString)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/144 "2012-04-16T00:11:06Z")
Several years ago, there was a family who moved into the rental down the street with four kids–two boys, two girls. The girls had fairly normal names as I recall (Faith and Hope, I think) but I’ll NEVER as long as I live forget the two boys: Xaiddeus (pronounced Zay-dee-us) and Legend. With Xaiddeus, the mom said she and her hubby couldn’t pick between Xavier and Thaddeus (both fine on their own, if ya ask me…I LIKE old fashioned names) so they combined the two. I can’t remember if she told me why they picked Legend for the other boy’s name. I just can’t help but remember it because it sounds like a porn star name. I thought when they moved out, I’d never encounter them again, but I was working the book fair this past fall at Slim’s school and some kid handed me a ‘wish list’ sheet that had been dropped by somebody. Damn if it wasn’t Legend (LastName). ---
**Author:** ![Kiwi\_Fruit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kiwi_fruit/32/12_2.png) [@Kiwi\_Fruit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiwi_Fruit)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/145 "2012-04-16T04:05:16Z")
> [@Kemanchi](#): > > I had a teacher in high school who was called Dusty, and yup, his last name was Rhodes too. Go figure. I think this was quite common in mid 20th c. Dusty Roads (Rhodes), Dusty Miller, Chalky White; all very English nicknames. My father was known as Sandy, from his middle name of Alexander. Earlier in life, his mother called him Alec, but never smart alec. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/146 "2012-04-16T04:08:26Z")
> [@Nature\_s\_Call](#): > > Reminds me of [Myq Kaplan](http://myqkaplan.com/) (pronounced Mike Kaplan - I know… a strange way to spell Kaplan) I knew a Qwrys (pron. Chris) in college. ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Tonya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/4491bb/32.png) [@Queen\_Tonya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Tonya)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/147 "2012-04-16T05:06:03Z")
I once worked with a lady who must have been a flower child, she named her daughter Misty Dawn. Two decent enough names on their own, but together they sounded very hippiesh to me. I had a horrible time not laughing when I met a coworker named Ewam Buford. After he’d left the room I commented to another guy that he must be mad at his parents for hanging that on him, only to be informed that Ewam had proudly named his son EB the 2nd. Knew some twins at my sons school, the girl was Tracey and the boy was Stacey. Poor boy. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/148 "2012-04-16T05:10:48Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > My cousin has a patient called Shakira, I suppose it’s not that out there but it just seems a bit stupid to me. There are also a couple of Pocahontas’ in Dublin. I wonder if their middle names are Dorothy. Shakira is a perfectly normal Arabic name. You may as well mock Aisha or Fatima. I think, though I don’t know much about it, that names that sound like Lemongello and Orangello are far older than the Jell-O brand. ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/149 "2012-04-16T06:27:37Z")
I’ve shared this one before as well. A friend of mine’s son is a navy photographer. My friend was proudly showing me a DoD magazine in which his son’s photos were featured. One of the subjects was a young navy lass, the caption stated her name "JinxQueen Jennifer Rodriquez (not her real last name but similar, but real first and middle names…wow). ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/150 "2012-04-16T06:37:44Z")
I was reading the summer movie preview in Entertainment Weekly and I came across this name of a six-year old girl starring in an upcoming film: Quvenzhané I don’t even have a clue how to \*begin \*pronouncing that one! It really looks like someone just pounded the keyboard with their fist to get a random assortment of letters. ---
**Author:** ![SticksAndString](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3bc359/32.png) [@SticksAndString](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SticksAndString)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/151 "2012-04-16T10:40:51Z")
> [@Queen\_Tonya](#): > > I once worked with a lady who must have been a flower child, she named her daughter Misty Dawn. Two decent enough names on their own, but together they sounded very hippiesh to me. There are very few things I can thank my “father” for, but saving me from a hippy name is one of them. My mother seriously wanted to name me Winddust Halcyon. My father took one look at that on the card on my little bassinette at the hospital and threw a fit. Demanded the nurse change it. ---
**Author:** ![Corcaigh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Corcaigh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corcaigh)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/152 "2012-04-16T11:37:10Z")
> [@pabstist](#): > > Also a Siobhan- pronounced shevon. Or Shiv-aun, sha-von, or any number of variations on the theme. Being Irish there are a number of names in my extended family that confound non Irish persons Siobhán Saorise Caomihe (I’m not 100% sure of the spelling there!) Roisin The boys tend to be outrageous names like John or Patrick… Oh I forgot there was a woman I knew whom I thought was called Susan, turned out her name was Soozan. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/153 "2012-04-16T12:40:40Z")
I know a little boy named Espn (pronounced ESS-pin). Once, while looking for a friend’s birth announcement on a hospital website, I came across a baby girl named Dasani Evian. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/154 "2012-04-16T13:05:45Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > … which we refered to as Melita (sounds like an Italian brand of coffeemakers). \ Melitta is a German brand. \ ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/155 "2012-04-16T13:06:51Z")
> [@Corcaigh](#): > > Oh I forgot there was a woman I knew whom I thought was called Susan, turned out her name was Soozan. I believe the most unusual version of that name I’ve seen is Siouxan. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/156 "2012-04-16T13:07:32Z")
My apologies to the Germans, then. It’s a german brand of _cafeteras italianas_… (as opposed to _cafeteras americanas_). ---
**Author:** ![Chopper9760](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Chopper9760](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chopper9760)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/157 "2012-04-16T15:44:33Z")
Ugh, my cousin named her horrid little brat Aiden. I don’t particularly care for the name anyway but it’s her pronunciation that pushes it into “what were they thinking territory.” They say it as though it’s two words, it’s beyond two syllables, it’s always a nasally, A Den! A Den, get off the couch, A Den, stop that, A Den please put on your shoes and quit acting like the spawn of Satan, oh please A Den please…A DEN, stop choking the cats! ---
**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:** [April 16, 2012, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/158 "2012-04-16T17:17:13Z")
> [@Chopper9760](#): > > Ugh, my cousin named her horrid little brat Aiden. I don’t particularly care for the name anyway but it’s her pronunciation that pushes it into “what were they thinking territory.” > > They say it as though it’s two words, it’s beyond two syllables, it’s always a nasally, A Den! A Den, get off the couch, A Den, stop that, A Den please put on your shoes and quit acting like the spawn of Satan, oh please A Den please…A DEN, stop choking the cats! Are you sure his name is Aiden? Maybe the name actually is “A Den of Iniquity”, and she’s just using the nickname. ---
**Author:** ![Dublin11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Dublin11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dublin11)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/159 "2012-04-16T17:38:37Z")
There are a pair of brothers who play or played football in England and their surname is Neville. Their father - whose surname they bear, just in case anyone thinks it might be otherwise - has the given name Neville I know that this is often mentioned in threads such as these, but whoever named a baby the same name twice like that is badly in need of a severe smack round the chops. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759/160 "2012-04-16T17:49:09Z")
Male first names from my slush files: HORACTIO SYMWONE AUNTRAY LEVAVIUM TRASHAWN ELHIFFEE DARKIES (a man of african-american ancestry) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-what-were-they-thinking/618759.md?page=9)