# Let's help people choose unusual baby names **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 17, 2008, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665 "2008-05-17T17:05:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![SparrowHawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@SparrowHawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SparrowHawk)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/41 "2008-05-18T02:37:50Z")
Vabina (she gets called Verbena a lot) Friends of ours named their son Severn and their daughter Najeda (nah-ZHAY-duh). ---
**Author:** ![T.Slothrop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3e96dc/32.png) [@T.Slothrop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/T.Slothrop)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/42 "2008-05-18T02:49:23Z")
A friend of mine went through basic training with a person named N M Smith. There are no periods after the “N” and “M” because they weren’t abbreviations. On all of his Army paperwork, and there is a lot, he was forced to write: “N, only; M, only; Smith”. So of course for his entire Army career, he was known as Nonly Monly Smith. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/43 "2008-05-18T02:54:59Z")
[QUOTE=T. Slothrop] A friend of mine went through basic training with a person named N M Smith. There are no periods after the “N” and “M” because they weren’t abbreviations. On all of his Army paperwork, and there is a lot, he was forced to write: “N, only; M, only; Smith”. So of course for his entire Army career, he was known as Nonly Monly Smith. [/QUOTE] Johnny Cash was named J. R. Cash --no names, just initials. The Air Force refused to accept that so he became John. [/end of slight hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/44 "2008-05-18T02:55:37Z")
Aida (f) Tosca (f) Dallas (f) Atik (m) Neewah (f) Aida and Tosca’s father was a freak for opera, no surprise. I’ve no idea why Dallas’ family chose that name - they’ve never been closer than 5000 km to the city, ever. The last two are Ojibwa, and I have no idea how common or uncommon they are in that culture. ---
**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:** [May 18, 2008, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/45 "2008-05-18T03:34:34Z")
[QUOTE=AuntiePam] That happened to a friend’s daughter. Her middle name is Skeie, pronounced Shaya (it’s Norwegian) and her teacher insisted she was spelling it wrong. [/QUOTE] In the 1970s my family bought 2 cars from Skeie Pontiac-Saab in Ames, IA (a pretty Norskie-intensive area, BTW). But they just pronounced it Ski. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/46 "2008-05-18T03:41:32Z")
[QUOTE=Beware of Doug] In the 1970s my family bought 2 cars from Skeie Pontiac-Saab in Ames, IA (a pretty Norskie-intensive area, BTW). But they just pronounced it Ski. [/QUOTE] I’ll bet everybody pronounced it Ski. My friend’s family lives in the Ames area. **Beware of Doug** , I’ve known two people named Dallas – both guys. I kinda like the name for a girl, but maybe that’s because I like Stella Dallas. I met a woman yesterday whose sister is named Johna. I’m liking a lot of names in this thread. Good thing I’m not naming babies anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/47 "2008-05-18T03:46:11Z")
[QUOTE=Carm6773] Since I work in education, I have seen a lot of unusual names. Some winners this year are: Zakiyyah, Hyshyna, Oriyunna, Erijontae, Stevevontae, Dra’Quiesha, Thadneisha, Dequjuan (pronounced de-quan), Ever (who is a Jr!), Everyell (av-ry-ell), Natiuska, Antwanique, Undrasia, Uqulvia, Brykael, X’Lanna, and Dywone (di-juan). They are all in the 6th grade. [/QUOTE] These names baffle me. I can’t believe they are all in one school. I knew a couple of sisters growing up whose names were Kirma and Dodie. Awful, I tell ya. ---
**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:** [May 18, 2008, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/48 "2008-05-18T03:49:48Z")
**Auntie** : If the family is from the Ames area, they’re probably related! The dealership is long gone, though. There also used to be a Skei Coal Co. (no second e, but pronounced the same). BTW, Channel 5 in Ames had a meteorologist for many years named Dallas McGinnis. ---
**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:** [May 18, 2008, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/49 "2008-05-18T03:53:18Z")
[QUOTE=Girl From Mars] I taught a kid called Merlin - previous to that only the character out of the Arthur legends and my cat were called Merlin. [/QUOTE] Not at all an uncommon name in the US/Canada years ago. I know a Merlin about my age, a Scot raised in Vancouver. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/50 "2008-05-18T03:59:31Z")
I know a woman named Skia (no last name), but she renamed herself that as an adult. (Actually, my best friend in high school changed his name to Bear, too. It had been his nickname since toddlerhood, and he legally changed it just before he got his driver’s license.) ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/51 "2008-05-18T04:12:52Z")
Ooh, I forgot the combo names in the unique name category. Wynnajean Carolinda Jonbenet Irmalinda I had a friend whose aunt was named Vada (pronounced VAY-duh). She named her daughters L’Vada and D’Vada in honor of her aunt. (I may have the spelling wrong, but pronounced Luh-vayduh and Duh-vayduh). ---
**Author:** ![RachelChristine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7ab992/32.png) [@RachelChristine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RachelChristine)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/52 "2008-05-18T06:16:19Z")
I had a teacher named Drexena in high school. I went to school with girls named Kresta (NOT Krista) and Cilissa (rhymes with melissa). She said her mom got it from a poem. I have a (male) student named Naylon this year and had girls named Vashatai, Tenikka, and Zinya in the past. I once knew a girl with the first name of Y – and she actually went by it! My grandfather’s name was Erie, and lots of my family have it for middle names now. One of my great-aunts is named Delana Rose (after FDR). They call her Bay for some reason. (I also have an Aunt Teen, which is short for Ernestine and an Aunt Cudie which sounds like cootie. Her real name is Mamie Lou). We had a pastor named Huber (not Hubert) and another named Okla. Once, when subbing, there was a student on the roll named Jehovah. He was absent but I would have loved to meet him! This was the computer printed official thing from the office too, so you know it was real. Oh and I had a boy named Whiskey. He went by his middle name, Cole. And a student named Carpenter but he went by James. One of my best friends grew up with a next-door neighbor named Joey. She was a girl and that was her real first name. Years ago we knew a couple who named their daughter Lakie, after the husband’s grandmother. His mom was named Ogarita or Ogreeta or something like that, because they had considered using it and calling her Greta before they settled on Lakie Susannah. Two of my more distant cousins have a mom named Edelweiss. I’ve never met her or the daughters, just their dad. ---
**Author:** ![bathsheba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9e8a1a/32.png) [@bathsheba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bathsheba)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/53 "2008-05-18T07:13:43Z")
We have an influx of Zimbabweans including, Patience, Silence and Perseverance. The latest application came from Sitandwe. Which led, as it would, to: “Sitandwe in silence with patience and perseverance!” eta I can’t be the only one with a medical background who gets freaked out by names like “Amelia” and “Melena” ---
**Author:** ![Her\_Royal\_IMFness](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f07891/32.png) [@Her\_Royal\_IMFness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Her_Royal_IMFness)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/54 "2008-05-18T08:21:47Z")
Vaideki (pronounced “vi-deck-ee”) – a former co-worker of mine Cedrinai (pronounced “see-dre-nah”) – name encountered while working at a reservation center (reoccurring customer) Motack (pronounced as spelled) – name encountered while working at a reservation center (park ranger who frequently called in requesting random, stupid, senseless faxes!) These may not be the must “unusual”, but they definitely are ones that stick out in the mind. ---
**Author:** ![tesseract](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bb73d2/32.png) [@tesseract](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tesseract)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 8:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/55 "2008-05-18T08:48:13Z")
[QUOTE=Beware of Doug] Not at all an uncommon name in the US/Canada years ago. I know a Merlin about my age, a Scot raised in Vancouver. [/QUOTE] I’ve never known a US resident named this, but I know two, possibly three Canadian Merlins. I know two Johnas, too (US). But I think one of them spells it Jonna. ---
**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:** [May 18, 2008, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/56 "2008-05-18T11:49:46Z")
[QUOTE=bathsheba] eta I can’t be the only one with a medical background who gets freaked out by names like “Amelia” and “Melena” [/QUOTE] Not sure what they mean, but one name you see every so often is Alexia, which means “an inability to read.” ---
**Author:** ![Suse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@Suse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suse)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/57 "2008-05-18T12:24:48Z")
I have a sister Laurenda, two great-great uncles called Ogle and Major, and my son goes to school with a girl called Octaven. ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/58 "2008-05-18T13:49:40Z")
[QUOTE=Beware of Doug] Not sure what they mean, but one name you see every so often is Alexia, which means “an inability to read.” [/QUOTE] Or Candida, a yeast infection. Come to think of it, I also know a Jerpis - pronounced “Herpes”. ---
**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:** [May 18, 2008, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/59 "2008-05-18T14:31:41Z")
[QUOTE=Martha Medea] Or Candida, a yeast infection. [/QUOTE] There used to be a porn star called Candida Royale. :rolleyes: _gulp_ ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2008, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665/60 "2008-05-18T20:08:59Z")
Working in close conjunction with Children Services (our version of CPS) means that I get to see some great names. Porneisha Cajun Often Rage Alpacino (one of my personal favorites) Bonjovi (Born in 1986, could you tell? He’s in prison, last I heard) Anonymous (mom’s caseworker talked her out of naming her little sister Miscellaneous) Passion (first name) Cokeine (middle name) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-help-people-choose-unusual-baby-names/449665.md?page=4)