# Names you loathe... and why! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 13, 2010, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991 "2010-04-13T21:59:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**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:** [April 14, 2010, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/81 "2010-04-14T16:08:14Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > I know a Lexus, a Lexi, an Alexis and an Alize with the little accent mark. But the day I meet 'Rolexus" is the day I throw my Ghetto Card in the garbage. I can’t stand it. Oh, man. Working in juvenile court, I’m on the cutting edge of Ghetto Names. Here’s a few we’ve collected over the years: Eunique Mercedez Starquasha Alpacino Hennessey Shemale (pronounced shuh-mah-lee) Trebreh (first person to figure out what his or her dad’s name is wins a prize!) Sillouette Ma’Lawn Cokeine (a middle name, not a first, but the first was pretty bad too) Fashion ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/82 "2010-04-14T16:08:41Z")
> [@davey77](#): > > In southeastern Ohio, the newspapers publish special inserts of the year’s newborn babies. It’s always fun to see the pictures and names given to the children. > > Except when you run across a baby girl named “Hydia.” WTF? I would assume the newspaper typoed “Lydia”. I think my dad knew a Lydia. ---
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/83 "2010-04-14T16:10:00Z")
> [@Chickie](#): > > A friend of mine is a preschool teacher and has an “Emerson” in her class- little girl. Blechh! I hate this name. Can you GET any more pretentious? You can if you spell it with a Y. A friend has a granddaughter named “Emersyn” My mom worked with a guy who became a grandad to a little girl named Calyx. She said he walked around for a few days muttering “what’s wrong with names from the Bible. Sarah is a nice name.”\* > [@lezlers](#): > > I can’t stand names that are spelled non-traditionally. Seriously, what is the point of that? To ensure your kids name will forever be spelled incorrectly? Are you trying to be _original_? You’re not, you’re just annoying. Examples: > > Caite > Kyleigh > Jennyfer > > Also, stripper names > > Candi > Destiny (try a Destinee spelling for extra “i hate you” points) > Bambi > Bunny > > And finally, pretentious names mentioned upthread: > > Kennedy > Regan > Kerrington > > _shudder_ Stir all of these together and you get half the little girls’ names from Toddlers & Tiaras: Jadyn Kynnedee Skylar Mykenzee Madysen Sparkal Oh how I wish I were making these up. And now you know my dirty little secret. I watch Toddlers & Tiaras. I don’t record it or clear my schedule for new episodes or anything, but when I can’t sleep…I watch an episode or two and realize that I am not, in fact, the worst mother in the world. \*So now I’m wondering what names that we consider common or traditional were considered “out there” when they originated. “The neighbors named their daughter ‘Elizabeth.’ That poor kid. Have you ever heard anything so ridiculous?” ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/84 "2010-04-14T16:10:09Z")
Drain Bead, ‘Starquasha’ is KILLING ME! ETA: The rest don’t even startle me. I’m numb. Edit again: Ok, Alpacino made me blink. Edit one mo time: ‘Shemale’ is pinging my bullshit meter ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/85 "2010-04-14T16:14:37Z")
> [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > there’s one thing to joke about it, and another thing to make it so there will someday be a grown man named Steeler. I mean, really, all that kid can do is either play for the Steelers, or be the grand marshal of the Pittsburgh Gay Pride parade. Or both. More than the individual Mc-s and the adens and aylas, what the names that bother me are the ones where the parents take a fairly standard name and just start adding syllables. They obviously think this makes the name prettier or more distinguished, but it doesn’t work. It makes it long, goofy, and harder to pronounce. Jessica is an okay name. Jessicayla is not. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/86 "2010-04-14T16:15:06Z")
While I generally like unusual or old-fashioned names, for some reason, Gaelic names for girls (eg: Bronwyn) set my teeth on edge. I also dislike “creatively” spelled names, especially those which incorporate punctuation marks. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/87 "2010-04-14T16:15:12Z")
Mercedez - common Spanish name (sometimes also spelled Mercedes), like the name Candida (female version of Candide) it may look weird to cultures who are unfamiliar with it. Starquasha - related to Bigfoot? Alpacino - Robdeniro? ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/88 "2010-04-14T16:26:27Z")
What do you guys think of ‘initial’ names? Like JT, CJ, BJ, DJ, RJ, AJ? Our sons name is Alex John but we’ve called him AJ since birth. I’ve always wondered what people think of the name or if it annoys certain people but I think everyone I know would be too polite to say anything. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/89 "2010-04-14T16:35:19Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > I would assume the newspaper typoed “Lydia”. I think my dad knew a Lydia. Don’t bet on it. I used to have to proofread those things, checking the set copy against the little forms the parents filled out. They made “N!xau” from _The Gods Must Be Crazy_ look like “James.” ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/90 "2010-04-14T16:36:33Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > What do you guys think of ‘initial’ names? Doesn’t bug me at all. I usually think of them more like family nicknames, and everyone I’ve known who had an initial name was the seond or tird with that name so it was a necessary distinction. For example Robert John Smith, his son Robert John Smith Jr. who went by “Bobby”, then Robert John Smith III who was called “RJ”. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/91 "2010-04-14T16:37:04Z")
How about Pierpont? ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/92 "2010-04-14T17:01:58Z")
Boy, I’m the old man out. I don’t mind any of these names (with the exception of "Shemale) ---
**Author:** ![campp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@campp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/campp)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/93 "2010-04-14T17:04:42Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > What do you guys think of ‘initial’ names? > > Like JT, CJ, BJ, DJ, RJ, AJ? > > Our sons name is Alex John but we’ve called him AJ since birth. > I’ve always wondered what people think of the name or if it annoys certain people but I think everyone I know would be too polite to say anything. Not a big fan. It sort of seems to me like their name is a “secret” that we’re not privy to. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/94 "2010-04-14T17:07:32Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > How about Pierpont? That’s “Finch”, F-I-N-C-H. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/95 "2010-04-14T17:07:34Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > Our sons name is Alex John but we’ve called him AJ since birth. > I’ve always wondered what people think of the name or if it annoys certain people but I think everyone I know would be too polite to say anything. I have no problem with nicknames whether it’s initials (“AJ”) or a diminutive version of the name (“Lenny”). At least the kid can legitimately fill out a job application calling himself Alex or Leonard if he wants. [QUOTE=Swalloed My Cellphone] Alpacino - Robdeniro? [/quote] I see where you’re coming from but my first thought was “Llama-Boy” ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/96 "2010-04-14T17:13:14Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > I see where you’re coming from but my first thought was “Llama-Boy” The baby girl’s version is Alpacanita. Great, that just made me think “Pack and eat who?”:smack: ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/97 "2010-04-14T17:24:59Z")
My grandmother named all five of her kids names that start with “D”. The Duggars (the family with 18 kids) have also done this. Don’t do that. It makes it hard for the next generation to keep the names of their aunts and uncles straight, and makes it damn near impossible for their eventual spouses to learn who everybody is. Mr. Neville can never remember which of my uncles is which. It wouldn’t be so bad if you did this with only two kids, especially if they were of opposite sexes, but find another initial for your third and subsequent kids. For the same reason, don’t choose rhyming names for all your kids. Don’t do that even if you only have two. Especially not if they’re twins. Don’t have a “theme” running through all your kids’ names. Don’t name all your daughters after flowers or all your kids after characters in a book or movie. That’s lame, and makes you look one-dimensional. You must at least occasionally think about something other than gardening or that one book or movie, don’t you? The ending sound in the first or middle name should not be the same as the initial sound of the last name. No "Martin Nelson"s. If you give your kid a name with a unique spelling, they _will_ get sick of spelling their name for everybody, and having people get it wrong all the time. I speak from experience, as my maiden name has a slightly unusual spelling. This played a role in my decision to change my name when I got married. > [@Hampshire](#): > > What do you guys think of ‘initial’ names? > > Like JT, CJ, BJ, DJ, RJ, AJ? > > Our sons name is Alex John but we’ve called him AJ since birth. > I’ve always wondered what people think of the name or if it annoys certain people but I think everyone I know would be too polite to say anything. Don’t call your kid “BJ”. The others are OK. Always check the initials of any prospective name, to make sure they don’t spell something embarrassing. Nobody should have ASS as initials, for example. I’d avoid any initials that spell a word, or any that match a well-known company that goes by initials. > [@Swallowed My Cellphone](#): > > Candida (female version of Candide) it may look weird to cultures who are unfamiliar with it. Don’t name your kid Candida. It has two strikes against it. It is the kind of yeast involved in yeast infections (be sure to do a quick Googling of any prospective name, to avoid this kind of thing), and she might get nicknamed “Candy”, which is one of the worst of the stripper names. > [@statsman1982](#): > > I love video gaming, but I can’t see naming my children after anyone in the industry, or, worse yet, any characters. Imagine, little Clouds, Tifas, Dukes, Gordons, or Master Chiefs running around. I like Zelda, though (and it has a history in Mr. Neville’s family). But it would probably be a better middle name than first name. I have a nephew named Gabe. I do not like that name, since I had a friend in high school who had a boyfriend by that name who I thought was a loser. I always hear the name in that moon-struck teenage-girl voice she always used when talking about him (which she did incessantly). Mr. Neville’s brother didn’t ask me before he named his kid. I don’t like the name Missy or Melissa, since there was a girl by that name who was mean to me, and I don’t like how “Missy” sounds. I’m not a fan of the “ss” sound in names. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/98 "2010-04-14T17:28:28Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > That’s “Finch”, F-I-N-C-H. - Rose\*mary… ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/99 "2010-04-14T17:47:56Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > Don’t name your kid Candida. It has two strikes against it. It is the kind of yeast involved in yeast infections (be sure to do a quick Googling of any prospective name, to avoid this kind of thing), and she might get nicknamed “Candy”, which is one of the worst of the stripper names. Candida and Mercedes are both perfectly fine names that have been around for hundreds of years. Candida means “white” (hence it’s use as a descriptor for a particular yeast) and Mercedes comes from “mercy”. People who get all giggly at names like that display their own lack of awareness rather than any idiocy on the part of the parents. I concede though that Candida leads to the pole-dancing name of Candy way too easily. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991/100 "2010-04-14T17:52:53Z")
I don’t like the spate of unisex names. No boy should have the following names: Tracy Leslie Adrian Ariel Jaime Ashley Kelly Courtney Frances And no girl should have the following names either: Jordan Taylor Bradley Bo Ryan Toni Billie Corey I detest overly pretentious and weird names. A little pretentious and weird is fine, like Phoenix, but a kid like Apple should have their name changed by a judge as soon as possible before they reach 18. And speaking of pretentiousness, the worst names are ones with Jr., the second, third, etc. in them. What kind of ego-maniac names their kids after themselves? Those parents are assholes. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/names-you-loathe-and-why/535991.md?page=6)