# Naming your kid after a fictional character **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 17, 2010, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049 "2010-07-17T18:21:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/838e76/32.png) [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/One_And_Only_Wanderers)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/121 "2010-07-21T11:54:57Z")
> [@N9IWP](#): > > FYI the character’s full name was Kaywinnit Lee Frye > > Brian we’re happy with Kayleigh! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/122 "2010-07-21T12:24:23Z")
The name Cassandra came up for **Attacklass**. I voted against it, on the grounds that everything she said I’d have to take seriously and fully investigate, no matter how improbable. “Dad, there are monsters in the toaster”, “Dad, **Attacklad** is really an alien” “Dad, the Greeks are invading in a big wooden horse”, ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/123 "2010-07-21T13:34:04Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > I hope she never finds out about this. Or alternatively, that she never actually listens to the lyrics of the song. She thinks it is pretty funny. Tho her musical tastes run more to classical than her old man stuck in the late 70s. BTW - the other 2 are Calvin and Melanie. It wasn’t until the 3d that we realized how similar the short forms of all 3 were. And the eldest’s middle name is after one of my favorite authors and book titles. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/124 "2010-07-21T13:41:01Z")
Michael J Fox and Tracey Pollen named their fourth child [Esme](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_j_fox#Personal_life) after J. D. Salinger’ short story "For Esme, with Love and Squalor. He explains that the chld was born on November 3, 2001, and they felt they were still living in the “love and squalor” of 9/11. ETA: In all the photos I’ve seen of her, Esme really got blessed in the [gene pool](http://images.huffingtonpost.com/gen/127976/MICHAEL-J-FOX.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![anu-la1979](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/125 "2010-07-21T13:46:54Z")
My sis and I both have Hindu mythological names, but mine is out of the Bhagavad Gita and my sister is named after a character in the Mahabharata. Although technically the Gita is in the middle of the Mahabharata, but mine is a word that pertains to a philosophical concept and my sister is actually named after a character (2, actually). It was sort of random though. I have a very old-fashioned/obscure name and my sister’s is a bit more modern. My parents let their sisters pick out her name because they had named a niece each. I’m sure had they picked out her name it would be as Gertrude-y as mine. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/126 "2010-07-21T13:57:02Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > She thinks it is pretty funny. Tho her musical tastes run more to classical than her old man stuck in the late 70s. > > BTW - the other 2 are Calvin and Melanie. It wasn’t until the 3d that we realized how similar the short forms of all 3 were. > > And the eldest’s middle name is after one of my favorite authors and book titles. I think calling them for dinner’ll be kinda fun: “ALCALMELLLLLL!” I’m just relieved you didn’t go with the first name I pictured… when you said you got her name from an Elvis Costello song my immediate reaction was: _They named a sweet little girl “ **White Nigger** ”?_ ! ---
**Author:** ![snoopygal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b487fb/32.png) [@snoopygal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snoopygal)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/127 "2010-07-21T14:29:07Z")
Why are so many parents such douches to their kids in this way? ---
**Author:** ![Hamadryad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6de8d8/32.png) [@Hamadryad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamadryad)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/128 "2010-07-21T15:12:24Z")
One of my kids’ middle names is, “Liberty.” DON’T JUDGE ME! ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/129 "2010-07-21T15:31:06Z")
> [@digs](#): > > _They named a sweet little girl “ **White Nigger** ”?_ > ! The prospect is almost enough to have me look into whether that operation can be reversed! 😛 [QUOTE=snoopygal] Why are so many parents such douches to their kids in this way? [/QUOTE] I’m curious. Which of the names listed do you consider “douche-y”? I think we’d probably agree as to some of the names, but others listed impress me as just fine. I can think of any number of people who more than carried off “unconventional” names like Rock, Mason, or Jade. I think it would be a pretty boring world if everyone were named Tom or Mary. Does it matter if I named my kid after a song or book, or just because I like that name. Of my 3 kids, the only name I sorta regret is my son’s middle, which has no real significance or anything, but is just a name we thought sounded okay with his first name. I (and he) wish he had the middle init T a reference which should be easy for some of you geeks out there! ---
**Author:** ![snoopygal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b487fb/32.png) [@snoopygal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snoopygal)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/130 "2010-07-21T15:49:06Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I’m curious. Which of the names listed do you consider “douche-y”? I think we’d probably agree as to some of the names, but others listed impress me as just fine. On the advice of counsel I decline to comment. And of course, it’s the act of naming them so that is the douche bit. Kids aren’t accessories. ---
**Author:** ![gang\_green](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f07891/32.png) [@gang\_green](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gang_green)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/131 "2010-07-21T16:11:27Z")
If Finn doesn’t quite do it for your wife, maybe Flynn would work better? Real name, but he did some great fictional guys in movies. And I can’t think of any obvious plays on the name to make for teasing material, but I’m not clever that way. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/132 "2010-07-21T16:20:23Z")
> [@gang\_green](#): > > And I can’t think of any obvious plays on the name to make for teasing material, but I’m not clever that way. Kids will always think of something. It’s not worth worrying about. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/133 "2010-07-21T16:43:46Z")
> [@snoopygal](#): > > And of course, it’s the act of naming them so that is the douche bit. Kids aren’t accessories. So I assume I am being whoosed here? Or would you prefer that parents simply refer to their kids as “Hey you!” ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/134 "2010-07-21T17:40:17Z")
Due to family tradition, we had a limited number of initial letters to work with for my 2nd daughter’s name. J & F were preferred, with A, M, or Y possible, but not as preferred. We had a heck of a time finding a name we could agree on (and in fact, she had no name at all for 3 days, since she came early and we hadn’t settled on one). For a while, the frontrunner was Forrest (yes, for a girl. and yes, at least partially after Mr. Gump). We considered spelling it Forest, too, (to go along with nature-y girl names like Fawn, Rain, River, Brooke, Savannah, etc…) Trouble is a lot of those names start to sound like stripper/porn star names. And even with the alternate spelling, we got scared off by the “Run, Forest, Run” jokes. My wife was really bummed that we couldn’t name her Eowyn, lacking E as an option, and kept trying to convince me to spell it Aowyn. Seems there are actually 3 or 4 Aowyns out there findable by google. I vetoed it, since although it was pretty, she’d have to deal with not only the people who’d scorn naming after a Tolkein character, but the people who’d scorn not spelling it right. In the end we settled on a name that’s a “real” name, though unfortunately linked to a rather depressing fictional character. We spelled it with a “ette” instead of just “et”, but we get far too many jokes about Romeo for my taste. No real regret, though. We just call her Julie anyway. On the tolkein front, I did have some friends in high school with Tolkein names. One was a girl named Beren, which is a little odd, but since I hadn’t read the Silmarillion when I met her, I didn’t realize it until later. When I finally did read it, I called her “One Hand” once. Once. the other two were siblings and had Eowyn and Aragorn as their second middle names, with a “normal” first name and first middle name. ( \_\_\_ \_\_\_ Eowyn \_\_\_, and \_\_\_ \_\_\_ Aragorn \_\_) When I found this out, I thought it was insanely cool, and cursed my parents for not doing the same. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/135 "2010-07-21T17:57:30Z")
> [@Shawn\_K\_1](#): > > They did it wrong, they’re supposed to name the dog Indiana. > > Personally if I was going to name a kid after a pop culture icon I’d either middle name it or be a bit sneaky. > > Wolverine from X-men: Go with Logan for a first name, or Wolverine for the middle, or Cacajou. > > Stone Cold Steven Austin: Austin for a first name. > > Dani California: Dani Cali or just Dani first or middle > > and so on. Or use a name from something semi-obscure that I like. This can be a good way to be creative/honor the characters in your life, and still not saddle the kid with something horrible and often mocked. My son is William Thomas. My deceased uncle is Will (from Willis, which has a different flavor since Different Strokes), and my husband is Thomas. And, he is also “William T” just not a Riker. And we’re not from Alaska 🙂 But it’s still awesome ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/136 "2010-07-21T18:08:20Z")
> [@snoopygal](#): > > Why are so many parents such douches to their kids in this way? Because they’re my kids and I own them! 😃 Seriously, what’s douchey about Gilgamesh? It’s totally awesome! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/137 "2010-07-21T18:27:16Z")
I keep thinking "Poor kids. Why should THEY have to live with a name YOU thought was ‘totally bitchin’ back in the day cuz there was this movie, see?’\* And I remembered the play/movie A THOUSAND CLOWNS, where a social worker comes and asks what the boy’s name is: [paraphrased] “Well, we felt he really should get to choose his own, but he’s a little young for that, so he’ll make a final decision when he’s eighteen. Up til now, he’s been trying out quite a few. He was Charlie, then Slash, then Rex – well, that ushered in a series of dog names: Skip, Tugger, Spot, even Rover. But he’s been Nick for… well, a while now, and I have a feeling he’s going to stick with that.” \*I recall meeting a freshman. Her first words were: “Hi, I’m Azura. And, yes, my parents were hippies.” ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/138 "2010-07-21T20:17:48Z")
> [@Labdad](#): > > I’ve never understood how “Bambi” ended up as a girl’s name, when Bambi was a _male_ deer! > > I don’t understand naming your kid after mythylogical figures like Cassandra (prophet of doom) or Pandora (opened the box that unleashed all the evils of the world)! > > Has anyone been dumb enough to name their kid Medusa? Or - Medea? “hey, Medea is a pretty sounding name, let’s look it up..uh, NO.” Remy is the ‘real’ first name of Thirteen, on House. I know a Thorin. Isn’t Bambi’s future mate’s name Felice? ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/139 "2010-07-21T20:34:24Z")
Why do some people feel the need to subject their children to such foolishness. ---
**Author:** ![jali](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecae2f/32.png) [@jali](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jali)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2010, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049/140 "2010-07-21T20:55:19Z")
It’s a matter of perspective. Most of our names would seem ridiculous to people naming children in the 18th century. Many of us wouldn’t name our children names that were popular in the 19th century. I no longer feel that “standard” or popular names are any better than odd names. Name your kid what feels good to you and pooh on the critics. My favorite names from novels: Melrose (from the Richard Jury series) Adelia (from the Mistress of Death series) Aliena (from The Pillars of the Earth) Samantha (from the Samantha Adams series) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naming-your-kid-after-a-fictional-character/547049.md?page=8)