Baby Name Regrets?
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Baby Name Regrets?
| Sat, 03-31-2007 - 5:53pm |
Do you wish you'd named your baby something different? Or do you have name regrets at all? I have seven children and my only regret is with my oldest: Kyra. I wish we'd spelled it Keira because people tend to pronounce it like it rhymes with Tyra (like Tyra Banks) instead of it's actual pronunciation which rhymes with ear. Actually I'm lying, I also wish I'd had more of a backbone and given Matthew a more unique name. Matt's the only one that has a "common" name. Our kids are: Kyra, Matthew, Tanner, Rhiannon, Garrick, Aubrey, & Jenna. So, Matt is much less trendy than the other names. So what (if any) name regrets do you have?



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My only regret is with our oldest as well. Her name is Kaitlyn.
I'd loved the name since I was about EIGHT, my dh happened to love it as well (though we'd never discussed names prior to expecting) and we liked how it went with our Irish ln. I prefer the traditional Caitlin form (despite the fact that the only other one we've ever known -- even to this day -- was spelled Kaitlyn), but my dh insisted on the Americanized Kate-lyn pronunciation and talked me into the more common (in the US) Kaitlyn spelling because he liked that it would give her the same exact initials as mine (her mn was already settled on, and happened to be an A as well). So I caved. ;)
I new the popularity going in, even though we've been lucky enough not to run across any others as of yet, but it's the trendiness that bugs me. At least Caitlin retains some semblance of tradition and class, KWIM? Most who see her name don't know how long I've loved it, or that we used it DESPITE the trend (not because of it), and the K spelling only adds to that, at least in my mind.
So if I could go back I would have stood my ground and gone with the Caitlin spelling. And while I know I would have regretted not using a name I'd loved for so long (so I doubt I'd actually change it), I've often thought she would have pulled off a similar -- but not nearly-as-popular/trendy -- name like Catriona/Caitriona quite nicely!
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I wish I would have thought to research names more the first time. We ended up naming our son Hayden, which is a family name, and we knew the popularity level, I checked with the SSA. But I did not think to get on sites like this and ask. I wasn't familiar with the -ayden trend at all. Of course I would have found out, if I would have thought to ask. I'm not 100% sure I would have changed the name anyway, as it met all of the strict name requirements I had set, English, established (used in low levels from the time the SSA started collecting data), it had a family connection, and it also was an old college football coach, so I'm not sure. Most importantly, it was the one name we could agree on.
Our only other choice was William, so a more popular name, but a classic, so it avoids the trendiness of Hayden. Since the trendiness bothers me so much, we have started calling him Hayes, which also fit all the name requirements I had.
I guess if I would have known that people were using it for girls, I probably have used William instead.
Its hard to say, as I am attached to the little boy the name belongs to.
This time around, I'm starting the name search early, I have been hanging around here for months now, and we are not even TTC yet!
Although I can't imagine my oldest with another name. I hate that I hit the Aidan craze just as it went through the roof. I had done the SSA check & it wasn't even in the top 100 in 2000 (the last year they had online before he was born in 3/02). He's 5 years old now & everywhere we go there are toddlers named the same (or Caden/Jaden/Braden, etc.)
I also have the "unusual spelling guilt." I wanted Aidan, DH totally refused because both his bosses at the time were named Dan and he didn't want "dan" in the name. He liked Aiden which I don't like the "aide" part. So we compromised and named him Ayden. I of course can't imagine him being named anything else, and still love the name, but it's less special when it's so insanely trendy.
- Beth
edit: There's also a small town not too far from me named Ayden (that spelling) so I could say it's really a "place name" LOL.
Edited 4/2/2007 1:20 pm ET by elvrp
Beth - mommy to Ayden 03/23/02, Owen 06/23/04, & Eliz
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My oldest daughter is about 5 years or so before the start of the rise in Zoes. It was a name I loved since I saw New York Stories I am glad I used it(I used it when it was still gutzy:) I just wish no one else would use it:) I also wish our Greek Last name sounded more Greek so people would connect it instead of assuming we were just hopping on the trend wagon.
Aw, I like Hayden.
Yes, the 'ayden' trend is a bit much, but Hayden & Aidan are the exceptions imo. Aidan is a classic Irish name that has been around for hundreds of years. Hayden is a family name for you; it's an actual name. It wasn't invented because of the 'ayden' trend. Brayden, Cayden, Rayden, Zayden, etc. are ones that are regretable. Those are made-up. Hayden is a classic, & there's no reason to regret it. :)
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Actually, Braden and Caden are also older Irish names, despite the current Aidan variant trendiness, and Raiden was the Japanese god of thunder (though I agree that most parents currently latching onto it haven't a drop of Japanese heritage LOL). The random misspellings, of course, are both made-up and regretable. ;)
Just an interesting sidenote, especially for those unfamiliar with the whole trend.
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Thanks for commenting on my Hayden. I agree that it should avoid the trendiness comments, but most just group it and it suffers from "guilt of asociation." Its hard to not regret though. I do feel that in a few years when the trend dies down, it is one of the only in the category that will stand on its own, it just needs a little seperation.
I'm with you Kelli about wishing people knew that you used the name despite the trends, not because of them. I also love how she goes by Kate sometimes. Kate is the quintessential girls name, feminine, sweet, yet serious, and all around good girl name. Its timeless, and lovely for any age. One of my favorites.
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