Some parents have an “interesting” desire to make sure their kid’s names stand out from all the rest. Perhaps a “unique” way of spelling a common name, or maybe just a blatant pop-culture reference that is topical at the moment. Regardless, there are enough poor teens out there who will be changing their name the moment they turn 18. But some grow to like it.

A teen and his siblings were all given “water” themed names that their parents later regretted. However, they all refused to change their names when their parents came to them with more conventional alternatives.

Rare or uncommon names are normally embarrassing for the kids who have them

Image credits: Queenmoonlite / envato (not the actual photo)

But one teen actually liked his name and refused to change it when is parents had second thoughts

Image credits: Queenmoonlite / envato (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Novel_Box3156

The list of names parents would choose from used to be a lot smaller

Bit by bit, naming conventions have started to fall apart as folks realize that, deep down, it does not matter. This even goes for the most conventional of conventional names. For example, in the England of the 1800s, Mary and John were the two most common names, at 22% for newborn males and 24% for females respectively.

Fast forward to 1994, now Emily and James are the most popular. However, it’s no longer a solid quarter of babies carrying this name, it’s 3% and 4% respectively. Popular, common names haven’t gone anywhere, but in a globalized, more multicultural world, there are just more options to pick from.

Remember, in the past, there would be a few “common” names for your particular national group and economic class, as well as a scattering of religious names. The Western world is chock-full of some version of “John” for example, as a classic biblical name. Other cultures have their own equivalents, for example, Muhammed.

Naming conventions have changed a lot over the last few decades

Image credits: Monstera Production / pexels (not the actual photo)

But in the 21st century, not only can new parents borrow from other groups, but they can also look to culture and media for inspiration. You might be surprised to learn that many names that we now think of as common or even old-fashioned were wholeheartedly invented by writers. Case in point, the name Pamela, was wholesale invented by Sir Philip Sidney for a work of fiction.

In general, fiction has a way of shaping naming conventions, for example, Jessica, despite being an Old Testament name, only started to be popular in England after Shakespeare included a character of the same name in “The Merchant of Venice.” There are countless other examples of this, including very misguided parents who named their offspring after Game of Thrones characters after seeing just the first few seasons.

The general fear among parents isn’t so much that the name will age poorly, but that the kids will hate and end up bullied for something that is absolutely not their fault. That being said, kids will also sometimes dislike completely normal names for one reason or another. However, this is a very different story, since OP, and his siblings, actually like their names.

OP’s parent’s regret is hard to understand

Image credits: Monstera Production / pexels (not the actual photo)

If anything, OP’s parents should congratulate themselves that their unique and themed-name gambit actually paid off. The kids don’t mind the names at all and have grown attached to them. After all, these three names OP lists are not bad at all, they are interesting, roll off the tongue, and can be a great icebreaker if someone wants to learn more.

It’s unclear why the parents, instead, picked three, common names that none of the kids like. While saying no to a parent can be construed as disrespectful, it is the children who have to live with their names, not the parents. This is absolutely not a hill to die on, so the parent’s resistance seems to be very misguided and strange.

Some readers wanted a bit more information

Most sided with OP and his siblings

Poll Question

Thanks! Check out the results:

Newsletter

Subscribe to Access
Exclusive Polls

Subscribe

By entering your email and clicking Subscribe, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Privacy Policy.

Thank you! You've successfully subscribed to newsletters!

Games

View all games

Anyone can write on Bored Panda. Start writing!

Follow Bored Panda on Google News!

Follow us on Flipboard.com/@boredpanda!