A BIT TOO UNIQUE

After ranting on about the injustices of having an ordinary name in the last blog, it’s to be remembered there are advantages as well. You shouldn’t have to spell your name for anyone (although you can always meet someone who can’t spell!). Although some common names can be spelt in a variety of ways which doesn’t make life any easier.

If you have a unique name, you often end up with a unique spelling as well. While your parents may have thought it was a great idea honouring you with such a special title, you will probably spend the rest of your life explaining to people how it is spelt. I put names like ‘Litte’, ‘Ryilee’ and ‘Gianna’ all in this category.

As parents, we usually come with pre-selected family names which may or may not be easy to explain (do you really want to be called a Pratt?) but you are actively choosing your child’s first name which they will carry for life, unless they decide to change it.

I had a quick look at what unusual names you could find for girls and came across suggestions that ‘will never be common in the playground’. One of those was ‘Binky’. How could you possibly give that name to someone who is intended to grow into a fully functioning adult? It would be bad enough in the playground to be labelled with the common nickname for a baby pacifier, but how do you explain it on a job interview?

Maybe it’s a ploy by parents to toughen up their little darling – like the old song by Johnny Cash called ‘A Boy Named Sue?’ If you’ve never heard it, you can find it at

Perhaps the theory is that if you give them enough to rebel against, they will get ahead in life (or pitied for having such uncaring parents.)

Naming is a huge responsibility for new parents. Even using the most popular names of the time can become dated as years go by and come from a different generation. ‘Deborah’ was once popular, but is on the wane. Pity my friend, Karen, whose name went extinct last year on birth registrations!

I may have to consider a name change – the ‘d’ on my laptop is becoming very dodgy and I may end up as Eborah instead!

I promise to a change of topic next time.