• Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOPM
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    8 months ago

    We gave our daughter a somewhat disused but normal and formerly not uncommon name which was the name of a plant. We just wanted a name that wasn’t religious but still normal enough that she wouldn’t get bullied for it (she got bullied anyway). We realized later that it actually made sense in terms of her ancestry because her mother has a plant name, her grandmother has a plant name and her great-grandmother had a plant name. One long lineage of plant names.

    • crazyCat@sh.itjust.works
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      8 months ago

      Dude I see you around here on the regular, so I’ll mention that this is ironic for me to read this, because we also named our daughter an old, obscure but “real” name that is also a plant (a flower, specifically).

      It’s from France, so I asked a French friend before using it if it was ok to use and not a weird name, and they said “sure it’s ok, but it’s like an old grandma’s name no one uses anymore.” And that’s when I knew it was the one!

      • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOPM
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        8 months ago

        Yep, that was basically our reasoning. Vintage name, so it’s memorable, but not a weird one and spelled normally.

        And absolutely not religious.

        • Zekas@lemmy.world
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          8 months ago

          Honestly being bullied for a weird name just feels like victim blaming. It’s just someone else’s shitty behaviour we’re expected to dance around? That was the one problem with the name.

          • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOPM
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            8 months ago

            I don’t disagree, but it’s also a parental responsibility, in my opinion, to help your child avoid bullying. It’s not possible to avoid entirely, but there are definitely ways to make it worse. And a weird name is one of them.

            • Spendrill@lemm.ee
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              8 months ago

              Give a kid a weird name and the bully will pick on them but set a bully on fire… no… wait, I think I got that wrong.

          • AA5B@lemmy.world
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            8 months ago

            It may be someone else’s problem, but as a parent , you should consider your child’s well being when naming them, and try to avoid obvious pitfalls

            • Zekas@lemmy.world
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              8 months ago

              I mean yes obviously, but still. Just angering me we have to fight human shittiness with something like this

    • pivot_root@lemmy.world
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      8 months ago

      a somewhat disused but normal and formerly not uncommon name which was the name of a plant

      Describing it like that makes it really tempting to try and guess the name. Out of respect for your and her privacy, I won’t, though.