It’s that special time of year when I push my spell-checker to its absolute limit! That’s right; baby names are here, and a couple of weeks ahead of schedule, too! This is a big day for me, because it marks TEN YEARS of blogging awful baby names from southeast Idaho. (For more background, and the complete anthology, click here.)
Okay, let’s rip off this band-aid!
The Typical Drivel. Commonplace, yes, expected, yes, but don’t let that distract you from an important fact: They are still bad.
Oaklie Raelyn
Koltyn
Chloie
Zayla
Ridger
Finnley
Jayci
Brynnlee (2)
Kyson
Kylee
Kylynn
Madilyn
Addilyn
Hadlee
Adley
Braxton
Jaxten
Paxton :(
On a map
Boston
Bostyn
Brooklyn (2)
Burkely (and spelled wrong, to boot)
Oaklynn
Hudson
Mckinlee
On a boat
Saylor
Probably not too late to fix your spelling error on the birth certificate
Emmitt
…Explain yourselves.
McGyver (and his last name also begins with Mc)
And everyone’s favorite category –
WTF??
Kaceton
Brezlyn
Kezlyn
Bodree
EmmaRee
Hunter Raige
DakotaLynn Brandy
Coltton
Murphee
Raiden Bayne Ryker
McKynzlee
Raegan LaNeigh (“horse” in French)
The Absolute Worst Name This Year
Congrats, Jentry’s parents; you narrowly avoided this distinction, because along came JENTREIGH.
Some more categories, because why not?
Most intersectional name
McKynzlee. This name has everything: Multiple capitalizations. High scrabble value. “Mc” smeared onto the front end of an already made-up, then misspelled, name.
And three cheers for my favorite names this year! Not like there were a ton to choose from, but still. Well done, These Parents.
Vivian Lou
Nora Jane
Henry Lee
Connor John
Notes:
- For the first year ever, there is no Mix-N-Match category! Historically this is one of the most packed groupings, but this time there were so few names that fit the description that I just combined them with the Drivel category. Perhaps winds are shifting?? (But if those winds are blowing toward the WTF category, then no thanks.)
- Were there fewer truly awful names given this year, or are fewer parents choosing to advertise their bad taste in the newspaper, or am I just becoming desensitized?
- When sharing names in the comments, stick to first-hand accounts only. There are enough real bad names out there; no need to repeat urban legend.
By Common Consent, a Mormon Blog 
When struggling to name one of our daughters we found ourselves in a discussion with the nurse who was on duty at the time about the names she has encountered. Best one ever was: Pretzel, for a girl. Clearly she’s lucky her parents didn’t prefer Doritos, Cheetos, Fritos, Tostito’s or any of the -itos.
The one name in our ward that I have the hardest time with isn’t a child’s name. An older gentleman has the name Garald. I always want to say Gerald but then remember it has the front half of Gary shoved in there. (This may just be me tripping over the small hurdles.)
When our second child was born we were taking with one of the nurses who told us of a lady whose baby she’d helped deliver. During the delivery this lady had heard a word a number of times and so loved it she decided to give that as a name for her new baby girl. So, despite the medical staff’s efforts to change her mind, this lady named her baby girl Placenta.
While we were in the NICU last year with our baby (Hugh Samuel), there was a baby next to ours named Tempest Rayne. :((((((
Anne, your comment is exactly why I have the “first-hand accounts only; no urban legends” rule >:(
My friend had a boy, but her top girl name was Andronika Jane. Sounds like a robot….
Lehi, UT here. My daughter has a girl in her grade named Lia. Not bad. Found out her real name is actually Liahona. Also there is a girl in her grade named Kiislee (k -eye- slee).
I’d wondered why (with the nerd percentage of Utah) we don’t get more attempts to destroy evil databases via children’s names. You named your child “drop table student”? How original!
I am a NICU nurse so I come across a lot of interesting names. I’ve taken care of twin boys Rage and Vengeance. We had a mom recently name her boy Megatron because she wanted him to have a strong name. Also the same time Megatron was a patient we had a baby named MiLadyLove. No joke people, I can’t even make this up.
I’m really suprised Brexit hasn’t popped up somewhere in the Jello belt as of yet
I have a theory about this: these names happen in Utah because parents aren’t used to going into Starbucks and having to spell their name for the barista. If Mormons drank coffee, I bet there would be more monosyllabic and uncreatively spelled baby names.
My apologies, Jessie Jensen. I thought a first hand experience didn’t fall into the “urban legend” category. I guess I was mistaken.
I’m waiting for some rabid Trumpette to go for the name The Donald or maybe Trumpina or just DJT.
I know a woman named Tamara. She named her daughters Ta’yestada and Taday. I can provide drivers licenses as proof!
Payzleigh. That’s a girl.
Gurt. That’s a boy. I think this one is kind of encouraging. It goes against the grain.
Kind of a bad article. I wouldn’t wanna be the kid in third grade whose “friends” see this one and mock him for having a “terrible” or “wtf” name.
Especially since children don’t name themselves.
Not cool.
I can’t believe you just brushed right by Hunter Raige. What? Poor animals! It’s like killing furry forest folk with malice aforethought.
We moved to Utah last year and my husband is constantly amazed at the crazy made up/misspelled names he come across at his job (young adult names on HR lists). I worked at a children’s hospital back east for several years. We had patients from all over the country and the world, and saw a lot of interesting names. The one that has stuck in my memory the most: a two year old named HisMajesty.
@Anne, if you heard the name from someone other than the child or parents, then it is by definition second hand, not first hand. We have both a Haisley and a Paisley (different families) in our ward. At least spelled normally.
The best part of my niece’s dance recital in Ogden was reading the names on the program. My favorites were Rhilyn, Haylei, Aleeyah, Mekenzi, Brytenne, Zowii, Alexzandriah, Kamashay, Korver, Kannyn, and Novali. I have nine pages of this program if you want me to send it :)
I have a kid in my class named King middle name Elijah. So when his mom calls him its”King Elijah”. I know a hairdresser named Donquellatish as well. Sometimes she would go by Don, sometimes Tish. She decided about10 years ago that she loved her whole name and requires everyone to use the full Donquellatish now. She also only wears leopard print. Lol
Chlowie and Chevelle are the offspring of coworkers
I’m with Karen. Hunter Raige? It sounds you are siccing your angry dog on people. Hunter…Raige!
^^right after getting drunk on some DakotaLynn Brandy*
*Smooth like wind-swept Dakota grass
I’ve heard that Rexburg has been Jentreighfying in recent years.
Omg, my sister’s best friend’s hairdresser’s accountant had these two twins named Lemonjello and Oranjello. I swear.
I’m trying to figure out if Connor John is a Terminator reference or not.
Im a NICU nurse in California. Over the years I have seen Legend (which I rather liked, as the dad was a typical California surfer, and the name sounded awesome when said surfer-style: “Duuuude. Legend!”); Shyann (teen mom spelling of Cheyenne); Diamond Frankie (baby girl partially named for her uncle); and twins Hy’Leanna and Hy’Le’Rum.
A friend’s grandsons are E’ze’quiel and Mo’ziah. Mormon of course. Shudder. Poor kids will never get a job, those names just look ghetto.
Ill post more as I can remember them…
I was a nurse in a Pediatric office and had to call patients into a room. Names like Currency and Diamond stuck in my mind.
I take issue with having Hudson on here. I’m from the south and it’s a family name. Lumping it in with horrible Mormon names seems harsh.
When we lived in Orange County, I met a little girl named Hampton. Poor thing.
My friend has a Brooklyn, which led me to complain privately that no one can name their baby after a place unless they’ve been there. But the worst I have from last year is little baby Winter.
The author has been making this list annually for 10 years!? Really? The author herself sounds like a typical Utah Mormon (and that includes all southern Idaho). Judgmental and harsh. Yeah most Utahns name their kids weird names, but who are you to go around making a yearly list of it? Let people be. If you have nothing better to do with your life, then it’s time to go and find something meaningful that actually lifts people up rather than making them feel stupid.
OB office manager here. we had a jimario. because the mom likes the name mario but wants all her kids names to start with J. sound reasoning i suppose.
Oh I’ve got two great ones for you…they are first hand accounts (both went to my daughter’s school) and they are pretty awesome. Keep in mind these are from San Antonio Texas ya’ll. The first one Abcde (pronounced Ab-sa-dee). Let me repeat, NOT AN URBAN LEGEND. She was in my daughters class. The next one is even better…ahem… Little Dragon. No Joke. Awesomesauce. I actually respect that one a lot because they really went for it.
I’m having fun running some of your names through the SSA’s popular baby name database (available here: https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/limits.html). They don’t have 2016 data yet, so I’m looking at the 2015. Also, the data is limited, because they don’t include any name that appears fewer than five times (which is almost everything on the second half of this list). In 2015, parents named 9 girls “Bostyn.” And they gave 16 boys the same name with the same spelling.
And 17 boys were named “Kaceton.”
COmormon, Jessie has been doing this for 10 years, crazy enough, and it’s a well-beloved tradition. If you don’t like it, you’re welcome to not read it, but we don’t appreciate random drive-bys insulting bloggers or others.
Also, fwiw, most Mormons (and, I suspect, most Idahoans) do not give their kids crazy names; if they did, this post would be both unnecessary and not terribly funny. But the disconnect between the normal experience of people we meet in our wards and the names we see here is a lot of the reason it’s so funny.
Years ago I worked with a man named ‘C’. His parents had five kids and they named them A, B, C, D, and E. So he was the third child. And he’d show everyone his DL to prove it (with a sign of yet again…).
Neighbors 2 year old is Zelotus. Apparently it’s some old family name. They’re pregnant again and I am filled with anticipation at this one’s name.
When living in Utah, Idaho and CA, I was always in awe of how creative people were with names, and how much trouble they would create for their kids. Now I live in the Georgia. Southern creativity is the worst. hyphens, double vowels, things like Ta’anesha, Shaeena, the list goes on. Sometimes Utahns need to count their blessings.
Waiting for the grandmothers of these babies to show up and be scandalized and offended in …
3…
2…
1…
At which point, waiting for someone to patiently explain to them that of course we think their grandchildren are cuter than cute, but we might have suggested a little more discretion in the selection of names.
This list is a great consolation to my son, Jolyon Forsyte Taylor.
Not sure if this qualifies but I had a Bishop (Great Guy by the way, to avoid the evil speaking of the Lord’s anointed) who is a huge Jazz and Atlanta Braves fan. He named one daughter Atlanta Espn, and the other Sloane Jazzlyn.
Kyler rhymes with Tyler!
Names I picked out for my hypothetical future children when I was 15: Kathryn, Megyn, Justyn, Erynn, Kristyn, Devyn, Sheldyn, Robyn, Katelyn, and Morgyn.
Oy.
A family in my ward…..Cannon, Castle, Sentinel, and Sabre.
I only wish they had more children.
At my son’s graduation……LaTrina. Perhaps not so good for a Mormon lass at Girls’ Camp.
I’m confused by Rory Sanow being the shortest name right after Dale Duke being the worst. Does shortest mean fewest letters? Besides Dale Duke, Henry Lee and Nora Jane are also shorter…
I also am a pediatric nurse. These are just from this week….I have hundreds on my list! Mind you, these are all non-ethnic kids, these parents are crazy!
Luxton
Jezenya
Iker
Divinity
Devrie
Sandon
Naythan
Reyann
Dutton
Neida
Shakell
Jelani
Dakaray
Shade
Karsynn
Brexlee
Kaige
Jaxtyn
Jaxston
Blossom
Chipper
Jaydanne
Kenyon
Analicia
Tinley
Ember
Strange names are not unique to Utah or Mormonism. Made-up names are common in working class homes across the nation—Oklahoma? Check. Inner-city Chicago? Check. It’s part of the disenfranchised mantra that the only thing keeping them away from a life of luxury is getting “noticed”. It’s heart-breaking, really.
Anyway, I work with children in state custody… and the name that will forever haunt me?
L-A … pronounced, you guessed it: Ladasha.
Oh! I found out that my friend (with an iffy name of her own) has a brother named Talon. And all I could think was “Do the chickens have large talons?”
Whenever people ask for baby names I always recommend Raysen. Don’t you think that would make a lovely girl’s name? Raysen Branne. That just sounds like the type of girl who is sweet and regular.
My son’s classmate in Florida is named
JaMajesty. There was another one like it, princess something but I can’t remember.
Martin, “Rory Sanow” is the full name. “Dale Duke” is first and middle only.
PS – Seriously people, can it with the Placentas and Ledashas. (Also, read this: http://www.snopes.com/racial/language/le-a.asp)
Husband’s cousins are Duke, Suede, and Stetson. Taught junior high, had students named Blaze, Lynar, Khase (which I thought was Casey, but no, it was Chase), and Thackarya (Thuh-shar-uh) and my favorites, a brother and sister named RaeVynne and Lestat with a last name of Vile.
Duke, Suede and Stetson? Sounds like Mom’s a fan of romance novels.
I am a dutch mormon and my daughters name is Freya and my boys are named Peikens and Torak.
Actually, Jessie… while the story you linked to about L-A was an urban legend, I saw—with my very own eyes—the name on a form submitted by a caregiver. Otherwise I wouldn’t have posted it. :-)
Is anyone keeping a list of Urban Legend names that have been posted in the comments, despite warnings against them? Here’s what I have so far:
L-a (Ladasha)
Abcde
Placenta
Ta’yestada and Taday
Folks, we believe that someone told you they encountered people with these names. But they didn’t, and neither did you.
Hampton. She shares her name with a hotel chain.
Actually, Bridger…if you only saw it on a form, how do you know she pronounces it Ledasha?
I like Brooklyn, because it ostensibly indicates where the parents were at the time of conception. Incidentally, that’s why my children are named LaQuinta and Days Inn.
I always raise my eyebrows at the name Maverick for that same reason, jimbob.
One of my students (I teach high school in Utah) is Heavvyn (yes. what you are thinking is correct. His name is Heaven.) His sister’s name is Myracle (miracle)…Unfortunately, he does not live up to his name.
My husband’s various cousins have named their children: Hegan, Austyn, Rampton, Ryker, and Huckleberry (which is technically a real name…if you’re floating down the Mississippi on a raft)
Abcde is a rather popular name for Micronesian girls in Hawaii. In my daughter’s senior class in 2009, there were five Abcdes. http://www.vocativ.com/culture/society/people-named-abcde/
From my daughter’s jr high in Tooele Ut: Sailyx, Brickie, Ridick, Kasha, Nirvana, Lyric, K’dnce, Jeseline (rhymes with vaseline), Heimer, Starskysha (when we were in the hospital a nuse told us this name was the most unusual she had heard, and we were telling it to our son and he said, “that girl is in my drama class!”) And finally Unikque (sounds like unique :).
I had a professor once who named her two boys Hale and Hardy. I always thought she should have named them Vim and Vigor.
Ah yes, but Annette, Huckleberry has the pleasure of quoting from Tombstone at will in order to reinforce his awesomeness. My wife would leave me in a heartbeat for Val’s character when he drops that line.
I was opening bank accounts at a local credit union in Williamsburg Va and the associate that I worked with was called Candida (yes, the fungus). She had a plaque on her desk with the name printed in bold black letters. Coworkers called her Candy.
River Jetty.
WON’T SOMEBODY PLEASE THINK OF THE TEACHERS?!
A cousin just named their daughter Navy…
In the Philippines I met some people with interesting names, although to be fair these names aren’t so strange to them. Twins named Mike and Tyson. One girl named Charmeleon and one named Princess Smiles. Lastly a woman named “Edit” but only because she’s supposed to be Edith and Filipinos can’t pronounce th.
Tyranny. For a girl. When the meaning was pointed out, dad responded “just bc you run away from or ignore evil doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Only through understanding the evil can we truly appreciate the good.” Mom chimed in that 2 year olds were tyrants anyway.
Okay then.
Here’s a few I was personally associated with: Cequence, Quin-C, and O’cean. First two were female the last male. And I caught flak for naming my son Peyton. A girl in CA said, “That’s such a ‘UT’ name!” smh
I’m a teacher in Utah. I present to you this year’s crop (I’m not even digging into past drivel or using names of students from foreign countries. These are all lifelong Utahans):
Tayden
Brayan
Emerlee (Ermagersh!)
Davit
Keygan
Weverly
Kaylor
Kyla
I live in Springville, UT. My nephew is Huckleberry. They call him Huck, mostly, and I’ve gotten used to it. Also, I work at a school and these are a few crazy ones:
Timber (girl)
Saylor (girl)
Scout (girl)
Journey (girl) I actually like this one
Satyn (pronounced Satin, but I read it as Satan)
Clumsy me! I forgot my favorite twins from last year: Timple (pronounced Temple) and Timpestt (pronounced tempest)
Even otherwise very normal first names can be a problem. I tried but failed to get my friends Mr. & Mrs. Bush to name their first daughter Rose. I didn’t event try Lilac, Holly, Daphne, or Laurel for the successors to the first.
Forgot to add, not a Utahn, but Mormon with lots of Utah influences: friend’s niece is named Kwynci.
There was a girl in Springville named Abcde. not a 2016 name, but not an urban legend.
Here’s the thing though, several of these names are in the top 100. So clearly it isn’t just Mormons using these names, and clearly they aren’t that strange.
Kind of sad that “Kylee” is on this list! It’s my sister’s name and she’s 21 ha
My son has a boy in his class named Thor. You know everyone in their heads just asked if he has a brother named Loki ( I actually wouldn’t doubt it). And my mother-in-law has a cousin (girl) named LarrySue. Why people, WHY?!?!
Liz: Wait, but I’ve never said JUST Mormons use these names.
Strange names aren’t unique to Mormons. Look at the strange names that stars use, North West, Zappa Moon, for instance. Names that I know though are Cinch, River, Osiris, Bronco, are just a few.
Worst name I’ve ever encountered is Shithead, pronounced “Shi-theed”.
School Teacher in Utah here. These are some names that stick out to me.
Brazillion
Tyanna (Tie-Anna)
Koak (Kwok)
Charisma
Laureli (Lorelei)
Kable
Tavis NOT TRAVIS
Jaucalynne
Reno
Shylynn
Alyana
Ajarius
Keeven NOT Kevin
Seven
Deja
Schalen (Shaylynne)
Cypress
Natanni
Gokey
D’Artagnan
Aryonna (Arieanna)
Dawvynn
Syria (Sariah)
Alora
Arly
Julicia
Karlyn
My husband knows a “Third Degree Burns” – met him on a business trip. Last name was already Burns, he had a ‘come-to-Jesus-cleansed-by-fire’ moment & legally changed his name to ‘Third Degree’ (we have a couple Christmas cards from him.) At least it’s not his parents’ fault.
My husband is a high school teacher in Texas, and names here are just as bizarre..our favorite so far has been “Beneathea” (pronounced beneath ya). It’s sad; she’s such a sweet girl.
While I look foreword to this post every year I can’t help but be a little defensive of some of the names (like Paxton). My maiden name is Dunken and that’s what I named my son. I hate that it’s a weird spelling and his name will forever be spelled wrong / people might think I chose that spelling just to be unique, but it’s my family’s heritage and I didn’t want to change it. I know several Paxtons so I’m just assuming they used a family name or maiden name as well.
Forward. Haha I promise I can spell
Stacy: no you didn’t.
I can’t believe I’ve followed this yearly for a decade! I love it. I’ve had a niece make the list. My daughter became friends with several little girls on the list. One of the girl’s sent us a birthday invite, and I stared at it for 10 minutes trying to figure out who Ahlyviyahh was. Thanks for slogging through each year. These posts are the best!
I teach middle school in Utah. Among the numerous names I deal with are Mikayli and Mikila. I’m the same class. That took some time to keep straight.
“Thor” is a not uncommon Norwegian name. E.g., Thor Heyerdahl.
Sorry this is late, but as a substitute teacher in Florida I see all kinds of unusual names, which I keep in my weird file:
Laquasha, Dolomyke, Jua’Queyunis, Lwairys, Auviyawna, Deja, Sadiq, Cedryanna, Isaciana, Disco, Messiah, Adonai, K’wality, Keenyjah (kee NI yah), Shawmahri, Jsha, Kwanique (male), D’nika, Heavenly, Lexzaban, Zuliqua, Hithamary, Olasunkanmi,
Ga’derrius, Ambang, Jonquavia, Fernicia, Jhiliyah, Isavion.
Most of these are sweet kids but I feel sorry for them.
J.R., I strongly suggest you read this entire tweet thread: https://twitter.com/ai_valentin/status/770340917077282816
I was critical of my older sister, Sarah’s, choices in spelling her son’s name (Isaak) until she explained that because her last name is Johnson the unique spelling helps to distinguish his name from others. The YMCA she attends has another member with her exact same name AND birthday. But some of these names just have no excuse.
I have a friend who named his son Havic. It’s not even spelled correctly! My other friend named her son Blaise (pronounced Blaze).
The worst names I have seen are Jackynnleigh And ahlahyna rhaye 😣
I have a friend who named her little girl Navy. Which I don’t hate (still not good, just not entirely awful). But wait, there’s more! Her middle name is Bae. Yeah… Navy Bae.
I’ve also recently had friends name babies Kaylor and Oakley.
i forgot to mention ESPN. there is a boy here in boca with that name. i have met and talked to the dad about it. adam sandler met the dad once here (he’s often in boca) and told him he was going to use the name ESPN in one of his movies because he thought it was so funny. and he did! he used the name ESPN in “blended”.
Robin – Get out!! If I didn’t know you, I might be skeptical of this story! So, so great.
If you’ve named your kid a thing that became a punchline in an Adam Sandler movie, you should have regrets.
Ward member named their baby Cash.
Cousin who named her children Taylee, Keslee, Ridge, and Heath.
Everyone wants their kids to be special and unique. But to quote Syndrome in The Incredibles “And when everyone’s super, no one will be.” Ohh, Syndrome!
In German-speaking countries, the purists get all worked up over the proletariat who name their offspring Kevin. If they only knew.
Jessie Jensen — you’re making assumptions about those names, which are of black, hispanic and anglo kids. I omitted the Asian and Indian names because they are cultural.
While we’re on the subject, what’s up with a family that have all the children’s name start with the same letter? That concept mystifies me…
I have no idea what is going on with names right now. Our last child was born 4 years ago. Things have changed name wise since then….
Not gonna lie, I’m reading through the comments and pulling names it that I’d use for a baby name. We’re going with Adelaide for our first girl (got it from a band, but I guess it may make the list since it’s on a map) but we can’t agree on anything for boys. Husband wanted Huntington but I vetoed that pretty quickly. Some of the comments though- I quite like Timber, River, Sloane, and Journey. :) to each their own I guess; but I can promise to avoid any gratuitous vowels or ys, don’t want them sounding like all the rest of my nieces and nephews
My husband knows a family with sons named Jet (maybe Jett?) and Lion (maybe Lyon? I dunno). Which are hardly the most outlandish Mormon names out there, but I wondered if maybe the parents were football fans, and if so, what would be a good choice for a hypothetical third son. I like Raider or Falcon, though my kids prefer Dolphin or Viking. Actually, there are a lot of great football names out there, if any expectant parents are running out of ideas. Most of them work fine for a boy or a girl. Actually, Cardinal would be a great name for a girl. (Probably stay away from “Redskin,” though.)
Madhousewife: Ooo! I love these games. Raven for a girl, Bill for a boy.
Earlier, Texan said “A family in my ward…..Cannon, Castle, Sentinel, and Sabre. I only wish they had more children.” LANCE!
I think “blaze” is the standard English pronunciation of St Blaise.
A family in my prior ward had the last name Money. I always thought they missed a great opportunity by failing to name one of their sons “Cash”.
My nieces and nephews:
Memphis (and they acutally live in Tennessee)
Vreelan
Tallyn
Alaryc Skye
Brayden Declan
From Issaquah and Sammamish, WA, these are just some of the non-ethnic names (lots of Indian, Korean, Chinese, and Eastern Europeans, not included here).:
For girls, Reet, Queenie, Vail, Rhys, Miah, Trevelyn, Annis, Avaree,
Boys, Aristotle Noam, Caden, Lincoln, Kendy, Baden.
Interesting to me is that most of the Chinese kids have names like Jane, Kyle, Dave, Steve. I think they know something we don’t.
Brother-in-law was trying to plan and wanted to use Celest, Terrest, and Telest if they had three girls, but sister-in-law put her foot down when she found out that if they had a fourth daughter they would name her Helen.
I went to middle school with Master of Life and Sir William. Sir William alsways told people “Call me Sir, because I like it.” When I taught high school, I had a student named Kiante, like chiante.
I had a friend who named her children Apollo and Athena. I thought of all the teasing they would get. Now I’m thinking there not to bad. Why would people do this to their kids. Life is hard enough.
A couple of yeas ago I had a roommate named OK, yup not initials…The name on his drivers license was OK
From the 70s, names of my nieces and nephews in one family with a VERY common last name. Dad & Mom were Don & Donna, so they wanted something different for their kids: Michiedawn, Teak, Tyanna, Krycyn, Terrica, Raquet.
My pioneer ancestry has a good one. My great great grandparents had 15 of 16 children survive (without polygamy stuff).
They went through the whole alphabet with their children. Like Agustus Bartholomew, and Claudia Davis.
Most of those names are just fine…but then they came to the end of the ABCs and ran into a problem.
The final child was named XYZella. I’m dead serious on that one.
I can’t resist contributing. Last year on March 15, we went to meet our newborn grandchild in the hospital. She is named Rebecca. But on the elevator we met a man whose son was also born on the Ides of March. They named him Casca, after one of the assassins of Julius Caesar. The man explained that he was a Shakespeare fan.
In fairness, I think it’s worth remembering that there is another extreme. I have a niece named Jennifer and literally half the girls in her class were also Jennifers. They had to resort to calling each other by last name initials (Jenny S., Jenny L, Jenny M., etc.). Maybe the mothers are all these Jennifers trying to avoid this problem for their kids.
My family likes to use some interesting names as well. I have one cousin who named their child “Bear” and another who named their child “Cub.” These are not nicknames or middle names. Also, these cousins of mine are also cousins (mothers are all sisters) and their babies were born within a year or two of each other.
I also have a cousin who named their two children “Gunner” and “Paisley.” Not sure on the spellings, but let’s hope for traditional spellings for the kids’ sakes!
Forest Sherwood. A kid from Jr. High.
I think names can be unusual without being awful. There should just be a better reason than making kitschy arrangements of letters or following/opposing current trends. My personal feeling is that a name is a gift to the child, and should help that child somehow. It might connect them to their culture or history, give guidance in times of difficulty, or reflect parents’ intuition/revelation about who a child is. It’s a powerful thing, and ought to be respected as such.
I knew a couple in the mission who named their child Precious Autumn Storm because it reflected the time and circumstances of her birth. Also, in their culture that style of naming wasn’t as strange as it seemed to me at the time. As a teacher I’ve seen a lot of just plain odd ones too, but the fact that I strongly dislike a couple of the ones praised as favorites at the end of this list just shows that no name will please everybody, so it may as well be chosen for something more than aesthetic value.
I really really want to share this because I find it hysterical. Unfortunately all 4 of my sisters kids have their name on your list…she might think I’m making fun of her 😂😂
Hunter Raige!!! I’m totally imaging someone with anger issues screaming this! The “i” in Rage really classes the name up. :)
My crop of recent Utah names: one Navy and one Navee (WHY is this a trend?), Nixyn (girl) and Nixon (boy), Auhliver (pronounced Oliver), Jett (girl), and Tessi-Belle.
PS. Ignore the haters, bad Utah baby names are the best! I love these posts!
After living in Rexburg for 4 years, some of these names don’t seem so strange…. 😂
Is L-ea pronounced ‘Le-Dash-A’ or ‘Le-Hyphen-A’? Asking for a friend of a co-worker’s sister-in-law.
I know someone with two children. The oldest is named Alyksandr. They call him Alyk. The new baby is Gannon. I hope they don’t have any more kids.
Went to daycare when I was younger with two brothers: Squanto and Jeronimo. And they were Hispanic, not Native American
Raiden Bayne Ryker
That is Mortal Kombat, Batman, and Star Trek all rolled into one.
My former roommate’s best friend had a baby girl last year named Valkyrie, but her nickname is Gus Gus for some reason…
I’m a social worker and have more than once met little girls with the name Nevaeh. Pronounced neh-Vay-uh. It’s heaven spelled backwards. A co-worker upon first seeing it though it was Nivea, assuming the child was named after the skin cream (which wouldn’t be odd for our clients).
I also currently have two cases each with boys named Lamarion and Lamaurion. I’m not sure which is worse. Met a newborn baby at the hospital on Monday, mother named her Kalleigh. I said “Oh Kaylee, that’s cute.” She said “No, it’s Kah-LEE-uh.” Umm…ok.
I worked with a girl who named her son Neptune. Her first daughter had a totally normal name too.
I used to work with a woman named Storm. Another girl I worked with asked Storm, “Storm, why did your parents name you ‘Storm’?”, to which Storm replied, “well, my parents were going to name me ‘Eric’, but since I was a girl they named me ‘Storm’.”
????????
“LaNeigh” is not horse in french; it’s “Cheval”
Really?!
I’m a preschool teacher in Portland OR, and oh man am I glad to be living in hipster land instead of mormon world. Kids in my class: Everett, Freya, Louisa, Stella, Leo, Ramona, August, Sylvie, Hugo, Scarlett, Enzo, Asher, Iris, Jasper, etc etc. So thankful for names that the kids don’t have too much trouble writing–I can’t imagine teaching poor McKynzlee how to write her name. Gahhh, why can’t parents think of their child and their child’s future burdened with a ridiculous letter vomit name and use some common sense, a few brain cells, and some goddamn empathy for their kid when choosing a name.