Mother Of 4-Year-Old Suggests Name Change After Learning How Popular It Is Now

Aug 22, 2022 by apost team

In 2018, one mother posted to the popular blog, Mumsnet, about a relatively late name change she was considering for her daughter. Unlike some parents who discover after filling out the birth certificate that their child's initials spell something obscene or realize they've made a grave spelling mistake, this mother was concerned that her daughter's name might have become too popular. 

Explaining her predicament, she wrote, "My (daughter) is 4 years old and I gave her a name which, I thought, was very original as I hadn't heard another girl called it in about 20 years." OP was apparently happy with this name choice for years until it came time for her daughter to enter school. She had thought she'd made a unique choice "only to find when (her daughter) started nursery another girl called the same but spelt differently."

While it is normal to meet other people, especially children, with the same name, OP was taken back. She explained how her daughter was "due to start full time education in September" where there would be "2 other girls with the same name so 3 in the class including (her daughter.)" To make matters worse, OP then found out that additionally there was "another in (her) other (daughter's) class."

Frankly, she wrote: "Totally hacked off and really upset by this. Maybe an over reaction but in the 1970's I was one of 5 named the same in my class and vowed never to have my (daughter) live with the same. Now history is being repeated."

More than just frustrated, OP seemed to think the only solution was a name change. She wrote: "(Am I being unreasonable,) to change my (daughter's) name before September? I love her name but HATE it's so common now." OP perhaps expected sympathy and understanding; however, her post was met with a wave of disagreement and confusion. 

Concerned for the toddler, one commenter wrote: "I don't think it's up to you, surely it's up to your daughter, it's her name now, not yours! She might not care that she shares her name in the same way that you did." Another scolded: "Are you crazy! She's 4! You can't change her name. Your (daughter) won't mind being one of 3. She is her name now, it belongs to her." One touched on the logistics of a name change at that age, as she said, "changing (a name) at 4 is a massive pain and your (daughter) will have to put up with the extra paperwork and faff it brings for the rest of her life, whereas school is temporary)."

OP wrote a response, revealing her daughter's name and clarifying her frustration. She wrote: "(My daughter's) name is Esmée and I've lived through this. I can remember my whole junior/secondary school time being coloured by the fact that so many of us had the same name. I changed it as soon as I could because of that reason. Every time I hear my real name I shudder." Clearly, OP was deeply affected by her own experience and wanted to shield her daughter from a similar fate. 

A kinder-heated commenter then wrote reminding OP, "At the end of the day, you love the name and your daughter is happy with her name, there really isn't anything to be worried about!"

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What would make you reconsider one of your children's names? Let us know — and be sure to pass this article on to friends, family and any Mumsnet fans!