Vintage names are back in fashion world

You know, Birjees wasn’t the name my mum and dad first gave me. It was changed when I was around 12 months old because my family felt that the name was adversely affecting my health. It didn’t sound weird or anything like that, it was just a belief that they had.

But some names do sound odd. There’s a woman who really regretted naming her son Cillian. She said every time she addressed him it felt weird. She gave him that name, or rather agreed to it, when she and her husband couldn’t agree on one together. He suggested Cillian and she reluctantly agreed.

I never heard of the name Cillian until I saw the movie Red Eye which starred Cillian Murphy as the villain. I suppose even with that celebrity connection, the name hasn’t gone down well.

I don’t know why parents give their children odd names. Yes, certain names have meanings but there are far too many celebrity children’s names that have no meaning at all and are simply named after objects or mathematical formulae.

In the old days, and by that I mean the 19th century and earlier, names were very old-fashioned, or as some call them ‘vintage names’, and you could tell they are out of a period. Not many of these names are around, especially not for girls.

For example, where boy’s names are concerned, names like Henry, Charles, James, Archibald, Thomas Benedict, Joshua, Jonah and Edward are very old-fashioned names unlike Ryan, Stephen, Dean, Sam, Mark, Andrew and Ronald. Vintage girls’ names include Clara, Esther, Ann, Viola, Edith and Betty.

Cillian is, I think, an Irish name. Although Cillian Murphy is a famous actor I doubt very much if people will think ‘the actor’ when they hear this little boy’s name. Strangely enough a lot of people do have famous actors’ names but purely by chance because both the first name and the last are common enough.

Some actors with common enough names are also extremely famous. So those named after them may feel odd telling people what their name is.

I’ve come across people on Twitter with famous names and they announce that they are not the famous actor or actress.

But some famous names are rare and those with similar namesakes will probably find it very awkward to tell people who they are.

One man was named Donald Trump and whenever he called an establishment to make a booking he’d tell people who he was just to get a rise out of them.

Of course he does admit later on that he is not who they think he is but he does find it amusing.

I still think that naming a child should be a carefully thought out process. Parents should remember that the only person who truly has to live with a name is the child. But this does seem to make a difference to many celebrities who do give their children exotic names. Names like Autumn, Egypt, Fuchsia, mathematical formulae and Superman’s Kal El.

But let’s not forget that children with odd names are prime targets for school bullies. Do parents really want their child to be nicknamed smelly Ellie? I think not. I mean, think about this. Did you know that Benedict Cumberbatch was once asked whether that was his real name. It was so odd, people thought he’d made it up!

I agree with France for banning certain names for children because of the possible negative impact they could have on a child’s life. Smelly Ellie being a case in point.

Even though vintage names are back in fashion some believe that these are bland and beige. But in my opinion, better a bland name than a formula or a name that originates from a fictional planet.

In my opinion, names like Elvis, Cher and Sting, as well as names after fruits and objects are a complete no-no. Again, don’t forget that it is the child who has to live with it, not the parent. Although, if the child does suffer in life as a result of an oddball name he was given, he will do one of two things. He’ll incessantly blame you or he will change it when he is legally able to. So why not save him the trouble and yourself the agony years down the line? There are plenty of decent and normal sounding names to choose from.