Do you like your own firstname?

I always hated both my names, especially the middle one which was very unusual to give a child in the 50s. Oddly enough it has become quite popular again. The name was after my maternal grandmother who died 3 months before I was born.

My father wanted to call me Myfanwy. He wasn't even Welsh. ?

All the time I was at school I only ever met one other girl with the same name as me. I don't mind my first name and I quite like my second name which is the feminine of DH's name. I never thought to ask mother why she picked my name, it was unusual for the 40s.

I was named after an area being fought over in WW2. I have always liked my name, unusual then, and didn't meet another until my late teens. I've only ever met one older than me and she was named after a WW1 battleship which had sunk! Now we even have a tv show named after one of us. The name became better known after a certain ad for Luton Airport.

It seems my mother's first choice was Mary Rose but father's comment was 'Mary sat on a pin ...' She also liked Jane and went to register me still unsure whether to choose Jane or the name I got. She never really explained why Jane couldn't have been my second name. I didn't get one although mother herself had a second name which she liked.

My grandma had a friend called TD. It was many years ' til I realised it was Aunty Edie.We also had a family at school , the children called SX, KC and another I can't remember. These were not nicknames but their real names !!

Elrel, I was guessing at Campari till the penny dropped!

Yes, I've always liked my name. It's one of my favourites. I once asked my DDs if they like their first names. They do, all three of them. They were all, for longish periods of their school careers, the only ones in the school with their name. None of the names are unusual; they're all 'classic' names.

My mum was called Joyce and there were several others in her year at school. When I was born she wanted a name no one else had so chose Rebecca. It was shortened to Becky - I was only called Rebecca when in trouble. Now there are numerous Rebecca's but they are all younger than me!

I love my name, Pamela and only wish other people would use it "Pam" sounds so flat and boring.

I always liked my name, Susan, shortened to Sue when at uni. But there were five Susans in my class at school and now I feel that it indicates my age too much! And how many couples, now in late 60s, do you know who are called Sue n Dave?!

I've never liked my name its Jean. My mum wanted to call me Beatrice I'm not keen on either and I feel my name doesn't suit me.

My first name is Scottish and rare rather than unusual south of the border. Unfortunately I also had an unusual surname so my full name stuck in everybody's memory at school so I had to behave myself. I was in my 50s before I worked with someone with the same first name which was confusing because I was so used to responding when my name was called. I have a lovely surname now and am quite happy with my first name as they go together rather well.

My name was very popular in my year at school, although with various spellings and pronunciations.
I have sometimes wanted to use a shortened form, fancied being a Carrie at one time (the film or Cliff Richard?), but have always been a Caroline.

PPP we meet lots of couples called Sue and Pete like us!

Mildred just referred to unusual Scottish names which reminded me of a comment near the start of the thread about the different attitudes to the name Fiona in England and Scotland. I did ask about it but no-one seemed able to enlighten me and now I'm really curious. Not the sort of question I can google, is it?

Hated mine especially as a child I constantly got the nickname Elsie Tanner from coronation street at the time ,when I was eleven and starting secondary school I changed it to my middle name which I much preferred and have stuck with although it can be confusing as my family still insist on my first name.

No! As a child I was always referred to as Janet the Gannett.

Dad's mother was Kate Elizabeth Jefferies - so I am Elizabeth and my brother is Geoffrey. I always wish they had gone for the Kate instead!

I was Elizabeth which my mother didn't allow to be shortened. I changed it to Jane when I was 16 and haven't looked back. Y daughter also changed her name about the same age. I wonder what my grandson will do?

My problem is I was named Jacqueline, after male family members called Jack ( my ma evidently not aware of the true origin, James). In fact my mother was forced to give me the first name Maria, having married into an RC family, but I was always known as Jackie. At the age of 72 this seems a most inappropriate name and has rather common connotations with a cheap girls' comic book of the sixties & seventies. I mentally cringe when my grandchildren refer to me as Grandma Jackie to distinguish me fom the other two (one from a remarriage). I should prefer something more dignified, such as Helen, or Charlotte. After this confession I expect to be targeted by Gransnetters accusing me of snobbery. I can take it; I'm a blunt northerner who believes in honesty.

I have been called by the shortened form of my name (which isn't ella!) since I was a child - except by teachers and certain members of my family. As a result the full version sounded more and more formal and unfriendly until I came to absolutely hate it - especially in situations like being in hospital where use of my unfamiliar name was quite alienating. The last straw was when I got married and my husband was in a similar situation - only ever known by the shortened form of his name. We felt as though the registrar was talking about two other people. Solution - changed my name by deed poll to my 'comfortable' name 20 years ago and am very happy with that.

Like numberplease I am a Lois; hated it when growing up in Canada where there were more Lois's, a couple I knew my age but most older, so I thought of it as an old-fashioned name (I wanted to be Kim or Debbie). Since moving to England many years ago, I've grown to like my name as it's not common here (although I still get letters addressed to Mr Louis, and there's still a few people who call me that). A few years ago I was startled to hear a woman behind me shout 'Lois - sit down!'. I turned around to see a little girl standing up in her push-chair. At the time I thought 'What a strange name to call your daughter' but maybe like Mabel and Ruby (my aunts' names) that are having a turn at being popular again, Lois can too!

I have an old fashioned name, as you can see... I loathed it much preferring the more modern names of the time; being brought up in a French environment they would have been names like Chantal and Janine! I can't imagine being any other than my first name now - second and third names are eithyer mispronounced or commented on anyway.

Before we moved to our present house, I always had to spell my first/Christian and surnames, my house name [no numers on our road], the road too... It got very wearing

I hate being given any shortened versions of my name - reminds me too much of my parents and sisters, with whom I have/had a very troubled relationship.

I had three Godmothers called Emily, Alice and Rita and grandmothers called Victoria and Cecilia. My parents called me Rita...I detest the name...sighs. My favourite of the possibles is Cecilia... From what I have heard of this fiesty Irish woman I think I inherited a lot from her

Because of my awful name I chose beautiful names for my two daughters.

I am sorry, but I can't resist........

" What's in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

I will go and sit on the naughty step.

Margaret, never Maggie unless you wished to die at my mothers hands.

Mum gave me the name Ann, long long before the princess, mainly because she said it couldn't be shortened, BUT a lot of the time I was called Annie by various school friends and then work colleagues. Do I like the name, yes, both versions.