Do you like your own firstname?

My Grandma was Margaret. I like it (but I was not named after her). Her sister had a most unusual name which she must have hated (I have never heard of another one!) because I always knew her by a shortened version - which is very popular again nowadays as a shortened version of another name.

My first husband's father was Checzeslovakian (sp?) So of course my married name, although only 5 letters long, was foreign, and I was forever having to spell it. I gave both of the boys short (4 letters) easy to understand/spell names.

So how come both exdh and I would often LENGTHEN their names when talking to them?

Judging by a lot of the forum names there do seem to be a few Margaret s. We had 4 in our class. Not popular at present after Thatcher. Does anyone else have problems with it being spelt phonetically....Margret?

I don't think it's 'political correctness' Printmiss, but more reflecting the census findings that there is a large and increasing percentage of people in the UK who do not subscribe to any religion, and that there is a significant fall in practising Christians. I guess it just makes forms simpler to say First Name

I don`t mind mine, but I`ve always been called by my middle name. I`m very grateful to have been born on June 1st, as I was due on May 31st and was going to be called May, which I would have hated. My middle name is Lois, after my father Lewis. It`s OK, but I would rather have been a Louise.

At one time on most forms you were asked for your Christian name, now of course you are not, you are asked for your first name. Political correctness, and I just wonder why on the forms we do not have "First/Christian" name?

My parents gave me a rather regal and grand name (for the forties) and then promptly downgraded it to a nickname I have always hated. I doggedly stuck to my real name throughout my school years which was fine because everyone gets called various nicknames by schoolmates and I became fond of mine because it was friendly and funny.

Once working I insisted on using my real name which by then had become popular (much to my relief) but when I married I was forced to resort to the dreaded family nickname because life was centred around the home until I went back into the workplace.

My children have lovely names (I think) which can be shortened but not messed around with.

Of course you can say it's your Christian name Printmiss. I don't think anyone has said anything else. However, it's not appropriate for me to say it's my Christian name since I'm an atheist.

I don't like mine much, luckily Mr P very rarely uses it, he either calls me darling or Miss! I would have preferred to be called Sarah.

I dont really dislike it , but Im not crazy about it either. It was quite modern for the time and its hard to shorten to anything really .

It was a family thing though , my Gran was called Catherine, my Mum had Katherine in her name , my name is the scandinavian version of Katherine, I named my daughter Katherine ( Katie) and my daughter has called her daughter Laura Katherine.

I have always liked mine although I generally shorten it. I was never the only one at school but you still get the name used today. I was pleased that my parents didn't feel the need to be 'original'.
My Gransnet name is one that I took from my family history.

I don't like my first name - it has harshness to it that rattles me. Thankfully it can be shortened and then sounds softer ... I also intensely dislike my middle name - named after an auntie who turned out to be a real man-eater - 5 husbands of her own and 2 of them poached and a string of affairs including one of my brothers so yuk!!!

My first name is really Patricia, but I turned a dislike for the name instantly when continually hearing the staff at my father's hotel call me, Patsey, or Miss Patty etc. My close family call me Tish, but I prefer my second name which is above, of course without the 9!

My first name is the name I was CHRISTENED with so, it is my CHRISTIAN name. Am I allowed to say that in this day and age?

My name is Madeline (without the French extra e) but when I was a teenager I longed to be called Veronica. Try pronouncing Veronica in a Black Country accent, as it would have been!!
S'pose I should be grateful - my birthday is Valentine's day and I was almost Valentina!

I do like my name, but it's a long one so have always shortened it.

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

My father always called me Sooz! Which I also hated! We had a girl in our class called Rosemary. I would have liked to have been a Rosemary.....

I wish my parents had called me Suzanne rather than Susan but that was after my grandmother. DHL calls me Susie which is nicer

Oh, I like Suzanne! It's so subjective isn't it? When I was a child I wanted to be called Janet for some reason (my 3rd name) but I'm glad now I didn't change it. My name is a bit boring but tha's better than over fancy I think.

I didn't like my first name at school - not at all and I NEVER used my middle name .... Now, many years later I am proud to have been named after both my maternal and paternal grandmother.

Because I didn't like my middle name we never gave our children middle names - of course they complained bitterly at school because they were the only ones in their classes without a middle name! ??

I hate it. Suzanne. Can't imagine what my parents were thinking of when everyone else was calling their children Susan, Pat, Christine, Linda, Pauline, Elizabeth, Lynn, Anne, Julie, Josephine, Pamela and other comfortable monicas! I am quite unlike any Suzanne of my imagination and am happy when people shorten it to Sue. I am Suzanne at your peril!

I wanted to be called Ann when I was a little girl but prefer my own name now. There are several of us with the same name in my family which can get a bit confusing. My class at junior school had two or three Pats and Susans. Rarely hear these names used now.

Lynette

Never been very happy with mine because my mum refused to shorten it and was a bit po faced about it!
So I told everyone never to call me Christine, only Chris or Chrissy!