I've made a faux pas!

A good few years ago my friends sister and her hubby were expecting their second child. They travelled a lot in Europe with his job living in different countries. The first child ,a girl was named Scarlett an unusual name back then. Her mother found it very difficult to get used to a strange name. Her second baby was also a girl to be called Peaches. My friend said her mum was so relieved it was another granddaughter and not a grandson. When I asked why she said because the name they had picked for a boy was Jesus and her mum said she would never be able to show her face in Chapel again.

I think its only Grans that use the full name. In the supermarket the other day it came over strong and quite funny really Sebastian, put that back now, the child about 3 the Gran about 70.

I named our Son after his Dad, it that done any more.

I saw a press report that someone was going to call her baby Riggins with Blaine as his middle name. Poor baby.

Elijah was a family name up until recently. They came from Somerset. My Dad's middle name and my grandfather's name. A relief , my brother was Christopher.

There's bound to be one somewhere!!

Now Frodo, that's a name to raise eyebrows!

Thanks, wilma. That must be it-Frodo Baggins. Bit behind the times, me!

gettingonabit in case you don't know, the actor who played Frodo in the films is Elijah Wood.

I don't like my DGD's name, but as my son and the mother are not married they had agreed that their children would take his surname and the mother could choose the first name. So the name they have given her is not unknown in the English-speaking world, but has different connotations and sounds not only old-fashioned, but coarse and ugly. In German it sounds simple and feminine and doesn't seem to have any of these connotations.

The little girl herself is adorable, of course.

When my son's wife was expecting they told us that if it was a girl they were going to call her 'Agnes'. I thought they were choking and laughed but they weren't. Evidently our DIL had a favourite Aunt with that name. Anyway they changed there minds (whether as a result of my reaction I don't know) and gave her a more conventional name with Agnes as a second name. Our GD is very proud of her name!

Someone I know called his son Elijah, which for some reason I found hysterically funny and couldn't suppress a loud snorting laugh, which I tried to contain behind my hand, without success.

He barked "haven't you read Lord of the Rings, ffs"?

I've read Lord of the Rings twice but can't see the connection .

purpledaffodill Via my work I encountered the name Crimea! For one reason and another I never learnt what gender this child was.
I started thinking of similar name sources. Sebastopol. Somme, Bosworth the possibilities are endless.

Grannyben that made me

With so many unusual names about I doubt they are a bullying matter. I like Ezra too and I think you could perhaps tell the parents that the name is growing in you.

I hated GS3's name when I first heard it suggested. I won't repeat it on here as it's very unusual and I've never heard another child with this name. But the name as now grown to be him and he now fits it. He's very popular at school so I wouldn't worry about the bullying aspect at all.

Do you think, Lullydully? Meg and - ahem - Maggie seem to be on the up though. And Daisy, which is another variation.

DS aged 5 or 6 was amazed that a friend had called her baby Keyring (Kieran).

When she was small DD came back from visiting her little friend I said "What have they called the new baby?" and her reply was Fairytits! Turned out to be Verity!

I am waiting for Margaret to come back into fashion. Must be due a relaunch.

I think it's great that we have such a range of names these days. So much better than the eldest children being called after their parents, the younger ones after their grandparents, etc, as happened in my family (though we have kept some family names alive as middle names, and the DC now like a lot of the older ones). My sister inherited my DM's name and DM admitted she didn't even like it herself! I was named after my DGM even though we Margarets made up a good proportion of any class. Thank goodness for short forms, is all I can say!

I think it is important that they have names their teachers can pronounce and spell. I had a colleague in London who named his son something Welsh, unpronounceable and un-spellable!

Also perhaps think about how names will look written on Christmas cards. A couple we know have a son Samuel and a daughter Ella, nothing wrong with either until you get their Christmas card with love from Sam & Ella!

I don't mind Ezra as a name, and it it still used quite a lot by Jewish families, so never really gone away as a name.My DGC all have normal names, but I have a friend who has six DGD's and they all have the strangest names you ever heard!
No child will be bullied, as other posters say, the classrooms are stuffed with odd and unusual names.

Ezra Pound....poet
Ezra Jack Keats ...children's writer. I think it's a rather impressive name.

My great niece called her boy something unusual ( won't say in case. ) My sil calls him by a made up cuddly nick name to avoid using it. Not sure.I approve as names do grow with a child.

Many of you have put such lovely names in your comments. Now I think about it, I received negative comments myself when I had my eldest DD. Five years later the school had numerous little girls running round the playground with the same name. Perhaps, if I am gifted with a second dgs I will also find that Ezra fits him like a glove.

Names are funny things, a lot of thought goes into the choice and you (as a parent) often find they are disliked by others. When we announced our youngest was to be Anais, both sets of grandparents found it strange and did not like it (my MIL still refuses to pronounce it the way we wanted to) but it has been shortened to Ani by most. I like both the full name and the short version, and it suits her. I know the name has grown on my mum, not so sure about MIL, but then we cant do much right in her eyes anyway.

I remember doing the same Grannyben when my cousin announce her new baby boy was to be called Wayne and I said "Oh no, he'll be called Wayne Dwop"!

He wasn't and has grown into an incredibly handsome man who runs his own company.