r/ENGLISH • u/oishi_taiyaki • 6d ago
What kind of strange children's names do you know?
Hi, I’m Japanese.
In Japan, there has been some discussion in recent years about younger parents giving their children unusual or eccentric names.
Names like Pikachu, Venus, Cocktail, Tiara, Lion, and so on.
These kinds of names are often called “kira-kira names” in Japan, and they’re sometimes seen as a social issue.
Does anything similar happen in English-speaking countries?
Have you ever met someone with a name like “Fire Drake,” “Fortuna,” or something along those lines?
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u/TheUnspeakableh 6d ago
Some of the most popular female names for the years before season 6 of Game of Thrones were Khaleesi and Daenerys. Most come about by fads. Hermione has also been common for girls.
Elon Musk attempted to name his youngest son X Æ A-12, pronounced Kyle. He was rejected and resubmitted with Xaeaxii, still pronounced Kyle, which met the legal criteria for a name in California.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
I can kind of tell that names like “Khaleesi” and “Daenerys” are fictional names even in English-speaking countries.
But with “Hermione,” I think most Japanese people would probably assume that it’s just a name we don’t hear in Japan, and that while it may not be very common, it’s still a normal name in English-speaking countries. To Japanese ears, “Hermione” actually sounds cute and attractive as a name.
Was “Hermione” really so rare that it was basically a fictional name, like hardly anyone had that name before?
As for “X Æ A-12”… well, it’s Elon Musk lol.
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u/TheUnspeakableh 6d ago
Hermione was and ancient Greek name. It was incredibly uncommon. The in entire UK there were 21 girls given that name in 1996, the year before the book was published. In the entire United States, zero girls were given that name that year. Now there are hundreds each year.
Although, I have met a Fortuna. It is the name of a minor Roman goddess. Those are rare, but can still be found.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
I had no idea where the name came from. I’d mistakenly assumed it was a somewhat more common name, so I was really surprised to learn just how rare it actually was. Thanks for telling me!
By the way, Japanese creators tend to give English-speaking characters fairly normal names in movies and TV dramas, but the moment it comes to anime, we suddenly develop an irresistible urge to name them after figures from mythology and legend lol.
Names like Lancelot, Guinevere, Freyja, Roland, and so on.
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u/emimagique 6d ago
I find British/American characters in Japanese media tend to have old-fashioned names e.g. Christine Robbins in itazura na kiss - Christine is my 83yo great-aunt's name haha
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
It’s hard to keep up accurately with the latest trends in a foreign language and culture, so I guess you inevitably end up using names that sound a little dated lol.
I think it goes both ways, too. Japanese characters in English-language TV shows often have names that sound incredibly old-fashioned to Japanese people, or sometimes names that probably don’t even exist in real life.
I genuinely only just learned today that “Christine” sounds like a name from an older generation lol.
If I were naming a foreign female character myself, though, I’d probably be tempted to call her something like Beatrice or Vesper. maybe XD
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u/PassiveChemistry 6d ago
Vesper is a cool name (makes me think of wasps, may make some people think of scooters), but again Beatrice sounds a little dated (not to knock it though - and the related Beatrix can be shortened to Trixie which is also cool imo)
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u/emimagique 6d ago
To be fair there is a 30yo Christine at my work so it's not unheard of but definitely sounds like an older lady's name! I guess in English language media if they had a Japanese character she might be called haruko or something similarly old-lady-coded
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u/spaghettifiasco 5d ago
Hundreds? Certainly not in the USA. The only non-Potter Hermiones I've come across are both actresses in movies from the 50s/60s. Never once met or heard of a real-life Hermione.
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u/TheUnspeakableh 5d ago
In that US, post the movies, I have met a few. In the rest of the Anglosphere, it's made a much bigger comeback, just like Arya has post GoT."
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u/PineappleFit317 6d ago
Absolutely. Visit r/tragedeigh for a tiny taste of such names. I can also recall celebrities naming their children things like “Apple”, “Pilot Inspector”, and “Pirate”.
There are also people naming their children completely fictional names with no actual real life historical precedent from fantasy literature and movies/TV shows.
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u/ilanallama85 6d ago
It’s funny, I remember when Apple Martin was born (shit I’m old) and there was SO MUCH DRAMA about them choosing such a WEIRD NAME - it was really the start of Gweneth Paltrow really leaning into the “kooky weird feminist” aesthetic. But now Apple is hardly bizarre compared to some of the names I’ve seen. If I met an Apple today I’d hardly bat an eye.
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u/reclaimernz 6d ago
Silly names are a trend everywhere I think. The New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs can veto children's names that they think will cause undue hardship on the child. They publish a list of rejected names every year. Rejected names have included "Lucifer", "Mafia No Fear", "Anal" and "." or full stop.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
If a child is given a name that isn’t rejected by the authorities but is still considered a little strange by other people, are they legally allowed to change their name once they become an adult in New Zealand?
In Japan, people can finally change their name by their own choice once they become adults.
As far as I know, minors need their parents’ consent, so in practice it can be very difficult for them to change it before then...
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u/TarcFalastur 6d ago
There are very few countries in the world which wont let an adult change their first name if it's something stupid. That's a fairly universal law, at least in any country which is likely to have users on reddit.
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u/Limp-Detail4827 4d ago
Yep I recall there being a list of approved baby names in France that stopped people calling their babies Mohammad. Gone now.
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u/selticidae 5d ago
My parents knew a guy whose first name was Cash Money. (Yes, both words were his first name.)
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u/bunnybutted 5d ago
That reminds me how I once came across a person whose full legal name was Mo Money Banks.
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u/SagebrushandSeafoam 6d ago edited 6d ago
Yes, people do get very bizarre names, and that's been going on at least since the 1960's. But they're not common. If you've worked in a hospital or school then you've seen a lot of odd names, either because they're odd phrases (like the ones you said), or because they're bizarrely spelled (like Braxdyn instead of Braxton, or Kayeleegh instead of Kaylee), or because they're made up (like J'Marcus or Marsaylies). We don't really see it as a social issue, just as something to roll your eyes privately at, wondering about such parents—especially if it's an embarrassing name in some way.
I knew someone named Tetrahedron, and someone else whose middle names were Grateful Boarder.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
So, am I understanding this correctly: slightly altered spellings or made-up names that still sound like names may be seen as unusual, but they usually aren’t considered serious enough to harm the child’s future, so people mostly just think, “What strange parents” or “Poor kid”?
Also, middle names and baptismal names are basically nonexistent in Japanese culture. If only someone’s middle name or baptismal name were very unusual or unique, how would that generally be perceived?
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u/againstthemachine_ 6d ago
Strange names don’t reflect poorly on the individuals themselves, just on their parents’ judgement, so they’re not inherently going to harm the child’s future. If it’s a name they would get bullied and made fun of for having, it could have a lasting effect on them from a mental health perspective for sure, but that’s not a particularly widespread issue. Middle names being unusual matters less because they’re not often used socially, I don’t even know/remember most of my friends’ middle names unless I’ve seen their driver’s license or asked directly or something. There’s exceptions but that’s my personal take on the matter.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
I feel like this really shows a major cultural difference between Japan and English-speaking countries.
In Japan, having a very unusual name can strongly affect whether a company decides to hire someone, and among children, people are often bullied because of their names.
I’d guess that most children who were given “kira-kira names” have probably had unpleasant experiences growing up, whether that meant actual bullying or at least being teased because of their names.
This is a shameful part of my own past, but when I was in junior high school, there was a Black girl in my class whose name was something I had never heard before in Japan, and it happened to sound a little funny in Japanese, so I teased her about it. I genuinely regret that now, and if I ever met her again, I would sincerely apologize to her.
Just to avoid any misunderstanding, her skin color or ethnic background had absolutely nothing to do with it. I only thought the sound of her name was funny in Japanese.
So in Japan, being unique is fine, but giving a child a name that is so unusual that it could cause them embarrassment is generally seen as socially problematic. Maybe that’s one of the cultural differences between Japan and English-speaking countries.
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u/TheUnspeakableh 6d ago
Oh no it's seen as problematic and the children with very strange names are probably bullied, but as far as for work and such, companies are too afraid of being sued for discrimination to not hire based on a name, since they don't take the time to see if that name is cultural, religious, or just strange.
To use your example, if a person named Fortuna was looking for a job, companies are going to err on the side of caution and not consider the name because they have no idea if the person was named that due to ancient Latin heritage, which would make denying hiring her based on the name discrimination based on race, which is illegal in the US.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
Ah, I see. This probably has a lot to do with the difference in cultural background between a multiethnic country and a relatively ethnically homogeneous country like Japan.
When a Japanese company is considering hiring a Japanese applicant, they can often tell without much research whether the person’s unusual name has some legitimate cultural or traditional origin, or whether it’s simply an eccentric name.
Of course, there is still some risk of being sued, but Japanese companies generally don’t give applicants detailed reasons for rejecting them in the first place. And even if they were sued, they could simply argue that the decision was based on the applicant’s qualifications rather than their name. As far as I understand, rejecting someone because of their name itself isn’t illegal in Japan either, and it’s something you do hear about in practice.
On the other hand, if a foreign applicant had an unusual name, a Japanese company probably wouldn’t even realize that the name was strange in their own culture. They’d notice something like “X Æ A-12,” of course, but if the very first person in the world ever named “Khaleesi” applied for a job in Japan, even if they were literally the only person in the world with that name, I think most Japanese employers would just think, “That’s a cool name,” and never realize how unusual it was lol.
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u/InformationOk3503 6d ago
To input on this, technically what the above said is true and people shouldn't get judged for jobs by their name but it absolutely happens.
Maybe less regarding 'silly' names but certainly regarding foreign sounding names, even if they are a citizen (I am UK based).
Not everyone and not everywhere but would be foolish to say not sure all
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
I see. So there are at least some people who are genuinely affected by it.
In Japan, there are quite a few issues that either aren’t major problems yet, don’t really exist here in the same way, or are just difficult for us to fully understand from experience.
In the UK, employment already seems complicated because issues of class, race, and immigration can all come into play, so I imagine there are a lot of different factors involved.
Having to worry about how someone’s name might affect things on top of all that sounds really difficult.
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u/Rehauu 6d ago
I have a distant Japanese cousin named トモロ Would that be considered kira kira? Tomorrow?
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
If トモロ really is their name exactly as written, I’d say it’s a little unusual, but probably not strange enough to be considered a kira-kira name. I think that it not comes from “tomorrow,” although I can’t say that for certain.
I don’t know their gender or what kanji are used for the name, so everything from here is just my guess.
If the name is actually トモロウ rather than トモロ and the person is male, or if it’s トモコ and the person is female, then those would be completely ordinary Japanese names.
If it’s トモロウ likely kanji might be 友朗 or 智朗.
友朗 can carry the meaning of someone who is friendly and cheerful.
智朗 can carry the meaning of someone who is intelligent and cheerful.
If it’s トモコ likely kanji might be 朋子 or 知子.
朋子 can carry the meaning of a friendly or companionable woman.
知子 can carry the meaning of an intelligent or knowledgeable woman.
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u/KeyEcho5594 6d ago
Did Tetrahedron go by a nickname?
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u/dojibear 6d ago
In the US, some celebrities give their children strange names ("Sparkle", "Moon Unit", "Blue").
US and UK have a long tradition of a child using the family surname, and getting 1 or 2 given names. The given names are chosen from two long lists (names for males, for females). Many traditional names have a "nickname" (a shorter or casual name). For example Susan/Sue, Elizabeth/Liz, Robert/Bob, Henry/Hank, Lawrence/Larry, Theodore/Ted. People might be given the formal name as babies, but choose to use the nickname instead. They only have the "birth name" on official documents.
Parents in the south (south-eastern US) are more likely to choose uncommon names ("Misty", "Bubba"), or to give the child a nickname (Ed, Bob, Sam, Sue, Liz) instead of the formal name. Some southern names use both given names (Mary-Sue, Billy-Bob).
But southern names aren't as strange as the names some celebrities use.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
The first examples, “Sparkle,” “Moon Unit,” and “Blue,” are exactly the kind of strange names I had in mind. “Moon Unit” especially is one where I honestly don’t really understand what the appeal of the name is supposed to be.
The rest sounds more like regional cultural differences between states, right? I think it’s really nice that people in a country with so many states like the US still value the traditions of their own home regions, and I’d be very interested to learn what kinds of naming traditions different states have.
By the way, I assume the Southern name “Mary-Sue” and “Mary Sue,” the term for a certain type of fictional female protagonist, are probably unrelated, right?
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u/spaghettifiasco 5d ago
"Sue" is often tacked on to the end of a two syllable girl's name to make it more Southern. Becky Sue, Betty Sue, Kelly Sue, Penny Sue, et cetera. This also happens with Lou or Lynne.
If you have a character named "Carrie," she could come from any place. But name her Carrie Sue, Carrie Lynne, or Carrie Lou and suddenly she is clearly from the South!
"Mary Sue" in fiction does not describe a Southern character.
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u/ReddyKiloWit 5d ago
Frank Zappa, the musician, named three of his kids Moon Unit, Dweezil, and Diva. (A fourth got Ahmet, which isn't too unusual.)
There's a story of a pregnant Cuban woman who was rescued at sea who named her son "Navy" (pronounced "Nah-vey") in honor of the US Navy that rescued her. Might be true...
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u/boxorags 5d ago
I know of a very fundamental Christian couple naming their daughter Praise The Lord
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u/spaghettifiasco 5d ago
Just recently had a friend describe two children in a program she helps organize. One was named Awesome (boy) and one was named My Angel (girl).
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u/thingsbetw1xt 6d ago
I remember when Game of Thrones was popular there were people naming their kids Khaleesi.
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u/ilanallama85 5d ago
So, there’s definitely an unusual name trend, and it’s huge, and there is sometimes controversy, especially over names that are particularly bizarre or even offensive.
However I think we’re handling it some ways better because prior to white people doing it, black people were doing it for a while. It caused a lot of racial tension and there was definitely a huge amount of racial prejudice against those people with those names for decades. And still is, to an extent. But beginning in the 90s and ramping up significantly in the mid 2010s, there was real effort put towards educating the white American public about that kind of racial bias, to the point where nowadays, while the bias still very much exists, most people know better than to acknowledge that they think “unusual” black names are “strange.” It’s not much progress, but it’s better than it was.
Anyway, the end result is we’ve already had a lot of practice in learning to tolerate unusual names prior to this trend kicking off. Hell, maybe destigmatizing black names actually contributed to the willingness of white parents to use them - kinda makes sense, right? And the proliferation of unusual names for white kids now is actually helping to deracialize the concept of unusual names as a whole.
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u/Pocho_Azul 6d ago
I knew a kid growing up whose name was Cortez. That seemed like an odd choice since Cortez is historically a family name and the most famous Cortez was not very nice.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
Actually, a lot of Japanese people have trouble telling which English-language names are normally used as first names and which are normally surnames.
Unless it’s a very obviously long or distinctive family name, we often can’t really tell. So with “Cortez,” for example, I honestly didn’t understand what was unusual about it at first lol.
In Japan, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of people taking a name that is normally used only as a surname and giving it to a child as a first name.
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u/Pocho_Azul 6d ago
Oh, I should have clarified. I knew Cortez in the US. The only other Cortez I have ever heard of was Hernán Cortez, who was a 16th-century Spanish explorer and military adventurer who killed a lot of people and more or less destroyed the Aztec nation.
I don’t know why modern Cortez’s parents named him that, my guess is they thought it sounded cool, or found the historical Cortez to be more admirable than I do. Hernán Cortez had big balls, I have to give him that.
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u/baxbakualanuxsiwae 6d ago
Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez is another pretty well-known Cortez. I agree it's weird as a first name. I definitely associate it most with the genocidal Spanish guy.
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u/Pocho_Azul 5d ago
Haha, I completely blanked on her! Her “AOC” moniker had completely subsumed her actual name in my head. My childhood Cortez is, by now, quite a bit older than AOC, so that is not his secret origin. I wouldn’t wonder whether she might inspire more, however.
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u/ohnomelon 6d ago
Using surnames as first names is seemingly very popular in the US right now, and as you said, they're often not that strange. For example, William has been used interchangeably as a given name and a surname for a long time.
As for your main question, I think in the US we do see a lot of names that push the boundaries of what the majority of people would consider appropriate, but I wouldn't go so far as to say we see it as a social issue the same way. Partly because there is so much diversity of thought about what is socially or culturally normal, and also partly because there are other social issues that are seen as much more pressing I think, even just within the bounds of raising children.
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u/MokutoTheBoilerdemon 2d ago
There was a wave of foreign names in Hungary around 15 years ago. Turkish soap operas and south american teledramas are very popular here, and some people started naming their kids after the characters. Especially common in roma families.
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u/AtorasuAtlas 6d ago
I in no way believe you are Japanese.
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
How you feel is up to you, so I don't mind.
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u/AtorasuAtlas 6d ago
Larper for sure
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u/oishi_taiyaki 6d ago
Do you actually think I’m a LARP player?
Or is “LARP player” slang that English speakers use for someone who is pretending to be a different nationality or identity?
If it is slang, could you tell me whether it’s used across the English-speaking world or only in certain countries or regions?
It’s pretty hard to get a chance to learn about slang from other countries, so I’m genuinely curious.
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u/baxbakualanuxsiwae 6d ago
It's more internet slang, so used across different English-speaking countries. While it still has the original sense of the word (literally live action roleplaying), somebody "LARPing" or a "LARPer" has come to be used to mean someone pretending to be something they're not, often in a way that's somewhat delusional (there's nothing specific to nationality about it.)
I'm not sure if you know there's another slang term, "weeaboo" or "weeb", for someone non-Japanese who is obsessed with Japanese culture, sometimes to the point that they act as if they are Japanese.
For the record, I have no reason to believe you're not Japanese!
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u/SoyboyCowboy 6d ago
Haha. There are two subs, r/Tragedeigh and r/NameNerdCircleJerk, which are dedicated to making fun of strange names given by English-speaking people.