Unpopular Baby Names: What NOT To Call Your Child

Unpopular Baby Names: What NOT To Call Your Child
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A list of unpopular baby names has become a massive hit on social network Reddit.

A thread starting with the question 'What baby name makes you want to punch the parent in the face?' (nice) has so far received more than 18,000 comments - proving that Katie Hopkins is not alone in having an irrational dislike of certain names. Unfortunately, it seems that there isn't a single name in the world that won't inspire anger in someone. But remember, for every person who hates a name, there's another who loves it, so take this list with a pinch of salt.

However, the thread is worth a read if you fancy a giggle at some of the reasons people give for disliking names.

So, what names are most likely to inspire the wrath of a Reddit user?

Names that mark a child out as 'special' or 'precious'

Naming your child after a gemstone such as 'diamond' or after currency, for instance 'Money' pronounced Moe-nay, is likely to put many Reddit users' backs up. One was particularly upset by a friend who named their twin daughters 'Perfect' and 'Precious.'

Hitting the bottle

"My brother dated a girl named Sherry," one Reddit user wrote. "Normal enough name until I met her family. Her parents were heavy alcoholics and had six children: Sherry, Brandy, Jack, Johnny, and Margarita. He didn't even notice till I pointed it out on the drive home!"

Backwards thinking

A couple of commenters report knowing children called Yarp and Evol - that's pray and love spelled backwards. The name Neveah is disliked for a similar reason.

Irregular spellings

Thinking of spicing up a traditional name by spelling it unusually? For instance, Juaqlyne instead of Jacqueline...

Don't, according to Reddit users.

A momentous location

Paris, London, Brooklyn - it doesn't matter where in the world you choose, these names are all as likely to inspire anger in Reddit users as each other.

As one puts it "Okay, you conceived a child in a city, but there is no need to name them after it."

Musical inspiration

One celebrity whose baby name took a mocking in the thread is Jason Lee - star of TV show My Name is Earl. He named his son Pilot Inspektor after a song by indie rock band Grandaddy.

Speaking about the song 'He's Simple, He's Dumb, He's the Pilot,' Jason said: "It absolutely blew my mind when I first heard it. It was from this track that my wife, Beth, came up with the name Pilot for our son."

Repetition

Being so good they named him twice, is not a good look in Reddit users' books:

"Phillip Phillips' parents have a lot to answer for," writes one.

Overly popular names

"Names that are extremely EXTREMELY popular and the parents still use it for their new baby," writes one user. "I am Sarah, born in the 80s. In every school event, circle of friends, workplace, etc, I have had to share my name.

"The worst was when my socially awkward self had grown faster than the other girls and I was dubbed 'Big Sarah' in the second grade. Thanks for stomping on my self esteem.

"The way I see it, you get only a few chances to name a human being. For the love of individuality, let your kids have their own name! When I hear 'Sarah!' in a crowd, I don't even turn to look out of instinct. It's not my name, I share it with what seems like half the other girls in my age group."

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