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What’s in a Name?

Say it Rah-shay By Jul 22, 2011 2 Comments

Day 21- What names would you NEVER name a child or pet? What name do you wish you had been named? Do you like the name of your blog?

So. If The Dad had had his way we would have been calling The Bee Saffron. Yup. That was the name that he thought we should bestow upon our young child. When I was preggers with The Bee it was such a huge deal to think about what top name her. Her name was going to be something that she carried for life; something that she was and not just anything would do. The Dad and I went through all kinds of suggestions, input from friends and family, strangers (its amazing how being pregnant can cause strangers to share with you some of their most intimate thoughts!) and here are some that didn’t quite make it:
As a kid I loved the names

  • Tiger Lily (yes, from Peter Pan)
  • Emilee Diamond (Yes, Emilee. With an ‘ee’ ’cause that is how I roll)
  • Benjamin Maximilian (that poor little boy would have been neurotic learning to spell his name)
  • Annabelle (until I read that Fergie had considered naming one of her daughters that and uh, no!)
  • Unique Zenith. You read that right.

When I was in my early twenties I worked in a hospital and helped register new mothers and infants. Some of the names I heard made me rethink the, ah unique names I thought of. There was little Sophine, a boy who’s mother was NOT named Sophia; Treasure, a cute name but not my bag and Keyshawn. The name itself isn’t so bad; the way the dad was trying to spell it was the thing. He asked my opinion and insisted I write down the variety of ways I thought it should be spelled. So Keeshaun/Keyshawn/Kehshawn is running around out there with a name that I had input in (Uh, yay?)

When I was preggers with The Bee, the geek in me was quite strong. The Dad and I seriously considered Avery for either a boy or girl, Benjamin or Cassidy. We really, really liked Deep Space Nine. The name we finally settled on fits The Bee perfectly. When she was born and I held her for the first time I looked at her bright eyes and just knew. She IS her name and never once has she asked for a different name*. Unlike me who hated being named Rachee so much that I used to have people call me Rachel. I love my name now but hated it as a kid! First of all no one could say it right…Rah-chee? Ray-chee? Who the bleep would name their kid something like that? Then I could NEVER, never ever find my name on personalized stuff. Who wants a plastic plate for their car that reads “Cool Girl?” I wanted one that read “Rachee!”
Sigh!
As for my blog…yup. I love the name; it’s the Rachee show, yo! When I was 33 I made the decision to enforce proper pronunciation of my name.  When I was 34 I really enforced it and now let EVERYONE know what the deal is. Say it Rah-shay is on my e-mails, my twitter handle and everywhere. (Although my friend sixyearitch thought my handle read Say it Trashy but whatevs).
It’s your turn:
What say you?
Also, what’s the funkiest name you’ve heard?
Saying it Rah-shay,
-r

*Well, once she did ask why her middle wasn’t some kind of gem but I chalk that up to too many Winx Club views.

Author

I am mom, daughter, sister, yarn lover, word lover, crazy cat lady and library chick. Find me with book or with hook and a hot cuppa.

2 Comments

  1. Vanessa Y Rogers says:
    July 24, 2011 at 4:43 am

    There are some pretty crazy names out there- Princess is a name I’ve heard, for a baby, not a stripper. Shithead- is an Indian name pronounced shith- eed, an unfortunate spelling. I think with all the new names and spellings out there, it will become more impossible for the name plates to capture the names of even the majority of the US population’s names.

    Reply
  2. Vanessa Y Rogers says:
    August 15, 2011 at 5:37 pm

    There are some pretty crazy names out there- Princess is a name I’ve heard, for a baby, not a stripper. Shithead- is an Indian name pronounced shith- eed, an unfortunate spelling. I think with all the new names and spellings out there, it will become more impossible for the name plates to capture the names of even the majority of the US population’s names.

    Reply

Your turn! Tell it to Rah-shay!