Do Unusual Names Help or Hurt Children?

When choosing a name for your baby, you should consider the effects of that name on the life of the child.

There are so many things to consider when choosing a name for your baby. Family traditions, religious preferences and ethnicity play a roll as do economic class and geographical region. Once these factors have been figured in the parents must decide whether they want a name that fits with the norms for these parameters or whether the want one that stands out against them. Most parents choose to stick with the more common names (thus making them the more common names) but some break with tradition and give their child a unique name.

Unusual names can be a difficult burden for young children to carry. Kids can be cruel and some names seem to ask for teasing. Be careful that you do not choose a name that opens your child up to ridicule. It is probably not wise to choose a name associated with country music like Chet if you live in an urban area. By the same token, the name Betty Lou, while fairly common in the Southern United States, would probably be a hardship to a child growing up in Boston or Chicago. You should also pay attention to how the first name will fit with the middle or last names. A child should probably not be named Ronald if his last name is Macdonald or La Toya if the last name is Lett. Some children thrive on standing out in a crowd while others want nothing more than to blend in and not be noticed. Unfortunately most names are given at birth so there is no way to know how your child's personality will develop.

Names that stand out can also be a great advantage to a child and the adult they will become. A child with a name that stands out in a teacher's mind is more likely to be remembered by teachers. This leads to the likelihood that the teacher will be aware of that child thus leading to more individualized attention. As an adult the same thing holds true. There is a reason that actors so often choose unusual names as their stage names, they want everyone to remember them. The same holds true in almost any occupation. Names that stand out from the crowd can help interviewers or members of management remember you more easily, improving the chances for hiring or promotion.

As long as the parent chooses carefully the advantages of an unusual name seem to out weigh the potential social difficulties it can bring. A little extra attention is rarely a bad thing from a child's perspective and as an adult the name could reap large benefits. Besides, even if the child truly hates their name it is unlikely to be so terrible that a good nickname couldn't fix it.