When my husband and I sat down with the all-important task of naming our future son, we knew we wanted a real stand-out moniker.
A name we wouldn’t hear shouted by four other parents every time we went to the playground. A name that wouldn’t double up on his class roll-call each year. We wanted something unique. A name that was ours, that nobody else in our extended circle would ever consider using.
I’m just kidding.
We named our son Jackson.
Sure, we liked the idea of naming him something a bit more unique. But when it came down to it, and we stumbled upon “Jackson”, we both just liked it so much. The deal was done.
Thankfully, there weren’t yet any other Jacksons in our lives. We didn’t feel like we were stealing someone else’s name. But if one of our friends had had a Jackson? We probably would have gone ahead with it anyway.
Does that sound controversial?
Here’s the way I see it.
Inevitably, there is going to be a day when Jackson comes face-to-face with a name-twin. There are going to be many of those days, actually, given that his name was the 39th most popular boy name in Australia the year he was born.
So being so careful to avoid “baby name stealing” or “copying” a friend’s child’s name is kind of pointless.
I mean I could have literally walked into my first mothers’ group session and met two other tiny baby Jacksons, and nobody would have minded. But when there’s an existing relationship in place with a fellow parent, it feels awkward to double up on their kid’s name.
Rest assured, if one of my friends decides to use my son’s name, or any of my future kiddos’ names for that matter, I’m not going to be muttering to my husband, “Ugh. I can’t BELIEVE she stole our name! WE came up with that name! Nobody else could possibly like it as much as us! How dare she copy us!”.
Instead, I’m much more likely to be high-fiving her and chirping, “Oh cool, you called your kid Jackson too. Aren’t we great at picking awesome baby names?!”
Clearly a lot of parents feel differently on the matter, though.
Click into any pregnancy forum and you’re likely to stumble upon a devastated parent lamenting over a friend using “their name” before they had the chance. Most of the responses will echo that devastation. Rarely will someone chime in and suggest they go ahead and use their beloved name even if it means there will be two little Charlottes running around at their annual BBQ catch-ups.
Every name = fair game!
Mums of Australia, just relax! None of us owns our kids’ names. Unless your friend copies your exact one-of-a-kind, unique spelling of K8-lun (don’t do it. Spell Caitlin like a normal person.), it’s safe to say she’s not baby name stealing or copying you. She just really loves the name, which means she must have pretty great taste, right?
Luckily when it comes to baby naming, Mum Central has you covered!
If you’re looking for something truly unique, check out our list of 40 baby names that have fallen out of fashion. Or perhaps these 50 edgy and trend-setting names.
Just whatever you do, steer clear of these baby names banned by the Aussie Government!
