Hey parents. There’s a pretty good chance Nana hates your baby’s name, especially if you opted for Jack, Noah, Aurora or Charlotte.
According to research just in, one in five grandparents hates their grandchildren’s names. That’s right – nearly 20 per cent of new Nanas and Papas are cursing your child’s chosen moniker.
And many aren’t afraid to admit it.
Come and have a look at the other baby names that grandparents hate the most, you know, just in case you feel like starting a family feud…
Did your little one’s name make this exclusive list?
Names Nana Hates
What name really grinds grandparents’ gears?
UK site, Mumsnet set out to find the answer to this very question. They surveyed 2,000 grandparents and parents to uncover what the family REALLY thinks of bub’s name.
One in five grandparents admitted to hating their grandchild’s name. I know, we can’t believe it either! And another one in six parents surveyed say their own mother or father hates their choice of baby name.
And it’s the grannies who are far more critical and vocal about their feelings towards a name. All up, 44 per cent of parents say their own mothers hate the baby name they chose, while 42 per cent of baby name complaints came from mums-in-law. Grandfathers appear to know to keep their mouths shut- only 14 percent cop the blame for baby name hate.
The ‘baby name wars’ within families means that choosing a baby name that will please everyone is trickier than ever. Some families have even had massive falling outs over baby names. And a handful of mums even ended their relationship with the grandparent because of the baby name disagreement.
The No-Go Names
According to the survey, if you really want to piss off your parents, choose one of the following names for your new addition:
Girls
- Aurora
- Charlotte
- Edna
- Lindsey
- Sally
- Bertha
- Tabitha
Boys
- Jack
- Noah
- Roger
- Elijah
- Frank
- Finn
- Ian
What’s to hate?
Okay, so some of these names are clearly a little old fashioned, like Edna. But most are decent. And cute. And popular (Charlotte and Jack both made the list). So why no love, Nan?
The top reasons for grandparents’ objections, according to parents, is the name being ‘too odd’ (28 per cent). Other objections include the name being ‘made up’ or ‘unconventional’ (15 per cent) or ‘too old fashioned’ (11 per cent).
Ten per cent of grandparents don’t like a name because it reminds them of someone they dislike while another 10 per cent think the name will ’embarrass the child’. Other reasons include the name being simply ‘too plain’, ‘too ugly’, ‘too hard to pronounce’ or ‘too difficult to spell’.
Then there are the 30 per cent of grandparents that don’t like the name simply because it’s not the name they wanted, or a family name. *INSERT MAJOR EYE ROLL HERE*.
What’s in a name?
Of course, some grandparents keep their opinions to themselves but many opt not to. One in 10 grandparents admit that their first response to the name choice was “What?”. Nine per cent of grandparents avoid using the name at all, with another nine per cent shortening bub’s name to something they prefer.
Love it or loath it, grandparents are urged to keep their mouths shut and parents are urged to ignore the hate, Mumsnet founder Justine Roberts suggests.
“Choosing a baby name is fraught enough for parents if you’re only taking into account your own views; if you add grandparents’ biases to the mix it can become impossible.”
“Parenthood is one long object lesson in not pleasing everyone.” After all, haters are gonna hate. Even grandmas.
Looking for more baby name ideas? Check out the most popular baby names of 2017.
