We feel for the Hermiones and Elsas of the world, who already had their monikers before their famous namesakes.
With popular culture being one of the biggest sources of inspiration for baby names, obscure names can quickly begin to trend on birth certificates.
For one dad, he chose a name he thought was unique and true to his self-ascribed ‘hippie’ ways – that was until a cult Netflix TV show came along.
Writing on Reddit page Tragedeigh – which discusses names that has been ‘deliberately misspelled or completely made up to appear more unique than it actually is’ – the dad said he picked the name Eleven.
He said: ‘My hippie baby mama and I named our kid Eleven. This was before the Stranger Things came out. We thought it was mystical, beautiful, and cool and unique.
‘And we were annoying self-righteous hippies. I always figured she’d want to change it, but she’s in middle school now and still rocking it. She says “at least nobody forgets my name”.’
Of course, Stranger Things came out, with the hit Netflix show putting actress Millie Bobbie Brown, who plays Eleven, on the map.
The dad said his daughter, who is in school, has the option to go by Elle or Ellie if she prefers. But Eleven loves the name and doesn’t go by any nicknames.
He said: ‘I feel bad sometimes, and constantly get asked what the deal is with her name. And a lot of people are bad at time so they’ll ask me if she is named after the show, or a lot of folks assume she adopted it after the show.
‘She LOVES Stranger Things, which I just find to be the cutest thing ever.’
Before the show became a smash hit though, the father-of-one was shocked when he found someone else, who was older than his child, with the same moniker as her.
‘We were at a pool several years ago and a young man comes up to me says “is your kids name Eleven? That’s my name!” He had only ever met one other in his life, he was also a child of hippies from Kentucky,’ he wrote.
Eleven hasn’t made any popular baby name lists yet, and it doesn’t even rank in the US, but while this was initially a selling-point for the dad, he now feels he should have chosen a different name.
‘It’s definitely something I regret now that I’m no longer a card carrying hippie,’ he said. ‘But I also love my kid and her weird name is part of her story. Won’t be mad if she starts going by Elle or something though.’
Redditors loved the quirky name. One person, @selathari, wrote: ‘I definitely thought of Stranger Things immediately (love the show), but I also kind of genuinely like the sound of it.
‘It’s pretty, not horrifically misspelled, easy to shorten to Elle or Ellie, and most importantly — she likes it.’
Top 10 girls names for 2024:
Mumsnet has the top 10 girls names that are trending in 2024, and unsurprisingly Eleven hasn’t made the cut.
1. Olivia – a firm favourite for many years. Of English, Greek, Latin, and Nordic origin, meaning ‘olive’ or ‘olive tree’.
2. Amelia – of Germanic, Greek and Italian origin, meaning ‘industrious’, ‘ever improving’, ‘hard work’ or ‘fertile’.
3. Isla – a popular Scottish baby name. Isla means ‘island’.
4. Ava – of Latin, Hebrew, and Persian origins, meaning variously, ‘voice’, ‘bird’, ‘water’ and ‘sweet melody’. With all these associations, we can see why it’s a popular choice.
5. Lily – of English and Greek origin, after the flower, which symbolises purity and innocence.
6. Ivy – a name that has climbed over 100 places in popularity in the last few years. Of Old English origin, Ivy appropriately means ‘climber’, ‘climbing vine plant’, or ‘vine’.
7. Freya – of Norse origin. Freya, wife of Odin, is one of the most famous of the Norse gods. If you’re looking for a name rich with mythology, this one’s for you! For more Norse name inspiration, see our list of Norse baby names.
8. Florence – of Latin origin, meaning ‘prosperous’, ‘blooming’ or ‘flourishing’.
9. Isabella – of Latin, Italian, and Spanish origin, meaning ‘God is my oath’.
10. Mia – of Scandinavian and Italian origin, meaning ‘beloved’ or ‘the bitter ocean’.
Another, @Ok-communications4264, wrote; ‘Sounds like you raised your kid well, and she has an optimistic and resilient personality.
‘This is the best case scenario for anyone who has an attention-grabbing name.’
However, not everyone was on board. One person, @motherteresaonlyfans, said: ‘Naming a child is not like creating an original fictional character, and in my honest opinion, it’s unfair to saddle a child (who did not consent to be born in the first place) with an intentionally wacky name because you want to provoke reactions in strangers.
‘If you want that kind of attention, change your own name or wear a ridiculous outfit or something – it’s not something to do to a child, especially when it will always be a part of their important legal documents and affect their personal, academic, and professional lives.
‘It demonstrates both a lack of foresight and lack of consideration for the well-being of the child. Heck, it honestly comes across like not really seeing the child as a fully separate human being with their own thoughts and feelings.’
Thoughts?
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