Sunday, February 1, 2009

Tom-Boys? Are masculine named girls the next big thing?

I try as hard as I can to keep up with new or possible naming trends. And for a while now, it seems to me that the new thing in naming is boyishly named girls.

I was hoping this might trend might fizzle out before it could get as popular as I fear it is about to become. But no, much to my dismay little Tom-Boys are popping out all over the place.

Now this is no cutting edge trend. Parents of young girls have been pinching names from the parents of young boys for.....I'd guess about 3 generations.

Courtney
Leslie
Addison
Avery
Peyton (sorry to all those who like this name but it has to be my least favourite name EVER!)
Ashley
Lindsay

And what do these names have in common? They are all originally masculine names and now, never in a million years would parents choose these old favourites for their sons.

However, it is my opinion that it has only been in recent times that parents are taking this uni-sex name thing to the next level. Last week in the Perth births and deaths section there was a Thomasina. And this week some unlikely names for girls have appeared.

-Tyler Rose
-Chelsea Hunter
-Ava Cruz
-Eliza Ivy John

Also, recently the name Jagger Joseph Blue was voted the worst celebrity baby girl name of 2008. Yes this name was for a girl. What were they thinking!?!?!?! These are all boys names!

And it's not just in the younger generation that names like the above. Obama's mother's given name is Stanley because her parents wanted a boy.

Sorry to say I just can't get into this trend. To me boys names are for boys, girls names are for girls and unisex names can be used for either. A girl whose name includes John doesn't work for me. Don't even get me started on Hunter! I hate this name for a boy or a girl! There are more way to achieve a name that is a bit more unusual than Jane Doe than by submitting to this trend. Please tell me that the general population has more sense than that!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

As I observe most of the name of a girl now a days are not so feminine...it is a Unisex name:D...like my name:)..

Kim D. said...

Amen! I agree. Stop taking the little boy names away from the boys! The girls have enough choice as it is.

Laura said...

i read an article recently and the parents wanted to call their daugher a girls name then middle name of man to honour her father. I think thats cute an all but perhaps if they have another child and its a boy... honour him them.